In solidarity with Saudi Arabia's ambitious Green initiative, Indian school students across the Kingdom will plant 40,000 trees. Indian Consul General Mohammed Shahid Alam inaugurated the initiative by handing over saplings to students of International Indian School Jeddah (IISJ) at a ceremony held at the girls' campus premises recently. The ceremony was held to mark the celebration of the 153rd birth anniversary of India's Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi, a great champion who advocated harmonious life with nature. Speaking to Saudi Gazette, Shahid Alam said that 40,000 Indian students will take part in the plantation drive, with every student planting one sapling each, thus contributing to the Saudi Green Initiative (SGI). The Indian diplomatic mission's initiative also coincides with the first anniversary of launching the first wave of over 60 programs and projects worth SR 700 billion investments last October for the growth of the green economy and planting over 10 billion trees in the Kingdom. Shahid Alam described SGI as a fantastic initiative, saying that it is the need of the hour. "The initiative reflects the ambitious vision of a wise and visionary leadership of the country and its keenness to move forward in the direction of protecting and preserving the environment at any cost. It directly echoes with India's ethos and sentiments to protect and preserve the planet that goes hand in hand with the Green initiatives of Saudi Arabia." "There is a commonality between SGI and the Green Initiative of India in terms of protection and preservation of the planet. We are eager to spread the universal ideals of Mahatma Gandhi to live in harmony with nature, as well as to bring down the impact of global warming and carbon emission, apart from preserving a clean environment," he said. According to Alam, the student's participation in SGI comes in line with the monumental role of Indians, who represent nearly one-third of the expatriate community, in the Saudi government's ambitious initiative to improve the quality of life. "In our capacity as the largest expatriate community that actively participates in the nation-building process for several decades, we are keen on ensuring the involvement of our younger generation in this great Saudi initiative. We also want to inculcate values of preserving nature among our younger generation, and instilling in their minds a spark about planting at least one plant during their Saudi student life," he pointed out. Alam said the initiative will be implemented all over the Kingdom in association with VFS Global outsourcing center. In the initial phase, the initiative is being implemented in the western region of Saudi Arabia from Tabuk to Najran. In the later phases, Riyadh and other central and eastern provinces will be covered. The drive will continue until the end of the two-year period of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav celebration on Aug. 15, 2023, to mark the 75th anniversary of India's Independence and the establishment of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and India. The consul general said that the Saudi Ministry of Education and other authorities in the Kingdom and India have already given the go-ahead with our drive to boost SGI. The Saudi authorities have offered spaces for afforestation and in the initial phase, an area in Taif was earmarked for the plantation of saplings by our students. We are keen on geographical spread throughout the Kingdom with the participation of Indian students in their respective regions," he said while noting that there has been tremendous response from both Saudis and Indians to this initiative. "Many Saudis positively reacted and welcomed when we announced this initiative through our social media outlets," he added.
