Pune: Green Movement Launched at Sinhagad to Eliminate Invasive Weeds
Pune, 12th August 2025: An environmental awareness campaign to eradicate harmful invasive weeds was launched at Sinhagad on Saturday as part of the Green Movement, aimed at preserving biodiversity and protecting native ecosystems. The initiative took place in the Khadakwasla–Sinhagad area.
Sinhagad holds historic significance — from being a key fort in Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s campaigns for Hindu Swarajya to playing a role in the August Revolution of 1942, when freedom fighters raised the slogan Quit India. Today, however, a different kind of invader — alien weeds — threatens forestry, agriculture, and environmental balance by destroying native biodiversity.
The weed removal drive is being spearheaded by the Movement Against Biological Invasion (MABI) in collaboration with the Biospheres Organisation, the Regional Forest Department, and the Sinhagad Forest Management Committee, with special support from Regional Conservator of Forests Mahadev Mohite.
Under the campaign, invasive plant species such as Tithonia diversifolia and Tithonia rotundifolia (Mexican weed), Parthenium hysterophorus (carrot grass), Ranmari, Ghaneri, Undirmari, Subabhul, Chimuk, and Kata are being uprooted and destroyed across the Sinhagad Ghat area.
Participants were educated about the ecological dangers posed by these weeds, including their impact on native flora, biodiversity, agriculture, and livestock. Organisers stressed the need for such weed-eradication efforts to be undertaken regularly at the national, state, district, taluka, and village levels to effectively combat biological invasions.
A resolution was also passed to transform MABI’s Green Movement into a mass public initiative, spreading the message “Weed-Free India, Clean India” across the country.
Present on the occasion were Dr. Sachin Punekar, founder of Biospheres and an environmental scientist; Samadhan Patil, Forest Division Officer; Baliram Waikar, Forest Guard; along with Datta Jorkar, Shrikant Patil, Datta Patil, and Dnyaneshwar Koditkar.
