Tripura seeks Chinese grant for forest devp

Agartala, July 26: The Tripura government has sought a grant from China for afforestation programme.

Official sources here today said state forest minister Jitendra Choudhury and additional principal chief conservator of forest V K Bahuguna had visited China early this month to share the experiences of forest development in this hilly region.

The government had submitted a project for sustainable economic development of tribals in the state to China's International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO).

''ITTO is a role model for successful rehabilitation of Jumias across the globe. We will prepare a strategy for the socio-economic uplift of poor tribals,'' Mr Choudhury said.

Earlier, Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) had agreed to invest Rs 311 crore in the state for Afforestation&Eco- Restoration project, which would economically benefit the tribals under its overseas development programme.

It also aims to rehabilitate the heavily degraded forest land ravaged due to shifting cultivation and various human activities.

Meanwhile, Germany would also provide Rs 830 million to Tripura for the empowerment of the tribals and people living in rural areas by utilising the abundant natural resources under the Indo-German Bilateral Cooperation.

According to the proposal, German government would provide 15 million euros, of which one-fifth is grant and the remaining is a loan.

It would also provide technical assistance to about 50,000 tribal families for the utilisation of the natural resources for sustainable development.

UNI