Maharashtra to boost bamboo industry with Central aid

An ambitious plan is afoot in Maharashtra to utilise a Rs 4 crore Central assistance to boost bamboo plantation and turn it into a means of livelihood for target groups.

The State Social Forestry Department, which received the first instalment of Rs 2 crore recently as part of the grant under National Bamboo Mission (NBM), is currently engaged in devising methods to grow plantations and train farmers, NGOs and self-help groups (SHGs) to generate a living from the bamboo industry, making it an organised one.

"The funds received by us are to be utilised by March 2011. In addition to extending the existing bamboo cover on the conducive forest and non-forest land, we have planned workshops to impart training in manufacturing bamboo furniture and handicrafts as part of a statewide skill building exercise, Social Forestry Director S W H Naqvi told PTI here.   

Expertise to train the target groups will be provided by the Konkan Bamboo and Cane Development Centre and the Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM).

"Bamboo makes for a big industry in China, where crores of families earn livelihood. The mission in India too aims at turning bamboo into an organised industry which can support the target groups," Naqvi said.

One of the features of the bamboo mission in the state would be to improve the quality of the crop and treat it with chemical injections to remove the carbohydrate contents and arrest erosion.

"There is also a proposal to start plantation on private land," Naqvi added.

Those involved in the training and skill building will undergo workshops at Ratnagiri in coastal Konkan and also in Kerala Government's Forest Research Institute.

"If bamboo plantations are pursued vigorously in Konkan and Vidarbha regions of Maharashtra, which are conducive for the crop, and its products are promoted, it could also help in reducing dependence on wood, leading to a drop in tree cutting," Naqvi noted.