Chhattisgarh purchased highest value of minor forest produce in country: TRIFED

RAIPUR: The state has purchased the highest value of minor forest produce across the country, according to the data released by the tribal cooperative marketing development federation of India (TRIFED). Minor forest produce worth more than Rs18 crore 63 lakh have been purchased from the forest dwellers and villagers in Chhattisgarh, which is the highest in India compared to the other states.In addition to Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha have started procurement of minor forest produce.
According to TRIFED data, minor forest produce worth Rs 18.67 crore has been purchased in the country so far, out of which minor forest produce worth Rs 18.63 crore has been purchased in the state of Chhattisgarh itself. Minor forest produce worth Rs 3.39 lakh has been purchased in Jharkhand and Rs 5,000 minor forest produce has been purchased in Odisha.
According to the latest data of the state government, 72727 quintals of minor forest produce worth about Rs21 crore have been collected in Chhattisgarh during the current season. Amid the lockdown, fo rest dwellers and villagers of Vananchal are getting a lot of relief from the government’s purchase of small forest produce at the support price and the cash payment process. At the same time, employment opportunities for forest produce collectors have also increased. It is noteworthy that only seven forest produce were being purchased in the state from the year 2015 to the year 2018 at the support price.
Presently, the state government had increased the number of minor forest produce to 22 keeping in mind the interest of the villagers, which has now been increased to 23.
Minor forest produce collected under the minimum support price scheme in the state in the current year include tamarind (including seeds), puwad (charota), mahua flower (dry), bahera, harra, kalmegh, dhavai flower (dry), nagarmotha, tamarind flower, karanj Seeds and honey are included. Apart from this, minor forest produce such as Bel Anal, Amla (seedless), Rangini Lakh, Kusumi Lakh, Phul Jhadu, Chironji Kernels, Kullu Gum, Mahua Seed, Conch Seed, Jamun Seed (dry), and Sal Seed are also included.