In a move to increase the export of bamboo products and improve farmers’ income, the Ministry of Agriculture on Tuesday launched 22 bamboo clusters in nine States. The bamboo clusters will be set up in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Odisha, Assam, Nagaland, Tripura, Uttarakhand and Karnataka. These will be engaged in raising nurseries and plantations and/or product development like furniture, agarbatti, venetian blinds, chopsticks, toothbrush, lifestyle products, jewellery, bottles, yoga mat and charcoal.
India is the world’s second largest cultivator of bamboo after China, with 136 species and 23 genera spread over 13.96 million hectares. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, India’s annual bamboo production is estimated at 3.23 million tonnes. However, despite all this, the country’s share in the global bamboo trade and commerce is only 4 per cent.
Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Tuesday launched these bamboo clusters. In a virtual event, Tomar also released the logo for National Bamboo Mission (NBM), the ministry of agriculture added.
“Bamboo cultivation can enhance farm income to a good extent and achieve the desired objective of the Union Government of transforming the rural economy by doubling farmers’ income. This will help increase income of farmers and at the same reduce dependency on imports of some raw material. With the wealth of bamboo in India and growing industry, India should aim to establish herself in global markets for both engineered and handcrafted products,” he said.
According to the ministry, bamboo can be used in 1,500 different ways including as food, a substitute for wood, building and construction material, for handicrafts and paper. “The Government’s goal in the bamboo sector is being achieved with the concerted efforts of all stakeholders of the Bamboo Mission.
Keeping in consideration the importance of bamboo, the Indian Forest Act 1927 was amended in the year 2017 to remove bamboo for the category of trees, as a result now anyone can undertake cultivation and business in bamboo and its products,” Tomar added. According to the ministry, the bamboo ecosystem has been energized with 23 states being assisted, including all eight North Eastern states.
In October 2006, the Government had launched the National Bamboo Mission (NBM) on the basis of the National Mission on Bamboo Technology and Trade Development Report, 2003. The NBM’s key objective was to address issues relating to the development of the bamboo industry in the country, provide a new impetus and direction and enable the realisation of India’s considerable potential in bamboo production.