Minister for Forest Umesh V. Katti on Thursday said that the department will raise bamboo plantations on about 57,000 hectares of marshy land in Belagavi, Bagalkot and Vijayapura districts in the next two years.
He was speaking after launching the Dashalaksha Hannina Gidagala Naati (planting 10 lakh fruit-bearing tree saplings) organised by Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project (SKDRDP) and the Forest Department in the Ermodi forest in Badakodi village, Belthangady taluk.
Mr. Katti said that at present the State is importing bamboo from China and other countries as raw material for various industries, including Agarbathi and match sticks. Raising bamboo plantations on marshy land in the backwaters of the Alamatti Reservoir can make the State self-sufficient in bamboo, he said.
He was told by scientists that some bamboo species grow by one ft every day thereby making bamboo cultivation an alternative for raw material for various industries depending upon wood as raw material.
Meanwhile, the department has released about 6.6 lakh hectares of land from deemed forest tag thereby enabling farmers engaged in bagair hukum cultivation to claim such land. In return, the department has received 3.3 lakh hectares of land thereby taking the total forest coverage in the State to 45.3 lakh hectares from 42 lakh hectares, Mr. Katti said.
The State has more forest cover than there is in the neighbouring States of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Goa, he added.
Praising SKDRDP, an NGO, and Dharmasthala Pattadhikari D. Veerendra Heggade for their initiative to raise fruit-bearing trees across the State, Mr. Katti said that the initiative will definitely avoid man-animal conflict. As the saplings grow and start bearing various native fruits, animals depending upon them will naturally stop straying into human habitation. This will also prevent human casualties, save precious crops and the resultant payment of compensation. The government has paid ₹20 crore compensation towards loss of human life in such conflicts in the previous financial year, he added.
Mr. Heggade said that the principle of “live and let others too live” is behind initiating the fruit sapling plantation drive. Wild animals stray into human habitation when they do not get food in forests, he noted. He urged people to live with nature and love it.
Belthangady MLA Harish Poonja gave away Devara Kaadu sapling, MLC K. Harish Kumar Shourya Vana sapling, MLC K. Prathapsimha Nayak Kereyangala sapling, Hosangadi Gram Panchayat president Karunakara Poojari fruit sapling and Conservator of Forest, Mangaluru Circle, Prakash Netalkar gave away Shala Vana sapling.
Kundapur Deputy Conservator of Forest Ashish Reddy, Moodbidri Assistant Conservator of Forest Satish and others were present.
