BACKGROUND
Biodiversity is the foundation that supports all life, provides ecosystem services and biological resources, as well as boosts ecosystem productivity. Industrial development, especially in greenfield geographies often has a negative impact on biodiversity and ruptures this web of life. Though none of Tata Motors' manufacturing locations in India is located in the vicinity of any identified or notified biodiversity hotspots or protected water bodies, the company has consistently invested in developing green cover around its plants to enhance the natural habitat.
"In a free enterprise, the community is not just another stakeholder in business, but is in fact the very purpose of its existence."
J. N. Tata, Founder, Tata Group
"In a free enterprise, the community is not just another stakeholder in business, but is in fact the very purpose of its existence."
J. N. Tata, Founder, Tata Group
Tata Motors (then TELCO - Tata Engineering & Locomotive Company Ltd) began construction of the Pimpri Plant in 1964. Shri Sumant Moolgaonkar, our Chairman at the time, made plans to create a natural environment alongside the Plant, even before the manufacturing facilities were set up.
IMPLEMENTATION
Greening a barren hard rocky basalt landscape was a significant challenge.
Starting with water - a weir was constructed to retain water from the seasonal monsoon stream, which drains into the Pavana River. It was later upgraded to a dam of 10 m height, and the lake thus created was also deepened, increasing its storage capacity. Having created a perennial water resource, these water bodies served as the nucleus for transforming the landscape.
What this means in 'wetland' terms is that the margins or banks of the lakes remain constant, and the marshy areas (reed beds), which developed in the shallows came to provide a stable ecological habitat for wading aquatic birds like storks, cranes, herons, egrets and moor hens.
Drum nurseries were setup, using empty barrels from the Plant. The saplings raised in these nurseries were planted in pits excavated in hard rock and filled with topsoil from nearby agricultural land, and have since grown into a massive green belt around the water bodies. These water bodies and surrounding area became attractive to aquatic and other birds as habitats like marshy area / reed beds, open scrubland / grassland and orchard plantations, and were developed in a planned manner.
A large colony of Painted Stork (Mycteria leucocephala) and Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) are residents throughout the year and raise offspring, which is a testament to the protected and undisturbed conditions in the area. Between December and March, several migratory species are also observed in the area, which could be attributed to its undisturbed condition as well as to the disappearance of natural wetlands in the region
IMPACT
The transformation of the entire landscape is a believe-it-or-not story. Today, the project area comprises 245 acres of tree plantation, four ponds and two lakes. A total of 98 indigenous tree species and 49 exotic tree species have been listed and their distribution recorded.
1,50,000 mature trees across all four manufacturing locations at Pune
A 2016 survey recorded the presence of 48 bird species in the project area along with 16 species of butterfly and 7 kinds of reptiles.
In the "CONSERVATION AND RESTORATION OF HABITAT" Category. BNHS has conferred this award in recognition of the work done for the conservation of biodiversity at the residential area adjoining Pimpri Works.