Cultivation of bamboo plants for commercial and environmental purposes. Focus on sustainable growth and high-quality plant production. Supports local communities with training and employment opportunities.
Bamboo grows tall but it belongs to the grass family. India is the second largest producer of bamboo after China but covers the most area under bamboo. About 14 million hectares or 17% of the total 80.9 million hectares of forest in India is covered with bamboo. Madhya Pradesh has the largest area under bamboo but north-eastern states are the largest producer of bamboo and use it in their daily life.
Its ability to withstand drought and flood and to grow on degraded waste and wetland makes it a good choice for unutilised land. Bamboo is the fastest growing woody plant. Low care and plantation cost coupled with good demand makes bamboo a great agroforestry crop.
National Bamboo Mission (NBM) is taking various initiatives to promote bamboo plantation and increase the area under bamboo plantation in private agriculture and non-forest land.
Uses of Bamboo
Bamboo is a versatile multipurpose plant and often called the “poor man’s timber”. For its sustainable, renewable, multipurpose uses demand for bamboo is increasing rapidly globally and is now being referred to as “green gold”. Below are top uses of bamboo.
Food: Young bamboo shoots are a delicacy, bamboo murabba is another popular food. Bamboo is a regular food item in North-East Indian cuisine.
House construction: Bamboo is very popular for low cost sustainable eco-friendly housing. It is used extensively from flooring, roofing, structuring, scaffolding to decorating and fencing.
Agricultural implements: Fencing, scaffolding, plant supporting, animal housing, grain storage silo, etc.
Furniture: Bamboo is suitable for various furniture making and there are specific varieties of bamboo for furniture making. Bamboo furniture is getting mainstreamed quickly.
Handicraft: Bamboo is an ideal material for a wide range of handicrafts and home and kitchen accessories and has a good domestic as well as international market.
Pulp and paper: Pulp, paper and paperboard is made from bamboo. Bamboo paper is stronger and has a wide range of applications.
Textile: Bamboo is used for clothing and various fabric making. Bamboo cloths have distinct advantages like high sweat absorb, insulation, UV protection, etc.
Plywood: Plywood and various engineered wood including particle board and bamboo flooring.
Fuel: Dried bamboo is used as fuel for cooking but it has even broader utilisation as fuel. Recently power plants across the globe are using bamboo as an alternative to coal to generate power. Bamboo is sustainable and more suitable to generate heat in power plants.
Charcoal: Bamboo charcoal is a sustainable solution for various industrial requirements of charcoal.
Ethanol: Ethanol is a biofuel and governments across the globe including India are scrambling for ethanol to replace fossil fuels like petrol and diesel. The Indian government is speeding up the ethanol production and has set a target of 20% ethanol blended petrol before 2025 to save the foreign reserve and bring down the price. Currently sugarcane is the main source of ethanol in India but bamboo is more efficient and sustainable and used across the globe for ethanol production.
