SHIMOGA: The Forest Department has come out with various programmes worth Rs 1,100 crore to strengthen the Village Forest Committees in the state in order to make them economically self-reliant and to work for the conservation of forest, said Forest Minister C P Yogeshwar.Inaugurating the Forest-Public Contact Campaign at Thirthahalli on Wednesday, Yogeshwar said that there were some lapses in the working nature of the Village Forest Committees (VFCs). Out of the existing 5,000 VFCs, only 1,800- 2,000 VFCs were involved in forest related activities as most of them were being controlled by forest officials. Now, the department has decided to give each VFC Rs 3 lakh revolving fund to make them economically independent and this amount would directly come to the VFC, he added.A Sir Chandana Vana was also planned to grow sandalwood in 1,000 or 2,000 hectares in each district. He had issued a direction to all department officials to issue compensation to the farmers on crop loss caused by wild animals within one month on the basis of market price of the crops, he added.Earlier, the relationship between the man and animals and forest was in harmony, but now there was a conflict. The department has to come out with plans to bring back the same harmony in the society, he said and added that, “The Forest Department can not protect the forest alone without the help of forest dwellers and the people around it. If we want to protect the forest, we need to give them the rights on the land they have been cultivating by making amendments to the existing forest laws.” He said, “If the government does not take steps to make them financially strong, then they will loot forest resources for their livelihood. The department is working in this direction.”
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