In Piplantri, a small Indian village in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, people celebrate the birth of a new child by planting trees. This is an example compared to the Indian subcontinent, where the birth of a daughter is often considered anything but a blessing.
Piplantri is the symbol of new life for Indian women. The people of Piplantri have been planting 111 trees for every newborn girl since 2007, and the family has to take care of the plants until the girl grows up. The community of 8,000 residents saves a total of 21,000 rupees (300 euros) for each girl born, plus 10,000 rupees given by the parents.
Shyam Sundar Paliwal In 2007, his youngest daughter passed away. From a social and environmental perspective, successful initiatives have significant benefits.
About 1.5 million trees have been planted in 6 years: they have greened villages, restored deforested areas and provided easy access to water (now only 3 meters underground (previously 200 metres). The plantation also provided employment opportunities for many people; improves the family’s condition and allows the removal of medications. Perceptions of women’s images have changed dramatically and crime has decreased.
Nowadays, many villages follow the Piplantri model and plant trees while improving the image of women.
A new life for Indian women begins with Piplantri.
Celebrating trees
The practice of planting 111 trees to celebrate the girl’s arrival continues. Apart from this, Paliwal also suggested collecting Rs 21,000 from the community and Rs 10,000 from parents and invest the savings in a local bank or post office. This amount can be withdrawn only when the girl turns 18 years of age.
Parents also promise to preserve the trees they plant and educate their daughters. Girls grow up thinking of the trees they planted when they were born as their siblings. Every year, two days before rakshabandhan (a festival where girls honor their siblings), girls tie raksha-sutra or rakhi to trees and vow to protect them.
This day is celebrated as a holiday and parents vow not to marry until their daughter turns 18. “We are now organizing saplings every July and August and the parents of our daughters born last year will start planting saplings named after their daughters (111 trees per child).
Impact
In the last 15 years, the villagers have been growing neem, amla, He has planted around 400,000 saplings of various species like mango, amla, banyan, peepal, arjun and bamboo. Most of the saplings are now growing well and are being planted.
However, people in the village have planted aloe vera trees around the trees to protect the trees from pests.
