E- governance for Conservation in India-A Public Private Partnership ModelSusan Sharma, PhDFounder, IndianWildlifeClub.com, Wildscapes.net and Wildbytes.tvAbstract. With the Tiger Task Force having made its detailed report available in public domain, the stage is now set for e-governance in the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF) to be attempted as an idea whose time has come. The paper discusses the use of information technology for creating an interface between the Ministry of Environment and its external interactions with
Forest officials, NGOs, researchers, tour operators and villagers. ‘E-governance for conservation’ looks at the need to co-ordinate and link existing Information Systems (IS) regarding conservation issues in India as a first step to arriving at a
framework for e-governance. Throughout the paper, we stress the fact that it is not hardware and software that makes e-governance possible- but management and organization.Re-engineering the MOEF as it exists will be a crucial step before drawing up the governance framework. This concept paper is thus divided into three sectionsLinking together existing data on conservation in terms of statistics, areas involved and scientific research.Re engineering the functionalities of MOEF so that the proposed wildlife wing can head the e-governance initiative for conservation.Creating a framework for e-governance taking into account the ministry, forest department, research organizations, NGOs and villages.In writing this paper, the author has referred to available literature on e-governance in India and abroad and adapted the thoughts generated to the current scenario in India. To understand the current conservation scenario, we have drawn from the Tiger Task Force Report (August, 2005), views of conservationists and the Supreme Court Cases under the Centrally Empowered Committee. The thoughts have also been shaped by private visits to India’s National Parks, which were created to conserve bio-diversity, over a period of time from 1976 onwards. Conservation issues affect the core economy of any country. Conservation involves protecting the forests of the country along with the flora and fauna. As forests are the custodians of water sources, clean air and irreplaceable
natural resources, the economic services rendered by conserving the forests are often intangible. However, the way these precious assets are managed will have a bearing on the country’s revenues (tourism, mining), well being (clean air and water) and social equity (tribal rights, exploitation). The paper proposes a model where the synergies of a complex e-governance system generate livelihood options for the rural unemployed in and around the forests. The Government-Society-Technology unit which forms the backbone of the complex E-conservation system is expected to throw up alternate livelihood options for the rural unemployed among forest dwellers and fringe dwellers. These options are by way of entrepreneurship opportunities and not by way of government jobs. The transformation which is expected from this E-governance system is reduced conflict between people and forest resources, which in turn augurs well for conservation. (The above paper was presented at “The e-Government Conference” Conflux 2005 which took place at The Grand, New Delhi from 17-19 October, 2005. The e-Government Conference was jointly organized by Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies, GIS Development Private Ltd and the Department of Information Technology, Government of India. )
Full Paper can be read at the following link
http://www.indianwildlifeclub.com/mainsite/clubreviews2.asp
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