Dr. Avnish Jolly, Chandigarh, 9th November , 2008 :The Punjab Forest Department has decided to give a big push to agro-forestry in the State and would distribute 10 lac seedlings of fast-growing and economically important tree species such as Eucalyptus, Shisham and Drek.
Disclosing this here today Mr. Tikshan Sud, Forest Minister said that Punjab Forest Department in order achieve the target of 15% forest cover in the State by the year 2011 and has decided to adopt a new scientific clonal technology for mass production of seedlings required for the Agro Forestry operations in the state. To produce these seedlings the department has established high -tech mist chambers at Hoshairpur, Gurdaspur, Amrtisar, Ropar Moga, Phillour and Bathinda that would be used to produce quality seed lings to be distributed to the farmers for planting in their fields at subsidized rates besides to be used for departmental plantation to enhance productivity.
The Forest Minister said that the clonal technology had been adopted by the Punjab Forest Department as it increases productivity of seedlings fourfold as compared to traditional method. The productivity of clonal plantations varies from 20 to 44 m¬¬³/ha/year compared to 6-10m3/ha/year of seed raised seedling plantations. He said that the growing of clonal trees would not only increase the income of the farmers from land under the agro-forestry systems, but would also help to diversify the land use. He said that agro forestry was becoming quite attractive for the farmers who want to switch away from the wheat/ paddy cropping pattern as that it was fast becoming unsustainable and unprofitable for them. He said that increased paddy cultivation was also exhausting the nutrients and water table of the state soil.
Mr. Sud said that Punjab Forest Department has evolved a new agro-forestry model that allows a combination of crops along with trees and the State Forest Department was striving to achieve a target of 15% land area under tree cover and forests by the year 2017.
He said that with the increase in productivity through clonal plantations Punjab would have surplus wood to attract mega wood-based industries such as paper, pulp and plywood. The Forest Minister said that there were already 61.2 million trees existing outside the forests and the number is expected to increase to 100 million by 2010. Efforts were also afoot to involve the farmers in the campaign for clonal tree planting and the Department was expected to supply sufficient number of clonal seedlings in coming years from forest nurseries situated in different parts of the State, Mr. Sud added.