To Help Conserve Precious Biodiversity, India Needs to Empower its Forest-dwelling Population

The value chain of trade of biological resources and their derivatives like medicinal plants, extracts of medicinal plants, fishes, processed food and pharma industry, are responsible for creating jobs for probably another 30% population of the country. Biological resources are at the centre of local cultures like conservation of sacred groves spread all across India; hence, people's biodiversity registers and the role of biodiversity management committees (BMCs) become extremely important in order to sustain the livelihood dependence of over 30% of India's population through documentation, conservation, and management of biological resources through this vast network of BMCs.