Bamboo buffer for state’s greenery - High expenses prompt forest department to do away with iron fences

A.S.R.P. MUKESH

Bamboo gabions at JAP-I grounds in Doranda. Picture by Prashant Mitra Ranchi, Jan. 12: Iron fences protecting roadside trees will soon be replaced with cost-effective and environment-friendly bamboo gabions across the state. For the past year and a half, the forest department has been putting up these gabions in areas like Dipatoli cantonment, Kanke and Morabadi on a trial basis to check the concept’s feasibility. Ranchi divisional forest officer (DFO) Y.K. Das said last year, they had put up 3,000 bamboo gabions as part of the pilot project. “The success rate is over 80 per cent,” he added. “We were sceptical if these gabions would be able to bear the onslaught of rains. But no such problems came to the fore. Most importantly, there was the risk of the gabions being picked up by local residents and used as firewood in winter. But such incidents could be averted, as we had formed local-level vigilance teams to keep an eye on the gabions,” said Das. Now that the pilot project has been successful, the department is planning to do away with the iron fences. Besides the afforestation wing of the forest department, the territorial and social forestry departments have also been assigned the job to put up the gabions. This year, the social forestry department has a target of installing over 4,000 bamboo gabions in Ranchi alone. “Separate schemes are also being formulated for Khunti and Lohardaga that come under our jurisdiction,” said social forestry DFO Kali Kinker. The installation process is also expected to create job opportunities in rural areas, as the forest department will require labourers to construct the bamboo structures. It will also promote bamboo cultivation. According to officials, protecting the plants cost more than procuring saplings. “Each iron fence costs us anything between Rs 1,500 and Rs 2,000. They are frequently stolen because of their good resale value. Keeping a vigil round the year was an uphill task. In comparison, prices of bamboo gabions vary between Rs 500 and Rs 700 and we only need to maintain them during winter,” Kinker said. He added that the idea of introducing bamboo gabions was first mooted by chief secretary A.K. Singh two years ago, who was the forest secretary then. The Ranchi DFO said another reason behind opting for bamboo gabions was the problem of disposing of iron grills. “Once the tree grows, a separate scheme has to be approved for the tedious task of removing the iron fences from the sites. But in case of bamboo gabions, even if you don’t remove them, they automatically get disposed of in the soil,” he said. Check this link to view: http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110113/jsp/jharkhand/story_13431856.jsp