Shillong, Dec. 2: The Meghalaya government will start bamboo plantation drives in degraded forest areas to increase the state's greenery and livelihood opportunities for its people.

Degraded forests are those that have been impacted by excessive use of forest products. Such areas have been severely damaged by cutting of trees, fire and other factors. Degraded forests also include barren land that requires re-establishment of forests. Under the National Bamboo Mission (NBM), the state is also taking steps to increase high-yielding bamboo plantations in forest and non-forest areas, establish new nurseries to raise bamboo seedlings and develop bamboo marketing, capacity building and human resource. The bamboo plantation drive will take place between April and June next year.

"We are identifying the degraded lands where we will plant bamboo saplings," Meghalaya's conservator of forests in-charge, bamboo cell, and NBM state mission director, P.S. Nongbri, told The Telegraph.

In Meghalaya, several products made of bamboo are available. Bamboo is also used in structural building, handicrafts and furniture. Bamboo is also exported to paper mills and other factories from the state.

Officials in the forest department said bamboo was one of the fastest growing natural resources that could be used as a timber substitute, but not much advantages had been taken from this gift of nature. According to Nongbri, bamboo plantation was carried out in 915 hectares and 4,997 hectares of degraded forests and forest areas from 2005 to 2015.

The forest cover of Meghalaya, according to the 2013 assessment, comprises very dense forest (449 square km), moderate forest (9,689 square km) and open forest (7,150 square km).

"The target is also to plant bamboo in the open forests, particularly, in areas where people demand to carry out the plantation drive," Nongbri added.

To help enhance bamboo plantation and production, the Meghalaya forest department (social forestry division), organised a workshop on National Bamboo Mission at Lady Hydari Park here on Monday.

Artisans, craftsmen and members of different joint forest management committees from various ranges and divisions attended the workshop.

Meghalaya additional principal chief conservator of forest (social forestry environment) Y.S. Shullai said the NBM was launched to provide an interface between the government and the people and work in synergy to help enhance bamboo plantation and production.

Nongbri stressed on the need to have more training and capacity building programme for artisans to enable them to enhance production of bamboo and its products.

The NBM was launched to motivate communities, non-governmental organisations, self-help groups, farmers and entrepreneurs for the development of the bamboo sector. The mission envisages increasing coverage of areas under bamboo plantation as well as promote marketing of bamboo-based handicraft by blending traditional knowledge and modern scientific knowhow to generate jobs.