Panels to conserve biodiversity in TN

Chennai: To conserve and restore biodiversity in the state, the forest department and Tamil Nadu Biodiversity Board (TNBB) has, till now, established 13,608 biodiversity management committees (BMCs) in both rural and urban regions of the state.

TNBB operates under three objectives – biodiversity conservation, sustainable use of biodiversity resources and lastly effectively Accessing and Benefit Sharing of the resources (ABS).

Speaking to DT Next, Shekar Kumar Niraj, principal chief conservator of TN Forest Department, Biodiversity Conservation, said, “Each BMC has drafted a people’s biodiversity register, which will profile the biodiversity presence outside of reserved forest area and other protected areas of each district. This will be used to conserve and sustainably use resources for livelihood and asset generation,” he said.

Meanwhile legal notices have been sent to 577 companies using biological resources, which are bound to follow ABS. “So far more than Rs 1.7 crore has been generated by the companies benefitting from biodiversity in the region. This will be shared with the local communities under ABS,” he added.

Official sources tell DT Next that by March 2022, BMC members in 29 districts were trained and Rs 50,000 was provided to 90 BMCs each.