Rajasthan Government undertakes biodiversity conservation project with French assistance

The Government of Rajasthan, with the assistance of the French development agency Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD), has undertaken a biodiversity conservation project in the eastern districts of the state.

The State Government has already given its approval to the Rajasthan Forestry and Bio Development Project which has been planned by the Rajasthan Forest Department with the support of AFD.

A group of representatives on August 26, 2021, including India’s AFD director Bruno Bosle, Rajasthan Principal Secretary forest Sreya Guha, Chief Secretary Niranjan Arya as well as various other state government officials discussed the details of the project in Jaipur.

फ्रांस व वन विभाग की नई परियोजना राजस्थान फॉरेस्ट्री एंड बायो डायवर्सिटी डेवलपमेंट प्रोजेक्ट पर वन विभाग के अधिकारियों व फ्रांस एजेंसी की एएफडी टीम के मध्य विचार-विमर्श हुआ। प्रमुख शासन सचिव श्रीमती श्रेया गुहा ने कहा कि इसके द्वारा पर्यावरण, वन व वन्य जीव संरक्षण के कार्य होंगे। pic.twitter.com/xJz2zWqiW5

— Government of Rajasthan (@RajGovOfficial) August 26, 2021

Objective:

The Rajasthan Forestry and Bio Development Project funded by the French agency aims to advance with the support of local communities.

The project has provisions to promote eco-tourism as well as other sustainable income generation activities in the target villages with assistance to nearly 1,200 Self-Help groups.

Rajasthan Forestry and Bio Development Project: Key details

• Community empowerment will be the key aspect of the biodiversity conservation project. It will include various efforts to increase the income of the local communities without adversely impacting the local natural ecosystem.

• The districts covered under the project will be Baran, Alwar, Bharatpur, Bhilwara, Bundi, Dholpur, Dausa, Jaipur, Karauli, Jhalawar, Kota, Tonk, and Sawaimadhopur with a focus to conserve the biological diversity.

• Under the project, afforestation will also be carried on 33,000 hectares of land along with the conservation of 40,000 hectares of the existing forest.

• In addition, nearly 3,000 hectares of sacred groves have also been proposed for conservation management under the project.

Other works for biodiversity conservation under project in Rajasthan:

The official release further informed that along with the promotion of the plantation work outside the designated forest areas, restoration of the degraded forest and the development of plant micro reserves will also take place under this project.

Modern technologies will be employed for real-time monitoring of the forest areas. A biodiversity park has also been proposed to be developed in Bharatpur as part of the project.