CAMPA fund for environment

India is planning to use Rs.47,000 crore as Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) more effectively and create more afforestation, green cover along with water augmentation in order to improve the quality of forests.

This assurance was given by Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Prakash Javadekar who chaired an in-depth meeting of State Forests Ministers on effective and efficient utilization of CAMPA funds in New Delhi on 30 Nov 2019

Also present at the meeting were Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, Sushil Kumar Modi; Director General of Forests, Siddhanta Das and other senior Forests Officials from various states.

Speaking to media persons, the Minister said that the meeting was held to discuss how to implement the “We are meeting for the second time in the last 4 months and we will ensure that CAMPA Funds of about Rs. 47,000 crore will be utilized efficiently for green India”.

Continuous deliberations with all stakeholders will be conducted in future in order to ensure maximum afforestation activities are carried out all over the country, he said.

With the initial experience of the States regarding under-utilisation of the money collected towards compensatory afforestation, Hon’ble Supreme Court of India ordered for establishment of Compensatory Afforestation Fund and Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) in 2001.

In 2006, separate bank accounts were opened in which the compensatory levies were deposited and ad hoc CAMPA was established for the management of Compensatory afforestation fund.

About Rs.47,436 crore of CAMPA funds were handed over by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to various states on 29 August 2019. Fiinews.com