Lok Sabha Question No. 3498 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2017-08-08
Subject: Biodiversity Management Committees
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: M. I. SHANAVAS

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION  NO. 3498

TO BE ANSWERED ON 08.08.2017

## Biodiversity Management Committees

## 3498.  SHRI M.I. SHANAVAS

Will  the  Minister  of  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND  CLIMATE  CHANGE  be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government  is aware of reports indicating a lax attitude in the establishment of Biodiversity Management Committees as required under the Biological Diversity Act in all local bodies in the country;
- (b) if  so,  the  details  thereof  along  with the details of such committees established so far, State-wise; and;
- (c) the  steps  being  taken  by  the  Government  to  ensure  that  Biodiversity  Management Committees are set up in all the local bodies in the country?

## A N S W E R

## MINISTER FOR  ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## (DR. HARSH VARDHAN)

- (a) and (b)     The Biological Diversity Act requires that every Local Body has to constitute a Biodiversity Management Committee (BMC) within its area as per Section 41(1) of the Act. Setting up of BMCs is an ongoing exercise. So far, 62,502 BMCs have been constituted by the local bodies in 26 States, details of which are given in the Annexure.
- (c) The Government has taken several steps to facilitate setting up of BMCs by the local bodies  in  the  country.  The  Government  provides  financial  assistance  through  the National  Biodiversity  Authority  (NBA)  to  the  State  Biodiversity  Boards  (SBBs)  for constitution  of  BMCs  in  the  local  bodies  concerned.  NBA  has  issued  Guidelines  for formation and operationalization of BMCs for the use by the States. The Ministry of Panchayat  Raj,  at  the  behest  of  the  Ministry  of  Environment,  Forest  and  Climate Change, has issued directions  to all  the States/UTs to constitute  BMCs wherever not constituted,  at  the  three  tiers  of  Panchayati  Raj  Institutions  in  coordination  with  the SBBS.   Further,  constitution  of  BMCs  is  also  being  undertaken  under  the  externally aided projects being implemented by NBA in different States. The Government through NBA is actively pursuing with the SBBs as well as State Governments for constituting BMCs by the local bodies.

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## Annexure

| State-wise status of BMCs   | State-wise status of BMCs   | State-wise status of BMCs   |
|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|
| S. No.                      | State Biodiversity Boards   | Number of BMCs              |
| 1                           | Andhra Pradesh              | 2738                        |
| 2                           | Arunachal Pradesh           | 58                          |
| 3                           | Assam                       | 205                         |
| 4                           | Bihar                       | 0                           |
| 5                           | Chhattisgarh                | 45                          |
| 6                           | Goa                         | 112                         |
| 7                           | Gujarat                     | 6900                        |
| 8                           | Himachal Pradesh            | 322                         |
| 9                           | Haryana                     | -                           |
| 10                          | Jharkhand                   | 569                         |
| 11                          | Jammu &Kashmir              | -                           |
| 12                          | Karnataka                   | 4900                        |
| 13                          | Kerala                      | 1034                        |
| 14                          | Madhya Pradesh              | 23406                       |
| 15                          | Maharashtra                 | 16492                       |
| 16                          | Manipur                     | 62                          |
| 17                          | Meghalaya                   | 203                         |
| 18                          | Mizoram                     | 222                         |
| 19                          | Nagaland                    | 10                          |
| 20                          | Odisha                      | 1036                        |
| 21                          | Punjab                      | 69                          |
| 22                          | Rajasthan                   | 95                          |
| 23                          | Sikkim                      | 27                          |
| 24                          | Tamil Nadu                  | 16                          |
| 25                          | Telangana                   | 2402                        |
| 26                          | Tripura                     | 361                         |
| 27                          | Uttarakhand                 | 907                         |
| 28                          | Uttar Pradesh               | 106                         |
| 29                          | West Bengal                 | 205                         |
| Total Number of BMCs        | Total Number of BMCs        | 62,502                      |