Perceiving the opposition to Gadgil Report as one stemming from poor interpretation of the report, the Second Indian Biodiversity Congress (IBC) held in Bangalore has recommended to the govt that the Gadgil Report be translated into local languages and placed for discussion with all the stakeholders.
This recommendation is one among the many that the IBC will be submitting before the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the National Biodiversity Authority. The IBC was jointly conducted by the Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore; Foundation for Revitalisation of Local Health Traditions, Centre for Innovation in Science and Social Action, Navadanya, Delhi and the Government of Karnataka. The IBC recommended that the National Biodiversity Authority should convene a meeting of the Biodiversity Boards of the six states in the Ghats region to identify and prioritise the main biodiversity threats to the Ghats region. A regional plan of action will have to be developed for each of the states and an assessment of Traditional Knowledge and Intellectual Property has to be carried out. “The six biodiversity boards should respect the World Heritage Status of the Western Ghats as in the long run it will help conservation of biodiversity of the Western Ghats and ensure sustainability of livelihoods to the local communities,” said IBC recommendations.