Forest department calls for posters on Bamboo

BENGALURU: In a bid to promote bamboo and understand the communities in the state that rely on it, the Karnataka Forest Department and the National Bamboo Mission are organising a design competition titled ‘Blend with Bamboo’. It calls for informative posters that depict the lives of people for whom bamboo is a part of their everyday living.

Raj Kumar Srivastava, IFS,  additional principal chief conservator (APCCF) of forests, said, “The premise is to create empathy towards Bamboo. For several communities in Karnataka, such as Medas and Koragas, they rely on bamboo-based products for their livelihood. There is also the factor of sustainability. Bamboo can replace timbre in construction.” He added that the selected posters will be part of the state’s official communication to stakeholders for the next year.

The department is looking for concepts bringing out the story of people who depend on bamboo as a livelihood, the products they make, how they sell their products and how it has been handed over from generation to generation.

The last date for submission is February 28 and ten best entries will win a cash price of `10,000 each The winners will be selected by the first week of March. In addition to that, the forest department is planning to start a Bamboo Yatra for citizens.“We will take them around to 174 locations where local communities in the state make use of bamboo to make various products. This is to increase knowledge among people for its use,” Srivastava added.