MP Kesineni Srinivas on Friday announced that the Centre for Indian Bamboo Resource Technology (CIBART), Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) and TATA Trusts had evinced interest in promoting large-scale bamboo cultivation in his constituency and that he would try to rope in Swedish multinational company Ikea to lend its expertise in implementing a few pilot projects along with CIBART and ATMA.
At a media meet here on Friday, Mr. Srinivas said that the production of bamboo was huge in forests spread around Nandigama, Tiruvur and Mylavaram and by making optimum use of it farmers could earn good incomes.
Its ability to withstand drought was its biggest advantage and in addition to being raw material mostly for paper mills, it has multiple uses. This was where the help of CIBART and TATA Trusts, which were promoting scientific cultivation of bamboo, was sought for making the maximum use of it in the interest of farmers. The bamboo project would be an integral part of the process of micro-planning being done by TATA Trusts for all-round development of 264 villages in four Assembly segments in Vijayawada Parliamentary constituency.
A team of officials, farmers and volunteers would be sent to Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka for studying the best practices of bamboo cultivation there, Mr. Srinivas added.
Sanjeev Karpe, member of Board of Directors of CIBART, said there were 136 species of bamboo in the country.
The project will be part of micro-planning being done by TATA Trusts to develop 264 villages in Vijayawada constituency
