The Minister of State for Environment & Forests Shri Namo Narain Meena said four new projects for sustainable forestry and its management with community participation would be implemented in the country soon. These will be in addition to ongoing projects for operationalizing of Sustainable Forestry Development with Community Participation in India (by Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM), Bhopal) and Sustainable Management of Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFP), in Maharashtra. Shri Meena was inaugurating a Multi-stake holders' National Workshop for further strengthening of sustainable forest management in the country during the current visit of International Tropical Timber Organisation Diagnostic/Technical Mission to India in NOIDA.
He stated that Tripura's project for Tribal Shifting Cultivators has also been approved by ITTO. Viable economic activities will be provided to tribals under this project. The funding is awaited for this, he added. It has also approved financial support to strengthen the forestry database, a project being implemented by Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education (ICFRE), Dehradun.
Shri Meena said the forest resource is one of the important and crucial resources for prosperity of the Nation and its people. The problems manifested by the degradation of forest's eco-systems affects everyone of us, particularly ,rural and poor community ,as it directly interferes with their livelihoods .It is absolutely essential to preserve our forest resources and manage it on sustainable basis so as to ensure security of livelihood of the forest dependent communities and the ecological security of the country. Realising this need to increase productivity he further said, the government has already adopted the Joint Forest Management (JFM) .The National Forest Policy ,1988, also emphasizes the maintenance of environment and stability of eco-systems as well as people's participation in management and conserving forests. This have to be based on the needs of all the concerned stakeholders.
He said India is a producer member of the International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO) and is committed to the "Year 2000 Objective" for operationalizing sustainable Forest Management. The government has initiated several steps to control and reverse the unsustainable trend in forest management and to move towards sustainable forestry.
Dr. Maharaj Muthoo, Team Leader, ITTO Diagnostic Mission explained mission's approach. They are assisting India in identifying the factors which most severely limit the progress towards achieving 'ITTO objective 2000. Mr. Jurgen Blaser, a member of the Diagnostic Mission, giving account of his visits of Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana expressed livelihood and conservation is non paradox, it can go hand in hand. There is need for recapitalization and maintenance of forests.
The Mission will cover field-visits of the States of Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh.
The one day workshop had discussions on Forest policy and its bearing on Sustainable Forest Management, Sustainable NTFP management for addressing the issues of Rural poverty and Livelihood , Public-private partnership(PPP) in increasing Forest Productivity and Efficiency and Identifying important areas for the attention of Mission.
A 'National Status Report on Forest and Forestry' in India prepared by the Ministry of Environment and Forests was also released .(PIB)Indlaw News
