Hara Bhara campaign

Hara Bhara campaign

Part of: Prelims and GS III – Sci and Tech

Context The Telangana government recently launched the drone-based afforestation project named ‘Hara Bhara’.

About the campaign

• India’s first aerial seeding campaign by a Seedcopter drone at the KBR Park in Hyderabad was launched by Actor Rana Daggubati, who is the brand ambassador of the project.
  • Aerial seeding is a technique of plantation wherein seed balls — seeds covered with a mixture of clay, compost, char and other components, are sprayed on the ground using aerial devices, including planes, helicopters or drones.
  • These pellets will then sprout when there is enough rain, with the nutrients present within them helping in the initial growth.
• The state Department of Information technology, and Department of Forest have partnered with Marut Drones, a Hyderabad-based drone technology startup, for the first-of-its-kind project in India.
• This project uses drones to disperse seed balls prepared by the local women and welfare communities,  over thin, barren and empty forest lands to turn them into lush green abodes of trees. 
• Under rapid reforestation by drones, 50 lakh trees will be planted in about 12,000 hectares of land in forests across all the 33 districts in the state.
• The campaign is expected to accelerate the mission of Green Telangana under the ‘Haritha Haram’ programme.
• The process begins with a field survey and mapping of the terrain area to understand the ecosystem and demarcate the areas needing urgent attention.