The loan agreement was signed by Rajat Kumar Mishra, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance and Mr. SAITO Mitsunori, Chief Representative, JICA India office.
Mr. SAITO Mitsunori, Chief Representative, JICA India Office said, “In continuation to our previous successful support for West Bengal Forest and Biodiversity Conservation Project from 2012 to 2022, we are delighted to collaborate with Government of West Bengal again. Under the new project, we have shall be focusing on tackling climate change through enhanced interventions in a more scientific manner for efficient planning and monitoring. Government of West Bengal and JICA have agreed that, at the beginning of this project, several pilot projects using digital technology shall be implemented leveraging India’s huge IT capacity to provide solutions to various challenges that the forestry sector faces. . We are indeed excited to see digital transformation being brought about in the forestry sector under the project.”
West Bengal is endowed with long topography and varied flora and fauna, but the forest cover of the state has not achieved either its national goal of 33% or the national average of 25% due to urbanization, excessive pressure on forest resources. The project will help tackle climate change and conserve forests and biodiversity in the state.