State Forest Dept to plant more than 3.5 lakh saplings in Buxa Tiger Reserve

With the aim of increasing the green density in the State, the Bengal Government has decided to plant more than 3.5 lakh saplings in the Buxa forest in north Bengal. The planting of the saplings by the Forest Department’s administration in Buxa is taking place across two divisions of Buxa Tiger Reserve – East and West.

The West Division covers 75 hectares and the East Division covers 50 hectares.

The department has plans to plant three types of grass in the deep forest, covering an area of 40 hectares. Buxa Tiger Reserve is also one of the few reserves where mixed varieties of trees have been planted.

The 3.5 lakh saplings include saplings of amlaki, hartaki, chalta, bahera, volker, raidak, turturi, gamari, chikrami and other trees. It has been noticed that fruits of many of these trees are preferred by wild animals like elephants and bison.

Similarly, the varieties of grass being planted, like chepti, dhadda, purundi and ekka, are also preferred by many of the herbivorous animals.

Incidentally, a similar a project is on the verge of completion in the Rajabhatkhawa forest.