The Dehradun-based Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), along with its nine research institutes and five centres spread across the country, will be working on forestry research issues of national importance for sustaining ecology and enhancing productivity of Indian forests and plantations. In the meeting of the the governing body of National Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (National-CAMPA), chaired by Union Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Prakash Javadekar in New Delhi recently, the ICFRE director general, SC Gairola, presented the detailed scheme for strengthening forestry research for ecological sustainability and productivity enhancement.
The National CAMPA governing body approved Rs 313.67 crore scheme of ICFRE in toto that will be spread over five years.
According to officials, this is the watershed moment in the history of the premier forestry council of India with such a major scheme being approved by the Government for forestry research and extension since its formation in 1988.
Forestry research will get the much-required funds for addressing the research issues of national importance that will have direct bearing on the forest health of the country and livelihood of people dependent on forest and agriculture. Through this scheme, the ICFRE and its institutes will be working on 31 major All India Coordinated Research Projects that will improve health, productivity and restore degradation of forests and plantation. Clones and varieties of important tree species will be developed and provided to farmers and State forest departments for plantation.
Important topics of tree fodder, fuelwood, NTFP, wild fruits, soil moisture, biodiversity, conservation and diseases will also be addressed.
Forest Genetic Resource (FGR) Conservation is another area of importance that will be taken up at the national level to conserve the gene pool for posterity and future generation. Capacity building of State Forest Departments for preparing State REDD+ action plan is the third component of scheme.
Forest policy research on the lines of agriculture policy will provide the much-needed policy guidance to the Government in designing various policies and studying the impacts of existing forest policies.
This aspect will be dealt by the fourth component of the scheme. Outreach programme for extension of technologies had been the weakest link in the forestry research efforts. This will be strengthened through this scheme by adopting the forestry extension plan of ICFRE”. Reaching out to stakeholders is the centre theme of this component of ICFRE.
Human resource development to enhance the scientific capabilities of scientists in newer areas will also be addressed through the scheme.
ICFRE institutes are already working on the preparation of rejuvenation plans of 13 major rivers of country.
The new scheme approved further adds to its enhanced capabilities to address the issues of national importance.
