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Written by: JK Monitor News Network

Category: ENVIRONMENT

Published: 31 May 2023

SRINAGAR: A one day Training cum Capacity workshop was today organized by J&K Forest Department on Continuous Forest Inventory for Forest Officers at Dak Bungalow, Anantnag. The program was organized in collaboration with Forest Demarcation Division, Kashmir Region and Photo Interpretation Division in which about 40 Officers and officials participated.

During the inaugural session, Conservator of Forests, South Forest Circle, Irfan Ali Shah informed that Forests covers about 48 percent of total land area in the J&K, so inventory based assessment of the forest resources is of utmost importance in the present scenario.

He stressed that data and information are required to manage a renewable natural resource such as forest sustainability and this information is largely obtained through forest inventories which provides the data for planning, monitoring, evaluation, research, growth and yield, biodiversity, and timber sale.

Shah informed that traditionally, the Forest Officers along with Revenue Officers demarcated the forests using traditional equipment’s but with the advent of modern technology, our Foresters need to adopt themselves with the advanced technologies like GPS, GIS, PDA, formation of KMZ and KML files and even drone technology. He informed that these training programs are a step in this direction.

The CoF directed all forest officers to ensure Inventorization of Forest vegetation at specified grid points strictly in accordance with Forest Records and scientific data. He informed that under the deliverable theme “Kabza Mukt Janglat” or encroachment free forests, this year till now 208 Kanals of forest land has been evicted out in South Kashmir. Further 201 numbers of Forests have been surveyed under deliverable, “Digitize, Fence, Secure” last year. The Demarcation Division itself is going to install hundreds of BPs including Main Line and Check Line BPs.

He informed that different survey teams of forest officials constituted to ascertain the existence of already installed BPs across South Kashmir have completed this exercise last week and a report has been submitted in this regard already with the headquarters. He said with this pace, we will be able to achieve the complete consolidation and settlement of forest boundaries in South Kashmir in the next 2-3 years.

He also envisioned use of differential Global Positioning System technology for ascertaining location of grid or survey points more accurately with greater precisions. The Technical session was taken by Shabir Ahmad Dar I/c ICT Lab PI Division and briefed about Technology advancement in vegetation surveys.

In the afternoon, the trainees were given exposure to various field exercises and skills viz Forest vegetal analysis in Mattan Forests of Lidder Forest Division. The programme was also attended by Divisional Forest officers of South Forest Circle including Dr. Mehraj Ahmad Sheikh, DFO Lidder Forest Division and Mohammad Ramzan Mir, DFO Anantnag who spoke on different aspects of Forest management planning. Range officers, ReJs, media fraternity and other forest officials also participated in this training program.