In a bid to spread awareness about the traditional varieties of flora found in the territory, the UP State Biodiversity Board will bring out a coffee table book detailing the heritage trees of this region. Headquartered at Pickup in Lucknow, the organisation attempts to educate the masses about the relevance and importance of these trees. Besides the necessary information about the trees, the book will also expound upon the historical link and captivating stories around them.
130 out of 943 heritage trees in the state to be mentioned in the book
While the state government has categorised 943 trees in the heritage group, the biodiversity board has chosen 130 of these for the book. The government spokesman said that “The content of the book is ready. It got delayed because of the corona curfew. The information on the rest of the trees will also be printed by the board.” In addition to other things, the book would also talk about the mythological and spiritual facts that are connected to these trees, as per the historical records and folklore.
It has been stated that the coffee table book would also record the locations of various trees so that the willing individuals can travel to the respective spots. Further, the state administration is also deliberating upon the development of ecotourism sites at all such places where these trees stand.
28 species of heritage trees include Peepal, Banyan, Pakar & others
The Uttar Pradesh government had instructed concerned authorities to spot and locate heritage trees in November 2019. These towering trees have grown over a long period of time on community land and public land. The index of these remarkable trees spans over a range of 28 species, including Peepal (421), Banyan (355) and Pakar (57). Amongst the cities with the highest number of such trees, Varanasi and Prayagraj take top spots with 99 and 53 units respectively.
