SYLLABUS:

GS-3: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

Context: Recently, the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) released ₹1.36 crore to local Biodiversity Management Committees in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh to promote fair and equitable benefit-sharing and community-driven biodiversity conservation.

More on the News

• The Sakharwadi and Kunjirwadi villages in Maharashtra and the Kasganj area in Uttar Pradesh each received ₹45.5 lakh.
• This fund represents a tangible Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) payments after a company used microorganisms from soil and industrial effluent samples for producing Fructo-oligosaccharides.
• The funds will be utilised under Section 44 of the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, and relevant State Biodiversity Rules for local biodiversity conservation activities.
• The release of funds supports India’s National Biodiversity Target–13 under the updated NBSAP (2024–2030) aligned with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

Significance of the fund release

• The initiative promotes inclusive governance, aligning conservation goals with community development and livelihood enhancement.
• This financial strategy highlights the NBA’s proactive role in recognizing and rewarding local communities who stand as the essential custodians of India's rich biological heritage.
• These funds will support activities such as habitat restoration, awareness drives, capacity building, and promotion of sustainable livelihood practices.

About the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA)

• The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) is a statutory body established in 2003 under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, to regulate access to India’s biological resources and ensure equitable benefit sharing.
• The NBA works through State Biodiversity Boards and Biodiversity Management Committees to implement the Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) mechanism.
• Its core functions include promoting conservation, sustainable use of biodiversity, and fair distribution of benefits arising from biological resource utilisation.
• The authority plays a key role in achieving India’s biodiversity targets under the National Biodiversity Action Plan and the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Source:
PIB
Tribune India
Indian Masterminds
Jharkhand State News