POINGUINNIM: Students of St Anne's Institute, Agonda-Canacona, planted nearly 150 Casuarina saplings on the Agonda beachfront, and in the school precincts this week, to mark the Vanamahotsav celebration in the school. The casuarinas were supplied by the forest department.

The assistant conservator of Forests, Canacona, Mr Ramesh Desai was present, along with the manager of the school, Fr Mathew Fernandes, PTA chairman, Mr Jovi Fernades and RFO (Pissonem range),
Mr Minguel Fernandes.
Mr Desai, while giving away the saplings said that if we want to counter the effects of global warming and at the same time protect the seashore from soil erosion, then the one way to do this is to grow more and more trees, which, will eventually help in soil conservation and also arrest the rising temperatures.
Mr Desai also offered to hand over different types of medicinal plants for the proposed medicinal garden of the school. On this occasion, the students also planted about 50 fruit bearing and medicinal plants. These plants were brought from a farm run by the fathers at Pilar.