Shivraj plants sapling in Vidisha, urges daily tree pledge
Synopsis
Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan planted a sapling in Vidisha on October 18 as part of his daily pledge, urging citizens to join the 'Vriksha Mitra' initiative via a missed call to 8929629475 or his campaign website under the hashtag #OnePlantADay.
Key Takeaways
Shivraj Singh Chouhan planted a sapling in Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh on October 18, 2026 as part of his daily tree-plantation pledge.
He urged citizens to join the mission of making India 'green, clean, and prosperous' under the #OnePlantADay hashtag.
Citizens can enrol as a 'Vriksha Mitra' (Tree Friend) by giving a missed call to 8929629475 .
A campaign registration link is also available via the minister's personal website.
The drive is citizen-facing and personal in nature, separate from any formal government scheme.
One sapling at a time — and he means every single day. Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday, October 18, 2026, planted a tree in his home district of Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh, continuing his personal daily pledge to plant at least one sapling every day and calling on citizens across the country to do the same.
Posting in Hindi under the hashtag #OnePlantADay, the minister wrote: 'प्रतिदिन पौधरोपण के संकल्प के क्रम में आज विदिशा में पौधा रोपा' — 'As part of my daily pledge of tree plantation, I planted a sapling in Vidisha today.' He urged followers to join what he described as a mission to make 'our land green, clean, and prosperous.'
How citizens can join the 'Vriksha Mitra' movement
The minister spelled out two concrete steps for anyone wanting to participate. Citizens can visit his campaign page and register, or simply give a missed call to 8929629475 to enroll as a 'Vriksha Mitra' — a 'Tree Friend.' The missed-call mechanism lowers the barrier to entry, making the drive accessible even to those with limited internet access in rural areas.
Vidisha and Chouhan's long-rooted connection to the land
Vidisha is not just a constituency stop — it sits at the heart of Chouhan's four-decade political life in Madhya Pradesh. As a four-term Chief Minister of the state, he built a governance identity closely tied to rural welfare and environmental outreach. His current role as Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Rural Development extends that instinct to the national stage, where green cover and soil health are increasingly central to farm policy conversations.
India has set ambitious afforestation targets under its nationally determined contributions to global climate commitments, and citizen-led micro-drives like this one feed directly into that larger goal — one neighbourhood, one village, one missed call at a time. The daily rhythm of the pledge, rather than a one-off event, is the point: habit, not spectacle.
If a cabinet minister with a packed schedule can make a sapling part of his daily calendar, the implicit ask to citizens is hard to argue with.
Point of View
Aligning himself visibly with green cover and soil health reinforces policy credibility on climate-resilient farming. The 'Vriksha Mitra' enrolment mechanism also quietly builds a direct civic engagement database, blending environmental outreach with grassroots political outreach. In a landscape where climate action is increasingly a voter-facing issue, the optics of 'one sapling every day, no exceptions' carry real cumulative weight.
NationPress
18 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the 'Vriksha Mitra' campaign by Shivraj Singh Chouhan?
'Vriksha Mitra' or 'Tree Friend' is a citizen participation initiative through which Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan invites people to join his daily tree-plantation pledge by giving a missed call to 8929629475 or registering via his campaign website.
Where did Shivraj Singh Chouhan plant a tree today?
He planted a sapling in Vidisha , a district in Madhya Pradesh, on October 18, 2026 , as part of his ongoing daily plantation pledge.
How can I join Shivraj's #OnePlantADay campaign?
You can join by giving a missed call to 8929629475 to enrol as a 'Vriksha Mitra', or by clicking the registration link on the minister's personal website to participate in the campaign.
Is the Vriksha Mitra drive a government scheme?
Based on available information, this appears to be a personal initiative by Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan rather than a formally notified government scheme, aimed at encouraging daily tree-plantation habits among citizens.
What does #OnePlantADay mean?
#OnePlantADay is the hashtag Shivraj Singh Chouhan uses on social media to document and promote his personal daily pledge to plant at least one sapling every day, encouraging others to adopt the same habit.
