Oil Palm

Oil Palm

Subject: Environment

Section: Biodiversity

Context- Expansion of oil palm in northeast India that encroaches on forest land to meet the goals of the Indian government under its National Mission on Edible Oils- Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) may lead to more negative encounters with elephants in northeast India, warn experts.

Concept-

• Goalpara is considered to be one of the worst affected districts for human-elephant conflict in Assam.
• Apart from being a hotspot for human-elephant conflicts, Goalpara is also a pioneer in oil palm cultivation in Assam.
• The first oil palm plantation in the state was set up in Khungkhrajani village, around 6 km from Dudhnoi town, back in 2015.
• Over the years, many monoculture plantations, including rubber, banana, tea, and areca nut, have sprung up in Goalpara.
• According to the recent India State of Forest Report (ISFR), 2021, Goalpara has only 22.18% of its geographical area under forest cover, which is one of the lowest in the state.
  • Also, only 13.73 square km of the district falls under the Very Dense Forest (tree canopy of 70% or more) category.
• The Assam government has plans to start oil palm cultivation in 17 districts, including heavily forested ones like KarbiAnglong and Dima Hasao.

*** For further information refer to DPN 19 August 2021.