Ranchi, March 22 Jharkhand's Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Head of Forest Force, Sanjeev Kumar, emphasized on Sunday the urgent need to balance development with sustainability, and called for widespread adoption of green technology to reduce environmental damage.
Due to continuous efforts, the state's forest cover has increased by about 58 square kilometers, the officer told 55 prominent artists gathered here from across India for the 'All India Spring Art Camp' organized by the Jharkhand forest department.
"Green technology should be adopted in this era of rapid development to minimize harm to nature. The state forest department is continuously creating awareness among people to adopt it, as nothing is beyond nature," he said.
About the event, the officer said, "Expressing emotions through painting and sketch art is one of the oldest forms of communication," and asserted that the programme strives to urge people to come together to conserve nature.
"Take steps to save nature from destruction. Our efforts can only be successful when we bring about behavioural changes in our lifestyle that suit nature..
"Forest cover is steadily increasing in the state. According to the 2023 National Forest Survey data, our forest cover has increased by about 58 square kilometers. Earlier, it had increased by 110 sq km," Kumar said.
Around 55 contemporary and local artists from across the nation, including Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Jharkhand, participated in this camp, exhibiting more than 50 paintings dedicated to preserving nature.
"Everyone has the right to live in nature, whether bird, animal, or human. We cannot detach ourselves from nature. Yet, people nowadays are becoming detached from it even while still living within it.
"This causes a great deal of harm to future generations. Psychologically, too, our thinking process is increasingly shifting only towards the economic race. That is why it has become important to remind people that their attachment to nature is more necessary," said Shridhar Patnala, an artist from Andhra Pradesh's Guntur University attending the event.