Governor of Nagaland, La. Ganesan & Rajkumar, IFS, DFO Kohima seen with a painting of Nino during the formal launch of clicktoplant. (Morung Photo)
Vishü Rita Krocha
Kohima | June 9
“In honour of my father’s memory, may this oak tree overcome all the obstacles and grow to be strong, tall and healthy. I hope it provides shed to someone on a hot sunny day and shelter from rain.”
This is a tweet by Chuilei Wangnao after she planted an oak tree sapling online in response to the novel initiative of the Kohima Forest Division conceptualised by Rajkumar, IFS, Divisional Forest Officer, Kohima. The initiative- “clicktoplant”, where people can plant a tree sapling online while sitting in the comfort of their homes, was formally launched on World Environment Day by the Governor of Nagaland, La. Ganesan.
Planting trees in memory of a loved one is a meaningful tribute to a life well lived. On June 7, Ayieno Kechü also planted cherry trees in memory of her mother, who, she said “would have turned 72 this month” in a tweet. “Some cherry trees for her 2nd birthday in heaven. I hope the saplings grow into strong and healthy trees just as my love for her continues to grow,” her tweet further read.
Such moving tributes weren’t something that Rajkumar, IFS expected when he first envisioned the clicktoplant initiative. “I didn’t expect that people would plant in memory of their loved ones, but thought they would do it in their children’s names as gifts on their birthdays or anniversaries. I really felt emotional seeing those,” he related to The Morung Express.
However, he said, tributes such as these, “give us more responsibility” while expressing that “people have done this with full trust, so we have to monitor and ensure that the trees are planted and maintained as well. We can’t possibly ensure that all the trees survive 100% but we will monitor and see to it that the best possible care is given.”
Eco-warriors as they are acknowledged in the certificate of appreciation for helping save the planet from climate change by planting a sapling or more in Nagaland; have also come up with creative ways to join in the initiative. Some of them have planted in the name of their cats which were tweeted as: “My cat Fiona has planted her first sapling in Nagaland. Go plant yours http://clicktoplant.com” while another eco-warrior has planted in her cat’s name—“Pasha” and another in the name of “Elon Musk”.
“Who knows in future they will keep doing this for their leaders. The scope is getting bigger”, Rajkumar highlighted while expressing that the project has become a lot bigger than it was initially visualised.
Advisor to the Chief Minister of Nagaland, Abu Metha had also tweeted: “Fantabulous!! An out of the box innovative approach. Well Done. (and what a cute creative!! Thank you Nino for giving me the opportunity to leave a green footprint).” Nino is the mascot for the clicktoplant initiative.
Sashi Wapang also feels that “This is a brilliant initiative of the Kohima Forest Division #Nagaland especially relevant for those living in towns/cities where you’re unable to get opportunities to plant trees.”
People from other states of India plant trees for Nagaland through clicktoplant
Impressed by the brilliant concept of being able to contribute and do their bits towards combating climate change, people from other parts of India are planting trees for Nagaland through the clicktoplant initiative. Especially people from Chennai, the hometown of Rajkumar, under whose initiative it was born, have already paid for the saplings @Rs.100 each which will be physically planted in Nagaland during the plantation season from April to June.
In just three days since the formal launch on June 5, the registration has crossed 500. “The idea is to have people from cities like Mumbai, Chennai, etc. to have an opportunity to plant trees”, he further impressed upon. While metropolitan cities are faced with the lack of space, he said that “in Nagaland, the forest is owned by the people and they are conserving forests in their own land.” He also articulated that while there is a lot of tangible benefits in conserving forest, “is it helping them to get one more meal or not?” Towards this end, he said, “I always feel eco-tourism is the solution and eco-tourism isn’t just about homestays and the like.”
Initially, he said, “I thought of a memory plantation where people can come and physically plant themselves but then, I also thought they can still plant online and that’s how the product grew.” While this is a pilot initiative with Ecotourism Committee Tuophema, he is also hopeful that it will grow and expand further into other villages across the state.
As for the mascot, Nino, it grew out of a conversation with a friend, who said, “I am on my way to save the world”. “Then, I thought, why not create a character to save the world,” he expressed. There were several names considered for the purpose but Nino, being “a very catchy word, easy to pronounce, universal, short and a sweet term” became the ultimate choice. “Then we designed her, slowly made animation with her…it all grew and became a much bigger project.” And the rest, as they say is history even as Nino is on her way to becoming a huge brand name and well on her way, to save the world.
