Cross-sector Workshop with Forest, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj on HWC Mitigation in Gorumara landscape, West Bengal

05 Aug, 2021

Under the Indo-German project on Human-Wildlife Conflict (HWC) Mitigation, a virtual workshop on the “Role of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Institutions and Experts in Human-Wildlife Conflict Mitigation in West Bengal” was organised on 4 August 2021 with over 33 officers and functionaries of the Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Institutions and State Forest Department in West Bengal, experts from GIZ, Aaranyak, Centre for Environment Education (CEC) and other national experts.

The workshop aimed at exploring synergies between the plans, programmes and processes of Forest, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Institutions leading to the development of action points at the District, Block and Gram Panchayat levels on effective and holistic mitigation of human-wildlife conflict. Key discussions included the process of establishment and capacity development of community-level Primary Response Teams (PRT) on HWC mitigation; exploring the anchoring points for leveraging existing centrally sponsored schemes like the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) to support the communities on HWC mitigation measures and alignment of the district and block development plans with division-level HWC Management Action Plans (MAP).

Key inputs were provided by Mr Rajendra Jakher, Chief Conservator of Forests (CCF), Wildlife Division, North Bengal, West Bengal Forest Department, Mr Samiran Mondal, Additional District Magistrate and Additional Executive Officer, Jalpaiguri Zilla Parishad, Dr Bibhab Kumar Talukdar, CEO, Aaranyak, Prof. Saswati Biswas, Department of Sociology, North Bengal University, Ms Alka Tomar, President, CEC and Consultant GIZ, Mr Prantik Sinha Roy, Training Coordinator, Panchayat Training and Resource Centre, Jalpaiguri, Mr Jayanta Singha Roy, Executive Assistant, Banarhat-II Gram Panchayat (GP), Mr Bappaditya Aich, Executive Assistant, Shulkapara GP, Mr Nilesh G. Sinha, SEO, Maynaguri and Dr Neeraj Khera, Team Leader, Indo-German Project on HWC Mitigation.

The workshop ended with an agreement on concrete steps to take forward the discussion, and to strengthen the operational linkages between the sectors and agencies on HWC mitigation, especially the establishment and capacity development of the community-level Primary Response Teams.

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About the project

The Human-Wildlife Conflict Mitigation (HWC) project is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in partnership with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and State Forest Departments of Karnataka, Uttarakhand and West Bengal. The project aims at providing technical support at the national level, and effective implementation of HWC mitigation measures in selected states of India. The project pilot sites are Haridwar Forest Division and adjoining landscape including Rajaji Tiger Reserve in Uttarakhand, Gorumara Wildlife Division in West Bengal, and Kodagu Forest Circle in Karnataka.

The main objective of the project is that the rural population in project areas, where agreed guidelines and tools are applied to mitigate human-wildlife conflict, is better protected against it. The project takes the approach of harmonious coexistence, by ensuring that both—humans and wildlife—are protected from conflict. Read More

For more information contact: biodiv.india@giz.de