Review meeting on National Forest Policy held

SHILLONG: Chief Secretary P.B.O. Warjri has highlighted the need for the proposed revision of the National Forest Policy to be sensitive to the unique community owned forests of the North East and the role of forests in the context of climate change.
He was addressing the review meeting on National Forest Policy in the city on Tuesday.
Dr. G.A. Kinhal, Director, Indian Institute of Forests Management (IIFM), Bhopal, indicated that IIFM has initiated the process for formulation of the National Forest Policy through intensive stakeholder consultations being organized through six regional workshops and two national workshops.
The Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM) was entrusted with the task to review and revision of the National Forest Policy, 1988.
In this connection, the third regional consultation was held on October 13-14 at NEHU with representatives from the State Forests Departments of the Northeastern states and West Bengal.
Issues that were discussed in detail included improving the health, vitality and socio-economic functions of the community owned forests which constitute about 60 per cent of the total forests of the Northeastern region.
It may be noted that about one-fourth of the total forest cover of the country is located in the Northeastern region, making the region a global biodiversity hotspot.