Thousands of People Say Xinjiang | From Yellow Sands to Fragrant Melons and Fruits Two Generations of Forest Protectors Create Kekeya Green Miracle Tar Road | Shelter Forest | Yellow Sands
Ke Ke Ya Memorial Hall
International online report: "In the 1980s, there were endless Gobi deserts everywhere in Kekeya. When I first started planting protective forests, there were no asphalt roads, only dirt roads. Riding a bicycle back and forth every day would take 40 kilometers. Now that the environment is good, we not only have protective forests, but also economic forests and ecological forests. Now, Kekeya has really undergone earth shaking changes." On July 29th, Aiscal Yimamu, who has been working in forest protection for 33 years, told the Xinjiang travel reporter team of the "Ten Thousand People Talk about Xinjiang" network media at the Kekeya Memorial Hall.
In 1986, Aksu launched the Kokoya Greening Project to transform the harsh natural environment. After more than 30 years, the desert, which was once unsuitable for human habitation, has now become a good place for people to live and work in peace, with fragrant fruits and melons. At present, the Kekeya Greening Project has built 182000 acres of protective forests and 102000 acres of economic forests. Amidst such earth shattering changes, it is inevitable that batches of forest rangers have made arduous contributions. Escar Imamu was the second generation of forest rangers in Kokoya. At the age of 16, he followed in the footsteps of his father, Imamu Maimaiti, and took over forest cultivation and protection work, taking root for 33 years.
![Thousands of People Say Xinjiang | From Yellow Sands to Fragrant Melons and Fruits Two Generations of Forest Protectors Create Kekeya Green Miracle Tar Road | Shelter Forest | Yellow Sands](https://a5qu.com/upload/images/48f7bc3f8646b7cd92160042b46965bd.jpg)
On the display board in the Cocoa Memorial Hall, the advanced deeds of Yimamu Maimaiti are displayed. The first generation of forest rangers admitted, "The proudest thing in my life is that I have done two things right. The first is to fully participate in the Cocoa greening project, plant trees, and turn every tree into my child. The other thing is that my son Escall and daughter Amina will take over my work and continue to take care of the 'children' I planted."
Exhibition Hall in the Cocoa Memorial Hall
When it comes to his father, Escar Imamu is full of pride. He told reporters that when his father first arrived in Coya, he was also very worried about this large area of saline alkali land. But thinking of his identity as a Communist Party member, Iskar Imam's father made up his mind: no matter how much hardship he endured, he would still achieve results and work hard for the people. "My dad's skills are very good. He plants all the saplings in saline alkali soil, but the survival rate is particularly high, and in some places it can reach over 95%," said Escar Imam
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With his father as a role model, at the age of 16, Escall never dared to slack off in his work. Every day, he had to walk more than 30 kilometers to patrol the trees, water, fertilize, and eliminate pests. After the seedlings of the protective forest grew up in the 1990s, he devoted himself to guiding the construction of orchard economic forests. "At that time, while managing the protective forest, he also guided fruit farmers in economic forest pruning, pesticide application, and fertilization. We learned on our own while teaching them knowledge."
Aiskar introduces Aksu's characteristic forest fruits to the press team
According to Escall, there are particularly many people coming from other places to plant fruit orchards in Cocoa. There are approximately 200 households participating in the Ke Ke Ya Economic Forest, with many people from Shandong, Henan, and Sichuan. They were the first to see the economic development prospects of the orchard here, so they stayed behind to work with the local people. Now, each household earns at least 200000 yuan per year. "In order to provide education for the children of fruit farmers, we have built Kokoya Elementary School, which has retained people and improved our economy," said Escall.
![Thousands of People Say Xinjiang | From Yellow Sands to Fragrant Melons and Fruits Two Generations of Forest Protectors Create Kekeya Green Miracle Tar Road | Shelter Forest | Yellow Sands](https://a5qu.com/upload/images/ce67d1d478f3c4d45da955ccdb268d0b.jpg)
Walking on the lush avenue of Kekeya, looking back at the desert scene of the past, the forest rangers who had experienced the yellow sand brushing their faces would surely feel gratified. Their hard work provided a solid "green barrier" for the local farmers' orchards, allowing the fragrance of Kekeya to permeate, the economy to flourish, and the farmers to live an increasingly beautiful and happy life.