In a significant push to strengthen grassroots biodiversity conservation, the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has released Rs 1.36 crore to empower local communities in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh. The funds, channeled through the State Biodiversity Boards of both states, will support three Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs) in Sakharwadi village (Satara district), Kunjirwadi village (Pune), and the Kasganj area (Etah district). Each committee will receive Rs 45.50 lakh to undertake targeted conservation activities under Section 44 of the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, and corresponding state biodiversity rules.

The funding represents Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) payments from a commercial entity that accessed microorganisms from soil and industrial effluent samples to produce Fructo-oligosaccharides, compounds widely used in the food and pharmaceutical sectors. This initiative exemplifies how communities can directly benefit from the sustainable use of local biological resources, linking conservation with tangible economic and social returns.

Beyond its immediate financial impact, the release reflects a broader government strategy to recognise local communities as custodians of India’s biodiversity. By redirecting commercial benefits to the grassroots, the initiative aims to strengthen biodiversity governance while incentivising stewardship, enhancing livelihoods, and embedding conservation into community development.

The move also aligns with India’s National Biodiversity Target-13 under the updated National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) 2024–2030, echoing global commitments under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework adopted at the UN Convention on Biological Diversity’s 15th Conference of Parties (CoP-15). By connecting local resource management with international biodiversity goals, the NBA seeks to ensure that India’s biological wealth is preserved, responsibly utilised, and equitably shared.

This funding initiative underscores a growing recognition that effective biodiversity conservation requires both top-down policy support and bottom-up community engagement. By embedding economic incentives in conservation efforts, the NBA is pioneering a model where ecological sustainability, social empowerment, and economic opportunity converge, offering a blueprint for inclusive environmental governance in India.