Project BOLD - Bamboo Oasis on Lands in Drought

Project BOLD full form is Bamboo Oasis on Lands in Drought. It is the first of its kind exercise in India to provide livelihood, protect land from degradation and boost the economy.

Project Bold is a recent initiative of the government of India and has been in the news, hence it forms an important part of the current affairs section of competitive exams as well as in IAS exam (under Geography, Polity and Environment for GS1, GS2 and GS3 respectively). 

Project BOLD [UPSC Notes]:-Download PDF Here

Project BOLD – Overview

1. The project named “Bamboo Oasis on Lands in Drought” (BOLD) is the first of its kind exercise in India launched on July 4 2021 from the tribal village Nichla Mandwa in Udaipur, Rajasthan.
2. Project Bold is a unique scientific exercise serving the combined national objectives of reducing desertification and providing livelihood and multi-disciplinary rural industry. You can read in detail about DAY-NRLM National Rural Livelihood Mission on the given link. 
3. Its aim is to boost the income of the tribal people and solve environmental concerns. Read more about TRIFED – Development of Tribal People in India on the linked page.
4. It is aligned with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for reducing land degradation and preventing desertification in the country by creating bamboo-based green patches of land in arid and semi-arid zones.
5. The project has been initiated by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) under the Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises.
6. It has been launched as part of KVIC’s “Khadi Bamboo Festival” to celebrate 75 years of independence “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav”.

Also, read in detail about the National Bamboo Mission NBM on the linked page.

BOLD – Bamboo Oasis on Lands in Droughts

1. Under the BOLD project, 5000 saplings of special bamboo species – Bambusa Tulda and Bambusa Polymorpha from Assam have been planted. You can read about Beema Bamboo in the given link. 
2. Over 16 acres of vacant arid Gram Panchayat land of village NichlaMandwa has been used for the plantation.
3. With this, KVIC also created a world record of planting the highest number of bamboo saplings on a single day at one location.
4. KVIC is set to replicate the Project at Village Dholera in Ahmedabad district in Gujarat and Leh-Ladakh region by August this year. 
5. Total 15,000 bamboo saplings will be planted before August 21.

Benefits of Project BOLD

1. It will help in reducing the land degradation percentage of the country.
2. It will be a haven of sustainable development and food security. Detailed information on Sustainable Development Goals – SDGs can be read here. 
3. The bamboo plantation program in Udaipur will boost self-employment in the region
4. It will benefit a large number of women and unemployed youths in the region by connecting them to skill development programs. Go through the details of the National Skill Development Mission – NSDM on the linked page.
5. It can provide livelihood opportunities for locals and tribal men and women in the form of handicrafts, making bamboo furniture, culinary items, paper, bags, handbags, textile, household items, to name a few.
6. Economic activities from Bamboo such as construction purposes, will save locals the cost of timber, bricks, and steel. 

Reasons for choosing Bamboo for developing Green patches?

1. Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants.
2. Bamboos are very fast-growing plants and can be harvested in about three years.
3. It is known for conserving water and reducing evaporation of water from the land surface, which is an important feature in arid and drought-prone regions.
4. Bamboo can be used to control pollution by making use of bamboo charcoal, which has absorption properties.
5. It devours high amounts of nitrogen and this helps decrease water pollution.

Candidates can read about the Green revolution in detail on the linked page.

Status of Bamboo In India 

• Bamboos are tall treelike grasses.
• Earlier, the definition of tree in the law included palm, bamboo, brushwood and cane. With an amendment in 2017 in the Indian Forest Act 1927, the Bamboo has ceased to be a tree anymore. Read in detail about the Forest Conservation Act 1980 on the given link.
• Bamboo grown in the forest areas would continue to be governed by the provisions of the Indian Forest Act.
• The move aims to promote cultivation of bamboo in non-forest areas to achieve the “twin objectives” of increasing the income of farmers and also increasing the green cover of the country.

Other Initiatives by Government to Fight Desertification

1. The Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) was introduced with a vision of expanding irrigation coverage (Har Khet ko Pani) and using the water more efficiently (More Crop Per Drop). This scheme will provide an end-to-end solution on source creation, distribution, management, field application, and other extension activities.
2. The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) aims at providing support for the sustainable production of yield in the agricultural sector. 
3. Soil Health Card Scheme – It is a field-specific detailed report of soil fertility status and other important soil parameters that affect crop productivity.
4. India is a party to the UNCBD. India ratified the United Nation Convention on Biological Diversity in 1994. 
5. India ratified the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in December 1996. The nodal ministry for the convention in India is the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

Project BOLD [UPSC Notes]:-Download PDF Here

Aspirants can also read about the Bonn Challenge which is a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of degraded and deforested land into restoration by 2020 and 350 million by 2030.

Details regarding project BOLD will help aspirants prepare for the upcoming UPSC Prelims and Mains examination.