In the shade of the Doodh Talai forest beside Pichola lake in Udaipur, Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma on Sunday, 2 August 2026 inaugurated Rajasthan's state-level Van Mahotsav — planting saplings in a dedicated sandalwood grove and calling on every resident of the state to join a national movement rooted in the most personal of bonds: a tribute to one's mother.

Sandalwood saplings and a mother's name

The Chief Minister's Office of Rajasthan announced that CM Sharma performed tree-plantation in the 'Chandan Van' (sandalwood grove) within the Doodh Talai forest area — a setting that frames Udaipur's iconic Pichola lake. He then reviewed an exhibition of environment-conservation activities alongside a showcase of the state's 'Panch Gaurav Yojana' initiatives.

At the heart of his address was a direct appeal: join the 'Ek Ped — Maa Ke Naam' ('One Tree — In Mother's Name') campaign, plant as many saplings as possible, and, crucially, protect them. The ask is not just symbolic — it is the difference between a planted sapling and a living tree.

Van Mahotsav's seven-decade run — and why Rajasthan's version matters

Van Mahotsav has been observed across India every year since 1950, making it one of the country's oldest organised afforestation drives. Rajasthan — a state where desert ecology makes green cover both scarce and precious — has consistently participated through state-level events that channel the national momentum into local action.

The 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' campaign, launched nationally in 2024, added an emotional architecture to what had previously been an administrative exercise. By tying the act of planting a tree to a citizen's relationship with their mother, the campaign dramatically broadened its reach beyond forest departments and into households. CM Sharma's Udaipur appearance signals Rajasthan's intent to push that outreach into every district.

Rajasthan's forest push under the Sharma government

Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, who assumed office in December 2023, has aligned the state administration with central environmental campaigns as part of a broader governance posture. The Van Mahotsav event at Udaipur — held at a forested lakeside site rather than a government auditorium — underscores that framing: conservation as a public, participatory act, not a bureaucratic checkbox.

The next test will be whether district-level plantation drives follow, and whether the state reports measurable progress on its sapling targets under 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' in the months ahead.