State awaits Centre’s nod for CAMPA projects

BHUBANESWAR: With no restriction on labour intensive works, the State Government is anxiously waiting for approval of its projects worth over Rs 800 crore submitted under Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) for generating employment.

The State Government has submitted an annual plan of Rs 803.65 crore to the Ministry of Forest and Environment in February. This is part of proposals worth Rs 6,000 crore received by the Centre from all the states.Odisha had proposed to take up plantation activities in 4355.35 ha in the current financial year and another area of 4,000 ha will be taken up for compensatory afforestation in 2021-22. As of now the State has already diverted an area of 55534.40 ha of forest area for non-forest activities. It has planned to cover an area of 72606.57 ha under compensatory afforestation to salvage the loss of green cover. Forest cover in 65,000 ha of land have been restored, sources in Forest department said.

“It has been planned to take up plantation in 1,500 ha at the rate of 1,600 plants per hectare in the current fiscal. An ambitious target was set to grow 5.71 crore seedlings for the purpose of plantation, special projects, distribution and root trainer seedlings,” the sources added.

The proposed major activities include block plantation, assisted natural regeneration, bald hill plantation, maintenance of previous year plantation, fodder and fruit-bearing plantation, bamboo culture, soil and moisture conservation and wildlife management.

With a large number of migrant workers returning to the State, the Government will be be able to provide employment to these people under CAMPA programmes, sources said.The State had utilised Rs 860 crore CAMPA fund in activities other than plantation like drinking water, housing, skill development and afforestation in 2018-19 as per the relaxed norms to expand the area of activities to improve living condition of people affected by mining.

In August last year, the State had received highest Rs 5933.98 crore CAMPA fund in the country. It received Rs 2,644 crore in 9 years between 2009-10 and 2017-18.Announcing the second tranche of measures to ameliorate the hardships faced specifically by daily wage earners, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said Centre has received proposals worth Rs 6,000 crore to help generate employment for tribals in afforestation activities. “Considering the monsoon is approaching, these projects will kick off soon,” she said.