Centre urged to honour green crusader Narendra Reddy

Guntur: Former minister Dokka Manikya Varaprasad has urged the Central government to confer the Padma Shri on Dr Busireddy Narendra Reddy for his dedicated efforts to protect the environment and transform Guntur into a green city.

Dr Narendra Reddy, who has planted and nurtured around 10,000 saplings in Guntur over the past six years, was honoured with the Paryavarana Mitra Award by civic organisations under the aegis of the Cheyutha Foundation at a programme held at the Jana Chaitanya Vedika office in Ramannapeta on Sunday. Addressing the gathering, Manikya Varaprasad called upon people to take inspiration from the doctor’s commitment to greenery. Former MLC KS Lakshmana Rao praised his efforts to plant and maintain trees along nearly 15 km of the Inner Ring Road in Shyamala Nagar, stressing the importance of environmental protection amid El Niño conditions.

Cheyutha Foundation secretary Vallamreddy Lakshmana Reddy expressed concern that forest cover accounted for only seven percent of the Guntur district’s geographical area, compared with 21 per cent across the State and 24 per cent nationally, according to the figures cited at the meeting. Former Assam Agricultural University professor Y Rattaiah highlighted Dr Narendra Reddy’s Green Miles initiative, under which patients undergoing knee surgery at his hospital are encouraged to plant saplings.

Receiving the award, Dr Narendra Reddy said his Evergreen Earth Foundation had invested around Rs 50 lakh in nurturing 10,000 plants, employing six workers and spending nearly Rs one lakh every month on maintenance. He also highlighted his social service initiatives supporting poor students and providing free knee surgeries to underprivileged patients through associated organisations.

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Shyam Sundar Matham

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