Forest Minister Mohammad Akbar on Friday said Chhattisgarh is a forest and wildlife rich state and said they were an important asset for everyone.
Keeping their importance in mind, the protection of forests and wildlife in the state has been given priority, he said.
He said that to balance nature, co-existence of forest and wildlife along with humans is necessary.
He was addressing the concluding ceremony of a wildlife conservation week here, an official communication said.
At present, conservation and promotion works for wildlife are done through three national parks, 11 sanctuaries, three tiger reserves, an elephant reserve and a biosphere reserve, Akbar added.
The process of setting up the Lemru Elephant Reserve is in progress whereas the Centre has approved the proposal to establish another tiger reserve in the state, the Minister said.