Nagaland biodiversity protection needs community involvement: Principal Secretary

Nagaland's biodiversity protection cannot be achieved by the Forest Department alone, as it owns less than five per cent of the state's total forest cover, a senior official said on Wednesday.

Principal Secretary Y Kikheto Sema, addressing a stakeholder consultation on the revision of the Nagaland State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, stressed that the state's unique landholding system necessitates involvement of communities, citizens, educational institutions and churches. He called for greater public awareness on waste management and urged schools to incorporate biodiversity education and churches to include conservation in their teachings.

Sema also highlighted the need to address the state's traditional shifting cultivation system, noting it remains linked to Naga culture but in its present form is neither economically viable nor ecologically sustainable.