R&D to create alternative land use

"Bhadrachalam" clones, developed at ITC’s R&D Centre, are 6-9 times more productive than standard seedlings. Wasteland owners can get their first harvest after just 4 years, earning between Rs.14,000 to Rs. 24,000 from each acre. These clones make growing pulpwood species a sustainable livelihood – a life-changing proposition for marginal farmers.

The plantations also generate woody biomass, fuel wood and intercrops, and serve as sustainable ecological resources for the drought-hit farmlands – indispensable for returning them to round the year multi-crop cultivation.

A cornerstone for village development

ITC requires group members to contribute a portion of their earnings from each harvest to build a village development fund in every community. Contributions made by group members continue to grow and the cumulative fund now stands at Rs. 106 lakhs.

Villages have already used this fund to develop community assets like watershed structures and family assets like land, irrigation, draught cattle, etc.

Farm Forestry

Landed farmers in this area, their farm earnings falling, have also turned their wastelands into pulpwood plantations as an additional source of income. ITC’s Farm Forestry project has brought over 99,000 hectares of wastelands under forest cover, in addition to the area covered by social forestry.

	In a region where environment and livelihoods are threatened, forestry has become a significant generator of employment – 53.77 million person-days of work have been provided till now.