NEW DELHI: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, on Friday approved the launch of a new, Centrally-sponsored National Bamboo Mission (NBM), to be implemented at a cost of Rs. 568.23 crore.

The Department of Agriculture and Cooperation (DAC) will implement the Mission, with 100 per cent assistance from the Centre, including an outlay of Rs. 91.37 crore for the current financial year.

The CCEA also gave "in principle" approval to continue the Mission during the XIth Five Year Plan period, beginning April 2007.

The Mission will have a three-tier structure.

Apex Committee

The National Level Apex Committee will be constituted under the Chairmanship of Union Agriculture Minister with Ministers of Forests, Textiles, Science and Technology, Commerce, Rural Development, Panchayati Raj, Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation, Development of North Eastern Region, Small Scale Industries, Ministers of Forest /Agriculture/Horticulture from select States; Member (Environment & Forests) in Planning Commission and Experts as Members.

The Committee will meet once every year to provide overall guidance, monitoring and review.

The National Steering Committee will be constituted under the Union Agriculture Secretary. Secretaries from Ministries concerned with bamboo, including experts and a NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development) representative, will be members of this Committee.

The Committee will meet at least quarterly every year to review the progress and approve the projects.

It will ensure that there is no duplication between the activities of the Mission and the National Mission on Bamboo Applications, set up in the Ministry of Science and Technology, the CCEA observed.

The third committee, the National Bamboo Cell, will be established under the Mission Director in the DAC. The NBM will ensure networking with various financing institutions to facilitate credit availability.

The Mission aims to cover 1.76 lakh hectare area under bamboo plantation activities over a period of five years. Presently, 8.96 million hectare forest area of the country contains bamboo, equivalent to 12.8 per cent of the forest cover.

It also envisages employment generation of 50.4 million man-days of work by plantation works alone and of about 9.7 lakh man-days in the nursery sector.

About 505 nurseries and three tissue culture laboratories will be established to produce sufficient planting material.

Objectives

The other important objectives of the Mission are to increase the coverage of area under bamboo in potential areas with appropriate varieties to enhance yields; to promote marketing of bamboo and bamboo-based handicrafts; to establish convergence and synergy among stake-holders for development of bamboo and to promote, develop and disseminate technologies; to generate employment opportunities for skilled and unskilled persons, especially unemployed youths.

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