NBA Disburses Rs 1.04 Crore in ABS Benefits to 29 State and UT Biodiversity Bodies

New Delhi, Oct 26 (KNN) The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has disbursed Rs 1.04 crore in Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS) benefits among 27 State Biodiversity Boards and two Union Territory Biodiversity Councils to support biodiversity-related initiatives.

The amount comprises contributions from Crystal Crop Protection Limited, Savannah Seeds Pvt. Ltd. and Nunhems India Pvt. Ltd. for access to agricultural biological resources for research and commercial purposes. The resources include pearl millet, jowar, maize, rice and bottle gourd.

The NBA has used an area-based methodology to allocate the funds where individual benefit claimers cannot be identified because the biological resources are procured through markets, traders or intermediaries. 

Allocations are calculated based on the geographical distribution and cultivation area of the relevant crops, using agricultural statistics published by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.

Uttar Pradesh received the largest allocation at Rs 10.36 lakh, followed by Maharashtra at Rs 10.05 lakh and Madhya Pradesh at Rs 9.81 lakh. 

Bihar received Rs 7.96 lakh, West Bengal Rs 7.92 lakh, Karnataka Rs 7.34 lakh, Telangana Rs 5.77 lakh, Chhattisgarh Rs 5.21 lakh, Odisha Rs 5 lakh and Rajasthan Rs 4.88 lakh. Other states collectively received Rs 29.34 lakh.

The agriculture sector has generated approximately Rs 87 crore in ABS contributions, while the NBA has released more than Rs 204 crore in total ABS benefits to date.

The funds allocated to State and Union Territory biodiversity bodies are intended for activities including biodiversity conservation, sustainable use of biological resources, documentation, research, capacity building and strengthening local biodiversity governance, in accordance with applicable provisions.

India's implementation of the ABS framework will also be highlighted at a side event during the 17th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP17), scheduled for October 28 in Yerevan, Armenia.

(KNN Bureau)