Jungle Rakshya Bandhan: a unique initiative by communities for conservation of forests through cultural and traditional celebrations completed 20th year.
Raksha Bandhan the symbol of love, affection and feeling of brotherhood, holds an immense significance in Indian culture and ethos. Bibekanada Pattnaik an eminent social worker of Odisha who is also passionate about forest and wildlife conservation visualize and initiated the transformation of Rakshi Purnima into the unique concept of Jungle Rakshya Bandhan in 2004 to create conservation of forest through cultural and traditional celebration. The small initiative which started in the forest of Mayurbhanj in 2004 has now completed its 20th years become a symbol of forest conservation movement across India.
By appreciating this idea and sensing the importance of its celebration now more and more people throughout India are adopting different version of Jungle Rakshya Bandhan on Rakhi Purnima and came forward to tie Rakhi to tree on Rakhi Purnima. The specialty of this Rakhi Purnima is that the delicate thread is not tied to a brother rather to the trees.
This year jungle Rakshya Bandhan was celebrated in the Jhinkiriasole village of Morada block of Mayurbhanj district. RCCF cum Field Director Similipal Biosphere Reserve Shree Prakash Chandra Gogineni, IFS and Umesh Kumar Panda Additional SP Mayurbhanj and Uma Shankar Maharana Additional SP Mayurbhanj along with senior forest department officials and villagers of five forest protection committees attended this year Jungle Rakshya Bandhan programme.
