Jaipur: The mahapadav (mass sit-in) in Bikaner against the felling of khejri, Rajasthan’s state tree, entered its 5th day Friday, turning the protest into a region-wide environmental uprising across the western districts.The protest site in Bikaner reflected a charged and resolute mood, with women, children, farmers, and elders sitting shoulder to shoulder, holding banners and placards demanding an immediate and total ban on khejri felling. Slogans invoking the desert’s survival and future generations rang through the sit-in area.Protesters issued a statewide call for solidarity, urging people to either reach Bikaner or organise simultaneous mass sit-ins in their districts to escalate pressure on the state govt.Activists said the issue concerns the entire desert belt, including Jaisalmer, Barmer, Jodhpur, Pali, Jalore, Phalodi, Sriganganagar, and Churu. Protesters alleged that thousands of khejri trees were felled in recent years, largely for infrastructure and solar power projects.Founder of the Khejri Bachao Andolan, Parasram Bishnoi, said the agitation would continue until the state enacts a specific law making the cutting of khejri trees a punishable offence.“Large tracts of desert land are being indiscriminately handed over to solar parks, destroying the local ecosystem. Without legal protection, the desert’s survival is at stake,” Bishnoi said.He added that participation is swelling daily and asserted that the onus now lies on the state govt led by Chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma. Bishnoi alleged that khejri trees were uprooted across vast desert areas both in the name of renewable energy projects and by an illegal wood mafia, with little effective oversight.Former Congress minister Bhanwar Singh Bhati highlighted the ecological and social role of the khejri tree, calling it the lifeline of the desert, crucial for soil conservation, groundwater retention, livestock, biodiversity, and rural livelihoods.Independent MLA from Sheo, Ravindra Bhati, who raised the issue for over one year, alleged that solar companies buried felled khejri trees to conceal large-scale destruction. Locals said the loss of khejri has already begun to impact fodder availability, groundwater retention, and traditional livelihoods, especially for pastoral and farming communities.
