Chure region
2 June, Kathmandu: Minister for Forests and Soil Conservation Mahesh Acharya has hinted at the possibility of Army deployment for Chure conservation if the demand for it comes from a national-level consultation of stakeholders, today’s The Kathmandu Post reports.
Acharya said it was possible to deploy Nepal Army personnel in some pocket areas of Chure region that are being degraded by deforestation and illegal extraction of natural resources. Minister Acharya was speaking at an interaction organized by the Nepal Forum of Environment Journalist on Sunday.
The statement comes a day after the Federation of Community Forestry Users’ Nepal that comprises some 16,000 forest user groups warned that army deployment would be counter productive as it would discourage communities to take up forest management. They have blamed the failure to effectively implement the President Chure Conservation Program by involving local communities that have been managing forests in the low-elevation belt between the Tarai and the hills extending from Jhapa in the east to Kanchanpur in the west for the sorry state of nature conservation there.
the uncontrolled exploitation of resources is feared to be inviting environmental disasters and leading to Chure’s desertification.
