Bhubaneswar, Jul 8 (PTI) Odisha Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo on Tuesday launched a campaign for promotion of rooftop gardening and urban horticulture.

Singh Deo flagged off a rath (vehicle) for promotion of rooftop gardening in five major cities of Odisha here at Krushi Bhavan.

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With fast growth and development in the state, the urban areas are growing across the state with construction of numerous concrete buildings reducing green spaces in cities, Singh Deo said.

Through this novel effort the government is encouraging greenery through rooftop and home gardening by educating and training the city dwellers in residential and institutional buildings by promoting innovative technologies for rooftop and home gardening across the five major cities of Odisha like Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Sambalpur, Berhampur and Jeypore, he said.

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The campaign vehicle will operate across various urban zones of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack for over a month-long awareness drive, reaching out to residential communities, educational institutions, resident welfare associations, other city-based organizations and the general public. Later, it will cover three other cities, an officer said.

The vehicle is equipped with audio-visual educational materials in Odia and English, demonstration of innovative and technical exhibits, distribution of technical pamphlets, and arrangements for organising interaction points for city citizens to discuss and seek expert advice, he said.

This campaign will promote rooftop and home gardening, future community engagement events, expert talks, and encourage the city gardeners to participate in annual rooftop gardening competitions in near future.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)