Along with plantation of trees for forest development, it is also essential to ensure the protection of the plantations. Monitoring should be undertaken consistently to raise the survival rate of the saplings. The responsibility of officials should be fixed for this purpose. Chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said this while chairing a meeting of the Uttarakhand Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) at the secretariat on Wednesday.
Rawat said that the forest department can play an important role in employment generation. Employment can be generated through works related to water conservation, tree plantation, nursery development and protection of forest wealth for those who have returned to their villages due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The State government has facilitated employment for about 10,000 persons with 25 Watt solar power plants through the power department. The forest department should also attempt to provide employment to at least 10,000 people, said the CM.
Rawat further said that for the enrichment of Bugyals, focus should also be laid on the use of choir net, Pirul check dam and Bhimal. He said that solar fencing is very effective for protection from wildlife but the people also need to be made aware for protection of the solar fencing. He also stressed on the need for special efforts to prevent human-wildlife conflict.
The Forest and Wildlife minister Harak Singh Rawat said that while the Forest department is undertaking consistent effort for protecting and enriching forests, the Labour department had trained about 10,000 people in the use of Bhimal. These trained persons can also be used for making choir nets and Pirul check dams for enrichment of Bugyals, he said.
The principal chief conservator of forests Jai Raj, principal secretary Anand Bardhan and secretary Amit Singh Negi were also among those present in the meeting.