The Hindu : New strategy to protect forest wealth

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 03, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Tiruchi

New strategy to protect forest wealth

By L. Renganathan

TIRUCHI, MARCH 2 . For people of remote villages where government welfare measures take a while to reach, training programmes to develop skills, conducted by the Forest department, have come in handy.

A training camp on paper-bag manufacturing, held recently at Seeranganur in Thinnanur panchayat, stood testimony to the enthusiasm of rural women in learning skills.

Having realised that it was impossible to protect forests without the help of its inhabitants or those who live on the fringes, the department dovetailed community development activities into the Tamil Nadu Afforestation Project (TAP), funded by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, and being implemented in the State since 1997.

Under the project, 250 hectares of forest would be developed in three tiers and in 50 more hectares water augmentation schemes would be implemented in each of the identified villages.

Buffer zone activities such as sanctioning loans to villagers to take up income-generation activities and community development works, all at a cost of Rs. 3 lakhs in each of the villages, are being undertaken.

The three-day camp at Seeranganur was held under the buffer zone activity for women members of the local Village Forest Committee and self-help group.

A reputed firm in the paper and stationery trade, J.K. Brothers of Pudukkottai, trained 25 beneficiaries. One of the trainers, N. Kesavan, says his firm would be able to provide job works to all the participants. Each of those trained could earn up to Rs. 400 a week working from their place. Such a marketing tie-up will benefit both the trainer and the trained.

"This is the second training camp on paper bag manufacturing held under the project in the Tiruchi Social Forestry Division. The first, held at Edumalai last week, benefited 60 rural women from Edumalai and Vellakalpatti," says the Divisional Forest Officer, Sri Vaigai Manishankar.

During 2003-04, the TAP is implemented in five villages — Edumalai MGR Nagar, Vellakalpatti, Seeranganur, Kallikudi and Taragampatti (Perambalur district) in the Tiruchi Social Forestry Division.

Works on forest development and water augmentation, including soil and moisture conservation, are carried out at an estimated cost of Rs. 26 lakhs in these villages, besides the buffer zone activities in each village costing Rs. 3 lakhs, he adds.

Many beneficiaries have also been trained in vermin-culture, mushroom cultivation, apiculture and nursery raising techniques through the Forest department. There is also a proposal for training women in soft-toys manufacturing.

The Thinnanur panchayat president, B. Usha Rani, who has undergone the training, praises the department for carrying out development works in her village.

"The Forest department is constructing a community hall at a cost of Rs. 1.5 lakhs. It has already constructed four check dams in the panchayat. Individual loans to the tune of Rs. 2.10 lakhs has been sanctioned to 42 members," Mrs. Usha Rani notes, pleased with the help from the department, which they feared in the past.

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