In Hyderabad, Project Haritham launches green memorial for those who lost their lives to COVID-19

An IT professional Sandeep Gajwada lost three family members to COVID-19 in 2021. A year later, planting trees in his memory as part of the Haritham initiative has brought a sense of healing to him and his father. Haritam is a green memorial for those who lost their lives to COVID-19. The first phase began in July in Panchavati Colony of Banjara Hills. The second phase was inaugurated last weekend at Akshay Layout Park, Prashan Nagar, Jubilee Hills.

These memorial parks have been made possible with the efforts of COVID-19 volunteers Sandeep, Sai Charan Chikkula, Sri Uha and few others in collaboration with GHMC (Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation) and Forest Department, Government of Telangana. The volunteers, who were active in helping patients get medicines, hospital beds, oxygen cylinders and financial aid, have vivid memories of the trauma faced by COVID-hit families.

Like every monsoon, this time too the challenge was to flag off the Telangana government’s campaign to plant Harita Haram or city-wide saplings on social media. “The idea of ​​a green initiative that can be a memorial to the victims of COVID-19 came from Shantha Thoutam (Chief Innovation Officer, Government of Telangana). When we discussed this in a Twitter Space session, volunteers we knew and others came forward,” says Charan, director, Tsirs Pharmaceuticals.

Panchavati Colony Park, which used to resemble a dump yard, was decorated and converted into a green monument. “GHMC helped us identify parks for Haritham. Going forward, we are open to suggestions from GHMC as well as people who can identify parks in their neighborhood that can be green monuments,” says Mr Uha, Program Officer, V Hub.

Haritham plants include native varieties of jamun, mango, banyan and almond. “Indigenous varieties require less maintenance. Some plants grow to about four feet tall. As they grow, they will require less human intervention,” says Sandeep.

Volunteers check the maintenance of the park from time to time. GHMC will maintain the memorial parks for the first year, after which it will be a community driven effort.

The tree-planting drive in both Haritham Parks became a gathering of people who planted saplings and left heart-shaped tags with messages remembering their loved ones. In the first phase about 60 saplings were planted and in the second phase about 100 people participated and planted 100 saplings.

More memorial parks are being built in the city; Similar initiatives are planned in Adilabad, Suryapet and Warangal with the help of local volunteers.

The tree plantation drive has also been encouraging for the volunteers. Charan recalls, “We helped over 200 families; SOS messages and calls kept coming. There were cases where people lost their lives within hours or days. It is painful to look back at that time. With some bewilderment, we reached out to a few families, alert that it might rekindle their sad memories, to ask if they would like to participate in the haritham. Some of them came forward.”

Some participants in the Haritham. photo credit: special arrangement

Sandeep was among those who called Charan when his aunt’s condition started deteriorating from falling oxygen levels: “It was 2 am when I called her. They soon helped us get beds with oxygen facility at Gandhi Hospital, which was no trivial task. Unfortunately we could not save our aunt. But the way he, a stranger to me, came forward to help, inspired me to join a volunteer group. Sandeep planted a sapling near his residence so that his father, who had lost three siblings, could find solace in maintaining the tree: “It is a healing process to grow a tree in memory of what you have lost Is.”