Man who helps trees grow, sparrows chirp

Patna: In 2018, when Nehru Path (Bailey Road) was widened and hundreds of trees were cut, cloth trader Naresh Agarwal felt helpless. He talked to several officials and wrote to environment, forest and climate change department to stop the loss. Letters were sent, but answers never came.So he decided to act alone.Every day, by 6am, he would step out of his rented house with a few saplings. He chose gabions of the department and other organisations that lay abandoned. He planted saplings where the old trees had died."Planting a sapling is not tough," he said. "Caring for years until the sapling becomes a tree — that is the true test," he said.At first he planted Neem saplings. They grew, but people broke branches to make datwon to brush their teeth. He learned and turned to Bakain, Chakunda and Gulmohar — trees no one plucked and their leaves were ignored by animals.The saplings survived and they grew by his regular care and nurturing. Today, over 200 of his plants stand as 15-feet trees. From Nala Road to Jubba Sahani Park, even inside Eco Park, his green footprints are visible. He continues visiting different parks in the city and planting saplings and caring for them.To keep his mission alive, Agarwal set up a terrace garden. He grew saplings there, sold them through social media, and with the money bought new saplings from the climate change department at just Rs 10 each. One plant funded another. A circle of life, sustained by his will.Then came the sparrows.In 2021, guided by a Press Information Bureau official, he began building small wooden houses for them. He placed grain and water inside. The sparrows came there and chirping broke the silence of the concrete jungle.The idea spread and orders started pouring in. The state govt itself reached out to him. Till now, Agarwal has got prepared over 20,000 bird houses, sending them to Delhi, Gurgaon, Haryana and across Bihar. What began as care has become both livelihood and mission."Trees and sparrows need food and water, just like us," he said. "With the support of my family, I will continue my mission of making the city further green. The effort may appear a baby step, but I am sure it will build into a movement with people's support," he said.