Kohima, Sep 23 Protecting Nagaland’s biodiversity requires the involvement of communities, citizens, educational institutions and churches, as the Forest Department owns less than five per cent of the state’s total forest cover, a senior state government official said on Wednesday.
Speaking at a stakeholder consultation on the revision of the Nagaland State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NSBSAP) here, Principal Secretary, Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and Chairman, Nagaland State Biodiversity Board, Y Kikheto Sema, said the Forest Department owns less than five per cent of the total forest coverage in the state, and therefore biodiversity conservation could not be achieved by the department alone.
“Because of the peculiar landholding system of Nagaland, we need the help of all of you and all our people to be involved,” he said.
Sema said biodiversity conservation could not be achieved by the Forest Department alone and called for greater public awareness, including on waste management, stressing that environmental protection was a responsibility of citizens as well as the government.
Sema, also the Development Commissioner of the state, urged that biodiversity and waste management be discussed within families and incorporated into school education. He also appealed to churches to include biodiversity conservation in Sunday School teachings, sermons and church conferences.
He noted that the Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC) had earlier adopted a resolution to protect and promote biodiversity in the state and urged it to uphold the resolution. He also called for greater attention to waste generated during church conferences, campaigns and other large gatherings.
Sema highlighted Nagaland’s traditional shifting cultivation system, saying it was closely linked to Naga culture and festivals and could not simply be stopped. However, he said the practice in its present form was no longer economically viable or ecologically sustainable and was affecting biodiversity.
He said the traditional agricultural system was unique but was not adequately represented in agricultural education, despite around 70 per cent of the state’s population living in rural areas and being engaged in agriculture and allied activities.
Sema said Nagaland had limited scope for large- and medium-scale industries and agriculture and allied activities remained the main economic avenue for the rural population. He also pointed to the state’s rich biodiversity and forest cover of about 73 per cent, compared with the national average of around 21-22 per cent.
The principal secretary said the state should leverage its biodiversity and ecological resources by encouraging visitors to experience its ecological services.
Nagaland is revising its NSBSAP in line with India’s updated National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF).
The NSBB, in association with The Nature Conservancy Centre (TNCC) and Foundation for Ecological Security (FES), organised the stakeholder consultation here on Wednesday. The consultation seeks inputs on biodiversity challenges, state-specific priorities, governance, capacity building and community participation for the revised action plan.
Nagaland prepared its first State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan in 2005 and revised and formally launched it in May 2022, incorporating 12 targets drawn from the national plan and the Aichi Biodiversity Targets.
Sema said the revision was a commitment of the state government to align its biodiversity conservation efforts with the global framework and called for cooperation, coordination, confidence and contribution from all stakeholders.
Executive Director, TNCC India, Ishwar Narayanan, and General Manager, FES, Sanjay Sharma, also addressed the consultation.
(PTI News)
