INITIATIVES

Landscaping the Campus:

MPBOU’s headquarter campus is spread over a total area of 50.03  acres and total build up area 31683.0 sq mt., near Kaliasot dam at the centre of Bhopal, the capital city of Madhya Pradesh. The campus experiences the humid subtropical climate, where the average temperature is about 30 degrees, during the summer season i.e. March to June and 16 degrees during the winter season i.e. between October to January. The University campus is rich in flora and fauna, comprises of forest trees, dense vegetation, and avenue plantation. Madhya Pradesh Forest Department and Capital Project Authority (CPA) manage the forest lands, which falls under the University

Campus.

The University is located in one of the busiest areas of the city, amidst residential and commercial establishments where the air pollution is considerably high. The civic infrastructure of the area has  not been modified adequately to deal with the increasing demands of the population. Poor sewerage, pressure on water resources and electricity, vehicular pollution are some of the issues plaguing the area. The area has been facing disturbing problems mostly due to various human activities that has affected the flora and fauna of the region and hence hindering the ecosystem of the area, consequently decline in the number of influx of migratory birds, some indigenous trees and few rare plants are also getting affected due to pollution level. 

Flora and Fauna

Water is being polluted at an alarming rate in this area as sewage  disposal is a major problem in Kolar area where the headquarter campus is situated and consequently microorganisms, the biodiversity that found particularly in this area is decreasing. Algae are considered  to be the most common flora found around the water bodies or marshy lands inside the premises of the university. Algae has been used as a means of bioremediation to neutralise the pollutants. The  University is continuously making efforts to increase the water bodiesby taking up many water conservation measures, namely Sokhta pits and embankment bunds on the natural water body behind the university guest house. In addition to these efforts, the University has introduced larvivorous Gambusia fish in the water bodies near residential areas and guest house, to control the breeding of malaria mosquitos. The University has intensively planted the Vetiver grass in large number across the roads and pavements to control the soil erosion. Calotropis gigantean, commonly known as Aak which has many medicinal properties, is numerously planted. Bantulsi, Nirgundi, Giloi, Asparagus racemosus, known as Satawar is a species of asparagus commonly found in the university campus, also has antioxidant properties. In addition to these, Neem, Sisoo, Kachnar, Bel, Babool, Narium, Palash, Saptparni, Chandan, Khair, Mahua and  Amaltas are in abundance.

Sustainable Waste Management Practice

The dried leaves, stumps collected from these trees along with the kitchen wastes from the houses are used as the raw material for composting, consequently attributing to the nutrient quality of the soil. Such type of soil, rich in microorganisms is profusely found in the green area of the campus. This nutrient rich soil is judiciously used to grow organic vegetables crops and fruit trees in the campus. Such organic practice of growing vegetables and fruits are very enthusiastically taken up by the campus inmates. In addition to this practice vermicompost pit of dimensions 15ft x 10ft x 1ft is also deployed in the vicinity of the garden so that the garden waste can be recycled. Additionally, two compost pits of dimensions 12ft x 6ft x 3ft have also been constructed. The manure obtained from these pits is used in in-house kitchen gardens, in an effort made by the university to minimise the use of chemical fertilisers.

Biodiversity Aesthetics

The aesthetic value of the University also plays a major role in conservation and management as the inmates of the campus are generally more prone to protect what they find beautiful over here. The Indian roller is very commonly seen, perched on the trees in the university campus. The house sparrow, House crow, Small blue kingfisher, Peacock, Peahen, Herron are commonly found in open scrub areas and commonly seen running along the ground or perching or low thorny shrubs and rocks and contributing to the biodiversity and aesthetics of the campus. The Children residing inside the campus have been seen happily roaming around. The Swarna Jayanti park right in front of the university gate, is a prominent spot for morning walkers, sometimes people have been spotted jogging and running inside the lush green campus area. The University has taken initiative to encourage walking and jogging among faculty, sataff, students and inmates, in order to ensure mental and physical well- being. Campus jogging space initiative is an innovative practice carried out here in the university premises. The existing flora and the fauna and their interaction with the nature have been also observed.

Hence, the ecosystem of the University premises has a large bio-diversity of flora and fauna. It is quite a well-known fact that all the elements of ecosystems are inter-dependent on each other. Thus, disturbing the natural ecological balance not only affects the plants and animals but also humans. In recent years, landscaping and ecology are also closely interwoven with all other interdisciplinary aspects of rural and urban planning. Hence, in order to maintain the ecological balance, the landscaping of the university was done to enhance the biodiversity of the area, which consequently attributes to conservation of the natural resources.

Today, university campus is bundled with trees, horticulture plantations, nursery, natural forests, evergreen trees and shrubs, rare and indigenous plant species migratory birds, reptiles, butterflies, honey bees, and variety of insects with the highest level of biodiversity, on the campus. This has been made possible because of the untiring efforts of the dedicated faculty, staff, inmates of the campus and students of the university. 

The major features of landscaping on the campus are:

Bio-diversity Conservation: The entire 50.03-acre campus of the university has extensive green cover throughout the campus with  diverse species of horticulture crop plants, forest trees, herbal and medicinal plants, ornamental trees, avenue trees, creepers, climbers and shrubs providing beautiful and cool surroundings. 400 perennial trees including 300 Sagwan trees were planted, contributing to the enhancement of the biodiversity of the area. The university planted these Sagwan (Teak) trees in huge number strategically, as these trees have highest carbon sequestration capacity. There are 2809 fruit and forest trees and plants hosted on the campus creating a visible bio- diversity hot spot, releasing tons of oxygen every day in the heart of the city thereby helping to create sustainable environment. Horticulture Plantation: The horticulture plantation is spread over the entire green area of land hosting variety of fruit trees and plants,which includes Gular, Mango, Ber, Guava, Sapota, Tamarind, Litchi, Khirni, Jamun, Aonla, Drumstick are in abundance. Agro-forestry Plantation: The agro-forestry plantation is spread over of entire green land hosting various types of forest trees, avenue trees and ornamental trees, which includes Moringa, Jackfruit, Acasia, Khair, Arjun, Tamarind, Semal, Eucalyptus, Bamboo, Sisoo, Neem, Rain tree, Kadamb, Sandalwood, Kashid, Pimpal, Mahua, Arjun Sadada, Palash, etc. with total number of trees are abundance in number. Thus the creation of bio-diversity hot spot on the campus hosting more than 3000 trees and plants with sustainable ecosystem is a unique feature of the university campus. The University has prioritised its activities towards biodiversity conservation, as it is interlinked with human well-being. University’s Zero-Carbon Commitment:Net zero Creation of Additional Carbon sink by intensive plantation is carried out on vacant land patches is carried out by the university. In pursuance of University’s commitment towards environmental improvement and sustainable development. Faculty staff students and campus inmates are being involved in plantation as well as maintenance and disposal of trees