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Policies Promoting Forestry Innovation 3.1
The National Mission for a Green India is one of the sub-missions
under the NAPCC. It aims at increasing the forest cover by 5 million
hectares (mha) and improve the quality of forest cover on another
5 mha over a period of 10 years and ensuring livelihoods to the forest
dwelling communities. In order to leverage funds for the same, policy
convergence between Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has been affected. Further, any diversion
of forests for non-forest purposes by industry will require a payment
by the industry, based on the Net Present Value (NPV) and will be
put in Compensatory Afforestation Fund. The Indian Government is
looking at creating a statutory authority to utilize these funds.
Research has been an important component of the National Forest
Policy. Several programmes under the Ministry of Environment and
Forests (MOEF) have been initiated in order to undertake research.
Ecosystems Research programme and the Research Programme
of Socio-Economic Issues of Environment (RPSE) are some of the
progammes. Research has also gone into identifying Ecologically
Sensitive Zones (ESZ). A National Natural Resources Management
System (NNRMS) has been set up under which remote sensing
technologies are being used for inventorization, assessment, and
monitoring of natural resources.
The National Forest Policy advocates the use of research and
development for the conservation and sustainable development of
forests. The MOEFCC has prepared the National Working Plan Code-
2014 (For Sustainable Management of Forests and Biodiversity in
India). The Working Plan articulates the need to document the carbon
stock of the Forests, an exercise undertaken by the Forest Survey of
India (FSI).
The Fourteenth Finance Commission recommendation to give 7.5
per cent of the weightage to forest cover in the distribution of the tax
pool among states will also serve as an incentive to maintain forest
cover. It helps to meet the opportunity cost of diverting those forests
for other economic activities and will give an impetus in finding new
ways of ensuring the minimum forest cover.
The Government has also initiated a mechanism for marketing
minor forest produce (MFP) through minimum support price for 12
MFP’s namely—bamboo, tendu, mahua seed, sal leaf, sal seed, lac,
chironjee, wild honey, myrobalan, tamarind, gum karaya, and karanj.
Such a policy will serve as an incentive in increasing productivity.
The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India
Chapter 1 Low Carbon Technology and Innovation Policy 227
The National Mission for a Green India is one of the sub-missions
under the NAPCC. It aims at increasing the forest cover by 5 million
hectares (mha) and improve the quality of forest cover on another
5 mha over a period of 10 years and ensuring livelihoods to the forest
dwelling communities. In order to leverage funds for the same, policy
convergence between Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has been affected. Further, any diversion
of forests for non-forest purposes by industry will require a payment
by the industry, based on the Net Present Value (NPV) and will be
put in Compensatory Afforestation Fund. The Indian Government is
looking at creating a statutory authority to utilize these funds.
Research has been an important component of the National Forest
Policy. Several programmes under the Ministry of Environment and
Forests (MOEF) have been initiated in order to undertake research.
Ecosystems Research programme and the Research Programme
of Socio-Economic Issues of Environment (RPSE) are some of the
progammes. Research has also gone into identifying Ecologically
Sensitive Zones (ESZ). A National Natural Resources Management
System (NNRMS) has been set up under which remote sensing
technologies are being used for inventorization, assessment, and
monitoring of natural resources.
The National Forest Policy advocates the use of research and
development for the conservation and sustainable development of
forests. The MOEFCC has prepared the National Working Plan Code-
2014 (For Sustainable Management of Forests and Biodiversity in
India). The Working Plan articulates the need to document the carbon
stock of the Forests, an exercise undertaken by the Forest Survey of
India (FSI).
The Fourteenth Finance Commission recommendation to give 7.5
per cent of the weightage to forest cover in the distribution of the tax
pool among states will also serve as an incentive to maintain forest
cover. It helps to meet the opportunity cost of diverting those forests
for other economic activities and will give an impetus in finding new
ways of ensuring the minimum forest cover.
The Government has also initiated a mechanism for marketing
minor forest produce (MFP) through minimum support price for 12
MFP’s namely—bamboo, tendu, mahua seed, sal leaf, sal seed, lac,
chironjee, wild honey, myrobalan, tamarind, gum karaya, and karanj.
Such a policy will serve as an incentive in increasing productivity.
The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India
Chapter 1 Low Carbon Technology and Innovation Policy 227
