In a bid to increase green cover, Odisha government has set a target to undertake plantation in over two lakh hectare ahead of the monsoon at an expenditure of Rs 183 crore.

Compared to plantation undertaken over 1,82 lakh hectare with an expenditure of Rs 160 crore during 2011-12, it has been decided to fix the plantation target for 2012-13 at two lakh hectares, official sources said here today.

Further, the target for avenue plantation during the current fiscal was fixed at 1,600 km as against 769 km done during 2011-2012, they said.

The Odisha government has decided to take up plantation in 2 lakh hectares of land in the state in the 2012-13 fiscal with an allocation of Rs 183 crore.
This was decided at a high-level meeting presided over by chief minister Naveen Patnaik at the State Secretariat here on Sunday. It may be mentioned that the state government has taken up afforestation programme in 1.82 lakh hectares in 2011-12 fiscal with an allocation of Rs 160 crore. However, it has increased its target to 2 lakh hectares in the current fiscal.

Reliance Infrastructure has given an assurance to the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) that low hanging power lines that had resulted in the electrocution of 99 elephants in Orissa will be improved upon. A meeting to this effect was held last week in New Delhi and was attended by officials from the discom, MoEF, Orissa state government, the Wildlife Society of Orissa and the Wildlife Protection Society of India.

Shillong: Despite the French cement giant Lafarge Umiam Mining Private Limited (LUMPL) depositing a total amount of Rs 3 crore towards the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA), the State Government is yet to carry out the plantation drive of about 4 lakh saplings in 470 hectares of land in the State.

“Under compensatory afforestation, about 4 lakh trees would be planted in an area of 470 hectares in the State,” LUMPL Board of Directors chairman Shivesh Sinha said during an informal interaction with media persons here on Thursday.

The Uttarakhand Forest and Rural Development Commissioner has directed the Compensatory Afforestation Management & Planning Authority (CAMPA), Uttarakhand chief executive officer to facilitate plantation of fruit trees in forests to mitigate the human-monkey conflict in the State with CAMPA funds.

In a move to take steps towards conservation of environment, Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd has decided to chop only those forests which are required to construct reservoirs or power stations. Officials have also decided to undertake compensatory afforestation in the region. After realising its responsibility to the environment and in a bid to develop areas adjoining hydro-power projects, the UJVNL has decided to cut down only those trees necessary to make way for setting up plants following transfer of land.

The government does. It says area under forests has been increasing for the last 13 years. M Rajshekhar finds this is the outcome of statistical jugglery and the use of flawed definitions by India’s forest bureaucracy. The bald truth is India’s forests are in serious decline, both in numbers and in health. In February, the latest instalment of a little environmental kabuki played out when the Forest Survey of India released its biennial report card of forests. It declared India’s forests were in fine fettle, with a net addition of 1,128 sq km, or 0.16%, in the last two years.

The Minister for Forest and Environment Mian Altaf today said that forest smuggling in the State has been curbed to a great extent by strict implementation of relevant laws including PSA.

Replying to the debate on demands for grants for the forest and allied departments in Legislative Assembly today Mian Altaf said forest smuggling dens in Shopian and Rafiabad area have been cleared from the timber smugglers, adding that concerned forest officers and field agencies deserve appreciation for this great achievement.

Consider this: The government’s revenue mop-up stood at Rs 5.2 lakh crore for the first nine months of 2011-12. The target for the entire fiscal was Rs 8.4 lakh crore. Industrial output slowed down to 3.6 per cent during the period. It was 8.3 per cent last year. In December industrial output grew a measly 1.8 per cent. It grew 8.1 per cent last year. Meanwhile, the government’s expenditure zoomed to 92 per cent of the targeted fiscal deficit of 4.6 per cent for the current financial year.

Researchers claim India is losing its forests more rapidly than Brazil and Malaysia. They question the findings of the latest State of the Forest Report 2011 which highlights that forest cover has increased by nearly five per cent between 1997 and 2007 and is presently covering nearly 24 per cent of India’s geographical area.

Researchers, including Jean-Philippe Puyravaud and Priya Davidar of Pondicherry University and William Lawrence of James Cook University assert that what the Forest Survey of India describe as forests, often consists of tree cover and poplar eucalyptus plantations.