JAMMU: The Forest Department has planted 16.43 lakh trees and raised 17.46 lakh plants in its nurseries under Compensatory Aforestation Management Planning Authority (CAMPA) in six divisions of Chenab Forest Circle during the period 2010-11 till March 2012, involving a cost of Rs 6.44 crore.

For the year 2012-13 the department has set a target of planting 8.31 lakh trees and to raise 10.47 lakh in its nurseries established across the Forest Circle spread over to three districts of Doda, Ramban and Kishtwar.

The meeting of the National Board For Wildlife (NBWL), on Wednesday, presided by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for the first ever since its reconstitution two years back, considered several proposa

The green cover in Gurgaon, Mahendergarh, Kurukshetra, Karnal and Palwal would be increased with funds from the State Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA).

Presiding over CAMPA’s Steering Committee meeting, Haryana Chief Secretary P.K. Chaudhery said that plantation in these cities would be in addition to the ongoing urban forestry schemes.

Itanagar: Arunachal Chief Minister Nabam Tuki has suggested the Environment and Forest Department to encourage livestock farming under eco-development scheme of Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) to distract the people from illegal hunting practices.

“Such initiative can divert the attention of the people towards economic sustenance schemes rather going for illegal hunting,” Tuki justified while presiding over the third governing body meeting of state unit of CAMPA here today.

PANJIM: Even as forest department is bracing up to clear a backlog of afforesting 2300 hectares of degraded land pending since 2004 under Compensatory Afforestration Fund Management Authority (CAMPA), the non availability of degraded land has created impediment for the officials.

Forest department officials said that the state has good forest cover making it difficult to get the degraded woods, which are essential for afforestration under CAMPA. Union government’s ambitious scheme seems to have been jinxed right from its announcement in the state. The Centre had held back the amount since 2004 till 2009-10 due the petition pending in the Supreme Court.

PANJIM: Government will table the draft mining policy during the forthcoming Goa Legislative Assembly’s monsoon session which commences Thursday, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar disclosed.

Briefing Herald, Parrikar said that the process of formulating the draft policy is almost complete by eliciting inputs from various departments linked with the mining industry. “The inputs will be drafted as a policy and will be tabled on the floor of the House,” Parrikar informed. He elaborated that each department which is concerned with the mining industry has been asked to give their inputs, which would be included in the draft document.

PANJIM: A ‘Vision Document’ detailing spending of money and priorities under Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management Authority (CAMPA), for next ten years, has been finalized by state government, which will decide the way forward for this centrally funded project.

The document prepared by the Centre for Environment Education (CEE), a body of environmental experts, was placed before Steering Committee on CAMPA headed by Chief Secretary Sanjay Srivastava, which met recently.

SHILLONG: The State Government has taken exception to the delay by Lafarge Umiam Mining Private Ltd (LUMPL) in handing over the proposed land to allow the Government to start the process of compensatory afforestation.

As a penalty for carrying out limestone mining in forest land measuring about 116.589 hectare at Nongtrai Shella in East Khasi Hills district to facilitate supply of limestone to its cement plant located in Bangladesh, the Supreme Court in its ruling on July 6, 2011 had directed LUMPL to pay certain amount to the State Government for compensatory afforestation from April 1, 2007 towards Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA).

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government on Wednesday approved Rs 184.60-crore Annual Plan of Operations for Compensatory Afforestation Fund Managament and Planning Authority (CAMPA) for the financial ye

In a bid to increase green cover, Odisha government has set a target to undertake plantation in over two lakh hectare ahead of the monsoon at an expenditure of Rs 183 crore.