Madhya Pradesh

• 13 Sep 2022

Formation of District Wetland Conservation Committees in the state

Why In News?

• On September 12, 2022, wetland conservation committees were formed by the state government under the chairmanship of district collectors.

Key Points

• In the committee, Chief Executive Officer, District Panchayat for rural areas and Commissioner Municipal Corporation and Chief Municipal Officer, Municipal Corporation Council, will be Member Secretary in urban areas.
• Members include District Forest Officer, District Land Settlement Officer, Superintending or Executive or Assistant Engineer, Public Health Engineering and Water Resources Department, Joint Director or Deputy Director, Assistant Director, Town and Country Investment, Agriculture, Fisheries, Regional Officer, Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board and State Wetland Authority will be the officials of EPCO.
• The duties of the District Wetland Conservation Committee include taking appropriate action regarding the overall conservation and management of ponds at the district level, acting as an associate unit of the State Wetland Authority, effective implementation of the Wetland Rules-2017 in the district, by the state and central government. This includes assisting the State Wetland Authority in the implementation, evaluation and monitoring of the schemes being implemented.
• The committee will collect all the information of the ponds of the district and prepare a database and will also be responsible for its maintenance. The committee will coordinate between the concerned departments and stakeholders related to the conservation of ponds in the district and identify the ponds as per the identified digital wetland inventory and confirm them at the field level.
• The committee will organize awareness training and capacity development programs to make people aware of wetlands, ponds, rivers, other water sources, environmental protection of natural resources and pollution control on special occasions like World Wetland Day, World Water Day, World Earth Day, World Environment Day etc.