In a continuing effort to promote the sustainable use and conservation of India’s endemic biological resources, the National Biodiversity Authority has released ₹29.40 lakh to the Odisha Forest Department under the Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) mechanism for the conservation and protection of Red Sanders (Pterocarpus santalinus).

The ABS fund was generated from benefit-sharing amount received for accessing Red Sanders wood logs sourced from the Parlakhemundi Forest Division in Gajapati District, Odisha. These trees, believed to be over a century old, were originally planted by the then Maharaja of Parlakhemundi.

The Red Sanders trees had naturally fallen during the Cyclone in 2018. Following that the Odisha Forest Development Corporation auctioned the fallen Red Sanders wood.

This release forms part of a series of ABS disbursements made by the NBA to support conservation efforts of biological resources across the country. So far, the NBA has released over ₹50.00 crore to the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department, Karnataka Forest Department, and the Andhra Pradesh State Biodiversity Board for the protection and conservation of Red Sanders including sponsored research projects. In addition, ₹3.00 crore has been released to 198 farmers in Andhra Pradesh and ₹55.00 lakh to 18 farmers in Tamil Nadu. With this latest release, Odisha becomes the fourth State to receive ABS funds arising from the commercial use of Red Sanders.

The funds will support activities aimed at conservation and sustainable use of Red Sanders across the states. This initiative exemplifies how benefit-sharing from the commercial utilization of biological resources can be meaningfully channelled back to the conservation efforts.

 

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VM/SK

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