Biodiversity conservation hits hurdles

Govt., Corporation to pool Rs.5 lakh for preparing biodiversity registry

The intense political activity in the run-up to the Assembly election and annual examinations at schools have delayed biodiversity conservation efforts in the city.

Though the Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) had written to all local bodies to reconstitute the respective Biodiversity Management Committees, the suggestion has by and large been given a go-by.

The board had, in fact, suggested the reconstitution of the committees to give an impetus to conservation activities at the local level.

The Kochi Corporation was directed to prepare a biodiversity registry, which would have been the base document on bio-resources and traditional knowledge. It was also proposed to prepare the document with the involvement of school students.

The plan, which was also aimed at creating awareness among schoolchildren about the need for conserving bio-resources did not succeed, as school authorities objected to its timing. They feared that the campaign, which was proposed to be held at the fag end of the academic year, would affect the studies of children who were preparing for their annual examinations.

Lead agency

Meanwhile, the State government and the Kochi Corporation will together pool Rs.5 lakh for the preparation of the biodiversity registry. The Centre for Heritage, Environment and Development under the Kochi Corporation will be the lead agency of the campaign.

Since school authorities have expressed their inability to join the campaign, as it is held in the last phase of the academic year, renewed attempts will be made in the next academic year to involve students in the preparation of the document, a corporation official said.

Incidentally, Kochi was the first district in the State to take up the task of preparing a biodiversity register a decade ago. “A register was prepared during the 9{+t}{+h}Five Year Plan, and information from all the 67 village panchayats in the district were compiled with the involvement of people,” said noted ecologist M.K. Prasad, who coordinated the activities in the district.