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http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4978605.cms

States to get incentives to maintain forest cover: Ramesh

PTI 6 September 2009, 05:27pm IST

DEHRADUN: The Centre today announced plans to give financial incentives to

states maintaining their forest cover and taking steps to increase it.

 

 

" A plan is being worked out to give a green bonus or dividend to states that are

maintaining their forest cover and are taking steps to improve it, " said Union

Minister of state for Forest and Environment Jairam Ramesh at a conference on

climate change here.

 

" These states will be given financial incentives from the finance and planning

commissions. The incentives will also be given to local self governments, " he

said, adding, this kind of encouragement is necessary for these states as they

are under tremendous economic pressure to do away with forests.

 

The minister said that India wants a fair and equitable international agreement

on the issue of climate change and global warming that does not stifle its

development aspiration at the forthcoming United Nations Summit on Climate

Change (UNSCC) at Copenhagen.

 

" India wants a fair and equitable agreement. There should be no barriers to its

own economic growth. We are deeply concerned over the issue of global warming

and climate change. The best way to mitigate the problem is that countries

should do things on their own. We are doing it and over the next two to three

months more countries will know what we are doing, " he said.

 

The minister said that Himalayan states of Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Himachal

Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand need to be given special incentives

for maintaining the forest cover and expressed hope that the Centre would

respond to the suggestions made by him.

 

The fact that around 15,000 Himalayan glaciers are receding is beyond doubt,

Ramesh said, adding, however, that what still needs to be established is the

cause of the recession.

 

He said that while the western school of thought attributes the recession of

glaciers to global warming, Indian scientists are of the opinion that there is

still not enough solid evidence to substantiate it.

 

The minister said that there are studies which point out there are some like the

Siachin glacier that are advancing. " In case of Gangotri, the rate of retreat in

the last 10 years is lesser than the rate of retreat in the previous decades, "

he said.

 

A National Institute of Himalayan glaciology is being set up in Dehradun to

study the changes in the Himalayan glaciers in collaboration with China, Bhutan

and may be Pakistan at a later stage to gather scientific evidence related to

the glaciers, he said.

 

 

Referring to the agitations against the proposed hydel projects on the

Bhagirathi river, Ramesh said that the National Ganga river Basin Authority set

up under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will study the

sustainable use of water in the Ganga system.

 

" We are moving from a project based approach to a basin based approach, " he said

while adding that it has been decided to hire a consultant for the same and 30

bids have been received so far for making plans for the entire basin.

 

A similar Authority is also being planned for the Teesta river, he said, adding,

the construction of Lohari-Nagpala project in Uttarakhand would be the test

phase for the new approach.

 

India should also aim to bring at least 20 per cent of its total cultivated area

under organic farming by 2020, he said