TL;DR - Nine-year-old Eiha Dixit from Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, has planted over 20,000 saplings since age four through her Green Eiha Smile Foundation, establishing a plant bank, green clubs across schools, 20 mini forests, and 25 medicinal gardens to fight deforestation and climate change.
Starting with a cartoon-inspired lemon sapling in a local park, she organises weekly drives using innovative water-saving seed balls and pot methods; her mission restores greenery amid rising heatwaves.
Recognised with the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Shakti Puraskar 2019, Water Hero Award, and top spot in the 2023 International Young Eco-Hero Awards, she has earned praise from Prime Minister Narendra Modi who called her his "young friend" and local officials, as her efforts align with Uttar Pradesh's massive afforestation campaigns like planting 30 crore saplings (stakeholders, latest developments).
Eiha Dixit's extraordinary journey began at just four years old, sparked by watching cartoons that highlighted nature's beauty and the harm caused by its destruction. One day in Meerut, she spotted a barren patch in a local park and decided to plant her first lemon sapling right there, nurturing it with care alongside her family.
This simple act snowballed into weekly tree-planting drives every Sunday, drawing in volunteers, schoolchildren, and community members who now join her under the banner of the Green Eiha Smile Foundation, which she founded to amplify her vision.
Her home serves as a bustling "plant bank," where people donate saplings that she distributes for free, ensuring no green initiative stalls due to lack of resources. Eiha's methods stand out for their ingenuity: she and her team craft seed balls seeds encased in nutrient-rich clay to scatter in hard-to-reach areas, creating mini forests without excessive watering.
They also repurpose discarded plastic bottles into sturdy plant holders, promoting a zero-waste approach that ties environmental care with everyday sustainability. "Planting trees is the only way to do it the more, the better. I want to plant trees all my life," Eiha declared in a heartfelt interview, her words carrying the weight of a conviction far beyond her years.
Local district officials have personally verified her plantation sites, documenting thousands of thriving trees, which paved the way for her national spotlight. Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself acknowledged her after her 2019 award, affectionately referring to her as his "young friend," a nod that underscores how her grassroots efforts resonate at the highest levels of governance.
Eiha's impact truly took root in 2018 when she led a massive drive planting 1,008 saplings in a single day, a feat that caught the attention of environmental groups and propelled her foundation forward. This came at a critical time for Uttar Pradesh, where scorching heatwaves and urban expansion had stripped away vast green covers, prompting state-wide targets like the ambitious 30 crore sapling plantation campaign.
Building on this momentum, by 2023, Eiha had transformed 275 Sundays of dedication into 20 mini forests dotting Meerut and nearby areas, alongside 25 medicinal gardens in schools that teach children about native plants' healing powers and conservation needs all without relying on external funding.
Her green clubs, now active in multiple institutions, engage hundreds of young participants in hands-on activities, from sapling care to awareness workshops, fostering a generation attuned to ecological harmony. Innovations like her pot-planting technique, which saves up to 80% water compared to traditional methods, make her model replicable even in water-scarce regions.
Recognition has poured in: beyond the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Shakti Puraskar India's highest civilian honour for children she clinched first place in the International Young Eco-Hero Awards in 2023, keynoted at the UN World Peace Summit, and became a brand ambassador for initiatives like Mission100CroreTree.
These accolades not only validate her work but also draw more partners, including NGOs and nurseries, expanding her reach. Officials from the district forest department have lauded her as a "beacon for community-driven afforestation," noting how her efforts complement government drives by mobilising youth and locals in ways policies alone cannot.
Today, her story stands as a testament to how one child's resolve can weave through challenges like pandemics and climate crises, creating lasting green legacies that benefit wildlife, air quality, and community well-being.
At The Logical Indian, Eiha Dixit's tale ignites our deepest commitment to empathy, kindness, and harmonious coexistence, showing how a single sapling sown with purpose can cultivate forests of hope amid environmental despair.
Her journey embodies positive social change, urging adults to step aside and let young voices lead with unjaded zeal, while reminding us that dialogue between generations, communities, and nature is key to a thriving planet. In a world grappling with escalating climate threats, Eiha's unstoppable spirit calls for collective action rooted in peace and mutual respect.