Ban on bamboo-shoot extraction hits Tripura tribals hard

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

Agartala, Aug 5 (UNI) Tribals of Autharomura hill range in Tripura were finding it difficult to meet their ends as the administration has put a check on their main source of income this year.

''I am the only breadwinner for my five children and physically challenged husband. Life has become difficult after they restricted our entry into the bamboo forests.'' lamented Manidipa, who makes her living by selling bamboo shoots from the abandoned forests during the rainy season.

Misery was writ large on faces of several poor tribals living along Baramura, Autharomura and Longtaria hill ranges of the state.

Besides Tripura, tribals in Mizoram, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh were also worst affected with the Centre's initiative to set up bamboo-based economy in the Northeast by acquiring abandoned bamboo forests.

The Centre had reportedly sanctioned more than Rs 2,000 crores for the NE under National Bamboo Mission to develop agri-business, which was allegedly causing pauperisation of peasantry among non-tribals.

Renowned NE Rural Development expert Jayanta Choudhury told UNI here today that during the late nineties, importance was given to bamboo economy and rural development for eradicating massive poverty.

Mr Choudhury said lack of people's participation was identified as a major constraint in the successful implementation of rural development projects in NE, especially Tripura.

As part of Bamboo Mission, Tripura Forest Department launched massive campaign against marketing of bamboo shoots, a popular edible item of the state.

However, with reconstitution of the Mission, the forest department stressed upon protection of bamboo forests to increase the revenue.

Principal Chief Conservator of Forests R P Tangwan said the state government initiated special projects for bamboo cultivation taking expert opinion which predicted that bamboo would flower again within the decade across NE, including Tripura.

He, however, said natural bamboo forests in Tripura were facing potential threat from the tribal vendors, who extracted large number of shoots throughout the year resulting in revenue loss of crores every year.

''The state cultivates edible bamboo during the monsoon and the annual consumption of bamboo shoots was only 201 metric tonnes.

However, it had now increased to almost three times,'' Mr Tangwan said adding that indiscriminate deforestation of bamboo had compelled the government to ban extraction of bamboo shoots.

The forest department had introduced highly renewable bamboo, with two to four years of maturity cycle and acquired new land area for cultivation. Besides, the department engaged a number of NGOs in the bamboo shoot restriction campaign.

NE tibals depend on bamboo for almost everything from food to shelter. However, rotting of bamboo over hundred acres of land and the increased menace of rats during bamboo flowering were devastating the traditional Jhum cultivation.

State's leading economist Amativa Sinha said bamboo shoot had played an important role in rural development and contributed a great to the rural economy. It had also helped to boost the economy of Thailand after it undertook gregarious flowering to cash in on the flourishing bamboo shoot industry.

UNI

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