Jammu: The Administrative Council (AC) which met here under the chairmanship of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha accorded administrative approval to the policy for sustainable collection and utilisation of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFP) in J&K.
An official spokesman in a statement issued here said that this policy was aimed at ensuring sustainable collection and utilisation of NTFP including medicinal plants while providing livelihood support to the people residing in and around forests by promoting sustainable extraction, value addition, and development of market linkages.
He said that the policy was in sync with the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, Biological Diversity Act, 2002 and Forest Policy 2011.
The spokesman said that this intervention of the government would lead to dispensing of the existing practice of auction of non-timber forest produces and would permit local people to collect these resources from wild on sustainable basis so that they share the benefits equitably amongst themselves.
He said that this policy would result in enhancement of income of the local communities and value addition of these products while the Forest Department would also extend support for market linkages.
Advisor to Lieutenant Governor Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar and Chief Secretary Arun Kumar Mehta also attended the meeting.