Biodiversity boards sought in union territories

The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) said on Wednesday it will seek setting up of biodiversity boards or committees in union territories across India.

The NBA will ask the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) to write to the union territories to set up boards or management committees, NBA chairperson B. Meenakumari said.

"In 29 states we have biodiversity boards but union territories are not having any biodiversity board or even management committees. These areas like Andamans, are extremely important for biodiversity," she told the media at the National Conference on Faunal Diversity in the Indian land and seascapes at the Zoological Survey of India here.

"According to Biodiversity Act, it is clearly said either NBA or the MoEFCC has to do it. Since we are only 11 people in NBA, we can't do the management by ourselves. So I will ask them (MoEFCC) to write to UTs to set up biodiversity boards or committees or registers.AThis is a priority," Meenakumari said.

--IANS

sgh/vd