Bamboos planted during campaign
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, May 03 2015 :
A four-day bamboo plantation initiative jointly organised by the National Bamboo Mission, Manipur Chapter, and Wa Gi Wa concluded today at Chirik Loitong khul in Imphal West.
Around one thousand bamboo rhizomes and saplings have been planted at the 20 hector plantation site owned and managed by Wa Gi Wa, an Imphal-based organisation promoting plantation and wise use of bamboo.
Nine species of bamboo, both native to Manipur and from outside, sourced through the National Bamboo Mission and planters in Churachandpur districts were planted during the four day initiative.
Besides native species like Maribob, Nat and Utang species like Iron Bamboo or Ferrocalamus strictus, Hamilton's Giant Bamboo and Stripped Tulda Bamboo and others which is endemic to China, NE, Himalayas and other regions were planted at the site around 21 kilometres from here.
Speaking on the occasion, Laishram Bobby, one of the founding members of Wa Gi Wa said that planting bamboos and promoting wise use of the same is the need of the hour as forest cover is fast depleting due to ever increasing demand for wood.
"A viable solution is planting bamboos.
It is the only sustainable alternative to trees.
They mature fast and today we have the technology which can, to a great extent, make bamboo products substitute wood and other construction materials.
Above all it's an eco-friendly way of living" .
Depending on species, bamboos take three to seven years to mature.
Trees take much longer, for instance Teak trees takes at least 30 years to be furniture ready and the older the better.
In Asia, teak trees are often allowed to develop for 60 years or more before harvesting.
The fast-growing and brief-life characteristic of bamboo makes it the only sustainable and affordable substitute of wood.
With around 33 species of bamboos Manipur has 3,69,200 hectares of bamboo-growing area and a culture with abundance of bamboo in various forms.
However, proliferation of plastic and other materials which contribute to environmental degradation have been gradually replacing bamboo and its usage over the decades.
The diminishing importance of bamboo is partly because the way we use bamboo has not evolved with time and is still largely confined to rural handicrafts, noted, Wangkhem Gokul, an income tax consultant and a founding member of Wa Gi Wa.
Bamboo is often referred to as 'poor man's timber' however new technologies and improved methods of pest proofing have made bamboo a very versatile material which can meet the demands of modern day living, he added.