Institutional Framework

There are currently two types of institutional arrangements: (1) to manage GHNP and (2) to interact with the local community in the Ecozone.

Managing GHNP

The Government of Himachal Pradesh as well as the Government of India (popularly known as the Central Government) contribute to the management of the Great Himalayan National Park. The salaries of employees and funds to manage and develop the Park and Ecozone are contributed by the State and Central governments.

There is a new institution called Biodiversity Conservation Society (BiodCS) which is contributing to the Park’s conservation efforts as follows.

Biodiversity Conservation Society (BiodCS)

To appreciate and care for the biological diversity of the unique ecosystems of the Park, the State Government created a new mechanism, the Biodiversity Conservation Society (BiodCS) for the Great Himalayan National Park in 1999.

The BiodCS shares responsibility for the management of the Great Himalayan National Park. It provides fund advances, empowerment, flexible administrative procedures, and governing board structure, which in combination provides continuity of Park funding across fiscal years, renders managerial autonomy at the Park level, and help to ensure the flexibility required for a process-oriented approach.

The Society is a fully autonomous organisation with the main aim of managing the Great Himalayan National Park by involving the neighbouring communities through the strategy of ecodevelopment, which is a site-specific package of measures derived from people’s participation to address all aspects of land use and other resources, in order to promote sustainable land use practices, as well as income generating activities, that are not deleterious to the values of the Great Himalayan National Park.

Interacting with Local Community in the Ecozone

Women Saving and Credit Groups (WSCG) & Village Forest Development Society (VFDS)

A WSCG is an important institution, which strives to promote equitable access to natural resources, and supports the important issues of social/environmental justice and gender sensitivity. It provides the rural poor and women an opportunity to make a choice in income generation activity and raise their voice in preparation and implementation of the VFDS (Ward) level micro-plans.

Cultivation of medicinal plant with WSCG in ecozone ( Click to enlarge)

The Park management facilitated the WSCGs and their Group Organizers to form an NGO, BTCA. A registered organisation, BTCA provides continuity and support to biodiversity conservation in GHNPCA.

The NGO, in collaboration with the Park administration, organizes the poor and women, empowers them with asset building, rationalizes use of natural resources, helps in socio-economic development, and provides market support and raises funds, all to reduce dependency on the Park’s resources.