Non-functional biodiversity management committees in rural areas to be revived
As per the Biological Diversity Act 2002 and Rules 2004, in each gram panchayat, a BMC has to be formed for conservation and better management of the natural resources by the indigenous population in a particular area.
gurugram Updated: Sep 04, 2019 06:33 IST
For the successful implementation of Jal Shakti Abhiyan in rural areas, the administration is focusing on empowering the local institution – biodiversity management committee (BMC) – in each of the 203 gram panchayats of the district that has been non-functional since 2004-05.
As per the Biological Diversity Act 2002 and Rules 2004, in each gram panchayat, a BMC has to be formed for conservation and better management of the natural resources by the indigenous population in a particular area.
“The BMC has not been functional in the district as there has been no clarity about its guidelines among officials. Above all, building up BMCs has never been a priority despite the Act and rules being framed a long time back,” said Shubhi Kesarwani, programme manager of GuruJal, a water conservation programme under Jal Shakti Abhiyan.
According to Kesarwani, the administration has started focusing on BMC for effective implementation of Jal Shakti Abhiyan. “Empowering community by giving them the ownership of natural resources is one of the effective ways to ensure sustainability. Currently, we don’t have any direct mechanism through which awareness about environment conservation can be created. Through BMC local people will be involved in the process of managing resources,” said Kesarwani.
Currently, the administration is holding training sessions along with an NGO in two blocks of the district to make BMC functional. Kesarwani said that each BMC will have sarpanch (village head) as the chairman and six other nominated members, including two women members.
“Initially, the focus will be on ensuring proper monitoring of the newly planted saplings and prevention of solid waste from entering the local water bodies,” said Kesarwani.
A senior official in the forest department, who preferred anonymity, said that empowering BMC is a complicated and a lengthy process. It took almost 13 years for Haryana to set up state biodiversity board after the Act came into existence.
First Published: Sep 04, 2019 06:33 IST