PM Narendra Modi addressed a high-level meeting at the COP14 to United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) at the India Expo Mart in Greater Noida, today. He reiterated the aim of his government to put an end to single-use plastic in the coming years.
India, which is hosting the event from 2nd September to 13th September has planned to make a case for bamboo-extracted charcoal at the event.
According to a report by Hindustan Times, the tribal affairs ministry is working on a model where over 100 units across the country will work on extracting charcoal from bamboo.
The initiative will also employ around 5,00,000 people from tribal communities.
The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED), a PSU under the tribal affairs ministry that works to promote tribal art and craft, is overlooking the work on setting up these 100 units in the seven northeast states as well as Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.
Talking to Hindustan Times, TRIFED Managing Director Pravir Krishna, said:
“This is an environment-friendly proposal which does not require heavy investments, and will promote tribal enterprise. Charcoal extracted from bamboo does not have carbon credits, making it a highly productive alternative to industrial coal.”
The conference which is aimed to add more value to the discourse of climate change and land degradation is expected to see representatives from 196 countries of the world.