Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Monday, 29 June 2026, threw his weight behind a Banyan Tree Plantation Drive being conducted as part of the nationwide #EkPedMaaKeNaam campaign, calling it a step toward preserving Goa's rich biodiversity and building a greener, cleaner, and more sustainable future.

Context

Posting on X, CM Sawant described the plantation drive as more than a symbolic gesture. 'The Banyan Tree Plantation Drive as a Part of #EkPedMaaKeNaam is a step toward preserving Goa's rich biodiversity and build a greener, cleaner, and more sustainable future,' he wrote. The banyan tree holds particular cultural and ecological significance in Goa, where it has historically served as a community gathering point and a critical habitat for local flora and fauna.

Policy Backdrop

#EkPedMaaKeNaam — translated as 'One Tree in Mother's Name' — is a national tree-plantation initiative launched by the Government of India to mobilise citizens and state governments into large-scale afforestation efforts. The campaign encourages individuals to plant a tree as a tribute to their mothers, linking environmental action to an emotional, personal commitment. States across the country have adopted the campaign into their own green-action calendars, with plantation drives organised by government departments, local bodies, and civil society groups.

Goa, despite its relatively small geographical area, is home to a significant stretch of the Western Ghats, a UNESCO-recognised biodiversity hotspot. The state has faced recurring concerns over deforestation, mining-related land degradation, and rapid urbanisation along its coastal belt, making afforestation initiatives particularly relevant to its long-term ecological health.

Stakeholders and Impact

The banyan tree (Ficus benghalensis) is the national tree of India and is well-suited to Goa's tropical climate. Its expansive canopy provides shade, supports biodiversity, and contributes to groundwater recharge — benefits that are directly relevant to both rural communities and urban residents in the state. By anchoring the drive specifically around the banyan, the state government signals an intent to plant species with deep ecological and cultural roots rather than fast-growing but ecologically shallow alternatives.

Local panchayats, school students, forest department officials, and community volunteers are typically the primary participants in such drives, making the initiative a broad-based civic exercise. A successful plantation campaign can also contribute to Goa's commitments under India's Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement, which include expanding the country's forest and tree cover.

What's Next

The drive is likely to be followed by monitoring and maintenance protocols, as survival rates of planted saplings — rather than raw numbers planted — are increasingly the benchmark by which such campaigns are evaluated. CM Sawant's public endorsement is expected to lend administrative momentum to the effort, encouraging district-level officials and local bodies across Goa to scale up participation. If sustained, such plantation drives could meaningfully contribute to the state's green cover targets and serve as a model for integrating national environmental campaigns with local biodiversity priorities.