Shimla

Himachal forests hold a massive hidden potential of Rs 22,600 crore bio-economy, which is more than double the recorded value of its current resources, revealed a report, Counting Green Wealth: Towards a Future-Ready People's Forest Economy in Himachal Pradesh.

The report, prepared by the Himachal Pradesh Forest Department and the Bharti Institute of Public Policy (BIPP) at the Indian School of Business (ISB), shows how using artificial intelligence can transform traditional nature conservation in the Western Himalayas into a profitable, sustainable bioeconomy.

The bioeconomy is an economic model which instead of relying on fossil-based fuel uses renewable biological resources, such as crops, forests, animals and micro-organisms, to produce food, energy, materials and services.

The report, officially launched by Himachal Chief Secretary Kamlesh Kumar Pant, outlined four key industries: a Rs 11,340-crore market for wild fruits and health products, Rs 5,500-crore sector turning dangerous, flammable pine needles into eco-coal, a Rs 5,000-crore regulated Khair timber and a Rs 2,760-crore bamboo market for building materials and biofuel, officials said here on Tuesday.

Highlighting the significance of the report, Pant said, "This report marks an epoch-making transition in our vision for 'Green Himachal, Prosperous Himachal.'

"For the first time, we have combined frontline local taxonomic expertise with cutting-edge satellite imaging and AI modelling, which provides an absolute scientific foundation to show how our forests act as national climate stabilisers, building a 'people's forest economy' that directly translates conservation into sustainable wealth," he added.

"We are building a dynamic climate defence system by using real-time AI and satellite mapping rather than just measuring trees, and this precise tracking allows us to qualify for global climate funding while protecting our landscapes from disasters," said Pushpendra Rana, IFS Director (Environment, Science and Technology and Climate Change).

He asserted that converting the dangerous wildfire threat from pine needles into a multi-crore industry could combine disaster prevention with economic growth.

Ashwini Chhatre, associate professor and executive director at the BIPP, emphasised that "Forests must be treated as dynamic, living socio-ecological networks and the true innovation was vertical integration of the 'data-people-state' model."

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Frontline forest guards are no longer passive field implementers but primary knowledge co-producers, and by overlaying their taxonomic data into our deep neural networks, they can provide an institutional platform for the Forest Department to monetise carbon co-benefits, the experts opined.