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The ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) may look for private sector participation in the Rs 46,000-crore Green India Mission and is set for operational convergence with other schemes like Mahatma Gandhi National Employment Rural Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) and Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA).
The ambitious project plans to increase the country’s forest cover by another 10 million hectare area. The fund-starved mission is looking for approval of Rs 13,000 crore during 12th plan period, including convergence with MGNREGS, CAMPA and allocation of plan panel funds.
The ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) is set to rope in private players for the agro-forestry part of creating new forest areas as per the plan.
“In certain phases of the project like in agro-forestry, the government may look for public private partnerships (PPP). This would be basically for supply of quality seeds and to provide a market place for farmers in agro-forestry, from big and small corporate. However, the plan is still in its initial stages,” said an official source close to the development.
If applicable, this would be for the first time that the project would be looking to rope in private partners.
The National Mission for a Green India is one of the eight missions under “the National Action Plan on Climate Change” that aims to increase forest and tree cover on 5 million hectare area, improve quality of forest cover or create new on another 5 million ha area by 2020.
The convergence of GIM with various other projects would help the government to develop the scheme on a cluster basis. The proposal is set to come up for consideration of the expenditure finance committee for approval within a month.
The proposal seeks convergence worth Rs 4,000 crore with MNREGA, Rs 6,000 crore from CAMPA. The Planning Commission has already provided an outlay of Rs 2,000 crore for 12th plan. The mission got Rs 200 crore in 2012-13 from the National Clean Energy Fund for preparatory activities.
As of now, 71 landscapes or clusters across 21 states are identified for the project and the state governments are in the process of identifying more landscapes.
“The project proposes to converge the soil, water and afforestation of MNREGA and eco-restoration& regeneration activities under CAMPA, in the Mission landscapes. Each of these clusters is identified on the basis on bio-physical and socio-economic criteria,” said an official source close to the development.
While it was the mandate of plan panel to raise funds for the project initially, later the government had to raise it. In order to run the project, MoEF had even knocked the Apex Court doors to seek permission to use CAMPA. Under the scheme, about Rs 49.95 crore was released to 21 States for carrying out preparatory activities in the identified landscapes under the Green India Mission.
