Social Performance

Social - Mission Sunehra Kal

Wasteland Development - Social Forestry

The Social Forestry Programme to promote pulpwood plantations in Andhra Pradesh and energy security in Karnataka cumulatively covers a total of 33,448 hectares in 1,717 villages, impacting nearly 40,000 poor households

The Social Forestry Programme to promote pulpwood plantations in Andhra Pradesh and energy security in Karnataka cumulatively covers a total of 33,448 hectares in 1,717 villages, impacting nearly 40,000 poor households. These initiatives not only increase the biomass cover, but also have a salutary effect on agricultural production by preventing soil erosion, and recharging groundwater. They also meet the energy and fodder needs of households and become a sustainable base of raw material for our paper business. Energy plantations were promoted in four districts of Karnataka - Chamrajnagar, Mysore, Hassan and Mandya. Considering that this is a new project area, it was encouraging to note a 32% increase over the previous year to 699 hectares in 2012-13. Agro-forestry, which had been introduced last year, has witnessed a nearly 50% increase in area, both in the case of pulpwood and in energy - from 330 hectares to 493 hectares.

Bio-diversity conservation has been incorporated as an integral part of the Social Forestry Programme, which aims at in situ conservation of the local flora by protecting and improving production conditions in selected plots.

The total area harvested by the end of the year was 756 hectares, yielding 28,137 tonnes of raw material, all of which was supplied to ITC’s Paperboards and Specialty Papers Division (PSPD). The earnings per hectare and per household saw dramatic increases during the year as a result of a steep hike in the price of raw material and an increase in productivity per hectare, a rising trend, which was noted in the last financial year.