The state government is looking at taking help from the men in olive greens to increase the green cover in drought-affected Marathwada.
Finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar, who is also the state forest minister, has discussed with defence minister Manohar Parrikar the deployment of the ecological task force battalions raised by the ministry of defence in the region, which has a low forest cover and finds itself in the recurring throes of drought.
Mungantiwar met Parrikar at the former's office in Mantralaya on Tuesday. These battalions, which are composed of regular and ex-servicemen, undertake the ecological restoration and regeneration of degraded areas.
The Eco-Development Forces scheme is being implemented through the ministry of defence for ecological restoration of terrains which are rendered difficult either due to severe degradation, remote location or difficult law and order situations. The eco task force battalions are raised by the ministry of defence and are reimbursed by the MoEF.
"We want the tree cover in Maharashtra to increase… while Gadchiroli (in Vidarbha) has around 70% jungle cover, it is just 0.7% in Latur (in Marathwada)," said Mungantiwar, noting that the drought in Marathwada could be one of the fallouts of this low green cover.
He added that the state forest department planned to plant trees in Marathwada with help from the eco battalion, which had technical expertise in this regard, and had made the request to Parrikar, who had said he would examine the feasibility.
The state is also willing to allow the use of its open plots for tree plantation. Stressing on the need for public participation to increase its green cover, Mungantiwar said joint forest management committees would also be set up in urban areas.
Mungantiwar also presented Parrikar a master plan of the proposed Sainik School in Chandrapur. The school, the second in Maharashtra, will come up on 123 acres on the Chandrapur-Ballarpur highway and the state will provide the necessary funds for the institution, which will have an intake of 600 students. A memorandum of understanding will be signed in two weeks and the school is proposed to be started in two years.
Maharashtra already houses the Sainik school in Satara, which was founded in 1961 as the first among a chain of such institutions in the country.
Affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education, Sainik schools are feeder institutions for defence academies and provide quality public school education to students, including those from weaker sections.
According to the India State of Forest Report, 2015, published by the Forest Survey of India, India's recorded forest areas (RFAs) cover 23.26% of the 32,87,263 sqkm geographical area. The report said that Maharashtra has RFAs of 20.01% of the total geographical area (61,579 sqkm of 3,07,713 sqkm). The National Forest Policy, 1988, has set a target of 33%.
Maharashtra has six national parks, 47 wildlife sanctuaries and four conservation reserves with a tiger population of around 190 in 2014, up from 169 in 2010.
