Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu exhorted the youth of the state to voluntarily join the forest conservation drive.

During a programme held at Dehra in Kangra district on Wednesday, he urged youth to take an active part in the movement to preserve forests and emphasised the need for striking a balance between development and environmental protection to ensure a secure, prosperous, and green Himachal for future generations.

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He said forest conservation was not only essential for climate protection, but also directly linked to the increase in catchment areas of water bodies, prevention of soil erosion, biodiversity protection, and means of livelihood.

Sukhu said that the state’s forest cover has been assessed at nearly 15,443 sq km, which is around 28 percent of the total geographical area. The legally classified recorded forest area is spread over an area of 37,948 sq km, accounting for 68.16 percent of the geographical area, which grants the state a unique ecological identity.

He said that the people of Himachal Pradesh share a spiritual and traditional bond with nature. However, population growth, developmental activities, and climate change were increasingly draining the forest resources.

The Chief Minister stated that to mitigate these challenges, the state government has adopted sustainable and scientific forest management strategies through the Forest Department.

He said that a total of Rs 22.5 crore incentive grants would be directly transferred to the bank accounts of the best-performing committees, and out of this, Rs 2.5 crore has already been disbursed, and the remaining will be released within the year.

“Plantation and land conservation work has been carried out over 13,300 hectares of land under the project in Kangra and Chamba districts. Around 61,000 saplings have been planted in an 8,300-hectare area, while invasive lantana has been weeded out from the remaining area. The project was set to be completed by March 30, 2026,” he said.

The success of this project demonstrates how the synergy of policy, technology, and public participation can make even the most difficult tasks achievable, he added.

Earlier, the Chief Minister also visited an exhibition set up by the Forest Department.

He also honoured the top-performing Village Forest Management Societies (VFMS) from Kangra and Chamba districts under the KFW-funded project.

For the year 2021–22, the state-level first prize of Rs 1 lakh was awarded to VFMS Lagdu of Dehra Forest Division; the second prize of Rs 60,000 to VFMS Chambhar of Dalhousie Forest Division; and the third prize of Rs 40,000 was presented to VFMS Bhated of Dehra Forest Division.

For the year 2022–23, the first prize of Rs 1 lakh was awarded to VFMS Bhated, the second prize of Rs 60,000 to VFMS Jaini Masroor-2, and the third prize of Rs 40,000 to VFMS Lagdu, all from the Dehra Forest Division.

Similarly, for the year 2023–24, the first prize of Rs 1 lakh was again bagged by VFMS Jaini Masroor-2, the second prize of Rs 60,000 went to VFMS Bhatth, and the third prize of Rs 40,000 to VFMS Lagdu.

At the Dehra Forest Division level, the 2021–22 awards included Rs 50,000 to VFMS Lagdu (Khudian Range), Rs 30,000 to VFMS Bhated (Nagrota Surian Range), and Rs 20,000 to VFMC Naushera (Dehra Range).

For 2022–23, Rs 50,000 was awarded to VFMS Bhated (Nagrota Surian), Rs 30,000 to VFMS Jaini Masroor-2 (Nagrota Surian), and Rs 20,000 to VFMS Baldoa (Nagrota Surian). In 2023–24, the division-level prizes of Rs 50,000, Rs 30,000, and Rs 20,000 were awarded to VFMS Jaini Masroor-2, VFMS Baldoa, and VFMS Bhated, respectively, all from Nagrota Surian Range.

The Chief Minister congratulated all the winners and lauded their commitment towards environmental protection.

He said that 307 Forest Development Committees from Kangra and Chamba districts were actively engaged in planning, implementing, and monitoring activities under this project.