The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has taken up a tree-planting programme under which five lakh trees will be planted this year in Dhaka, Chattogram, Narayanganj and surrounding areas.

BGMEA president Faruque Hassan said this on 10 July at the opening of a week-long (10–16 July) tree-planting programme at the BGMEA building. The programme was inaugurated by Md Atiqul Islam, mayor of Dhaka North City Corporation.

Faruque Hassan said the BGMEA had taken various initiatives at different times to protect the environment and secure a liveable planet for future generations, and the week-long programme continued that effort. There are also plans to plant five lakh trees across the country next year.

He said that alongside government and private initiatives, individuals must take the most initiative. There is no alternative to tree planting for keeping nature in balance and protecting biodiversity, and now (July–August) is the right time to plant.

He added that there is wide scope to plant fruit, timber and medicinal trees at schools and colleges large and small, beside railway lines and roads, at government and private offices, on fallow land along roadsides and in coastal areas, and these opportunities must be used.

"Let each of us become a tree lover," the BGMEA president said. "Wherever there is unused space, at work and at home, in courtyards, on rooftops, along roads and at offices and courts, let us plant trees. By planting more trees, let us build a liveable world for the next generation."

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.