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VISAKHAPATNAM, May 10

THE investment opportunities in the bamboo sector in Andhra Pradesh found sharp focus when the National Mission on Bamboo Applications, which aims at commercialising bamboo resources in the country, during the Tenth Plan period, was launched in Visakhapatnam on Friday.

To mark the launching of the mission, a seminar on `Business opportunities and market potential in bamboo sector', was organised jointly by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the Technology Information Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC), an autonomous body under the Department of Science and Technology, and the Andhra Pradesh Technology Development and Promotion Centre (APTDC).

Andhra Pradesh, which accounts for 15.36 per cent of the bamboo forests in the country, was described as a potential State for investments in bamboo sector, especially as it is grown in 9,882 sq.km of area in the districts of Adilabad, Khammam, Mahbubnagar, East Godavari, West Godavari and Visakhapatnam.

It was pointed out at the seminar that the total growing stock of bamboo in the State was 38 lakh tonnes, with one-lakh tonnes being supplied to the paper industry. The State has three paper mills - Andhra Paper Mills Ltd, Sirpur Paper Mills and Bhadrachalam Paper Boards, with an installed capacity of 1.01 lakh tonnes, 71,000 tonnes and 81,940 tonnes per annum respectively.

Further, under the World Bank-aided forestry project, 70,536 hectares of land is being treated for improving bamboo stocking, including soil moisture conservation, moulding at the base of clumps and enrichment planting.

The launching of the National Mission on Bamboo Applications was dubbed as the first outreach programme, which would be implemented in the Tenth Plan through TIFAC for fully exploiting the country's bamboo resources. India's bamboo resources have been billed as next only to that of China in the world in terms of diversity and dispersal of the species.

The seminar delegates were informed that TIFAC, supported by the Planning Commission, has been vested with the responsibility of giving a new impetus and direction to the bamboo sector for facilitating the realisation of its potential by lending support for technological upgradation, evolving indigenous capacities and enterprise and linkages with markets besides operating as a platform for exchange of knowledge and technology and encouraging cooperation among sectoral constituents and stockholders.

According to the TIFAC advisor, Mr V. S. Oberoi, India had a long tradition of working with bamboo, with the paper industry remaining its biggest user. In recent times, however, he pointed out, bamboo had re-emerged with increasing attributes and potential and as an important tool for sustainable development and providing new opportunities for income and employment.

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