Conservation Programs and Community Participation

6.1 Bishnoi Community and the Khejri Legacy

The Bishnoi community, founded by Guru Jambheshwar in Pipasar village (Nagaur), follows 29 commandments (bish-noi = 20 + 9) that include explicit prohibitions on cutting green trees and killing wildlife. The Bishnoi tradition is the world's oldest documented community-based nature conservation movement.

The Khejarli Massacre:

• Location: Khejarli village, Jodhpur district
• Date: Bhadra Sudi Dashami, Vikram Samvat 1787 (1730 CE)
• Context: The Maharaja of Jodhpur's officials arrived to fell Khejri trees for a new palace's lime kilns
• Amrita Devi Bishnoi led the resistance; she and her three daughters embraced the trees and were killed by soldiers
• The sacrifice inspired 363 Bishnois from 83 villages to do the same — all were killed
• Outcome: When the Maharaja learned of the massacre, he stopped the felling and issued a decree (farman) protecting trees and wildlife on Bishnoi land
• This is documented as the world's first tree-protection martyrdom and directly inspired the Chipko Movement of 1970s Uttarakhand (where women hugged trees in Chamoli district)

The Khejri Bachao Andolan (February 2026): In February 2026, large-scale mobilization in Jodhpur, Barmer, and Nagaur districts protested the illegal or state-sanctioned felling of Khejri trees for infrastructure projects (road widening, power line corridors). Organizers explicitly invoked the 1730 Khejarli heritage. The Rajasthan government issued an advisory instructing district collectors to explore alignment changes to avoid large Khejri clusters.

6.2 Major Conservation Programs

Program	Funding	Scale	Focus
Project Tiger	Central (NTCA)	3 Tiger Reserves in Rajasthan	Tiger habitat, anti-poaching, village relocation
CRESEP (Climate Resilient Eco-system Services Enhancement Project)	JICA (Japan)	₹1,774.30 crore; 19 districts	GIB conservation, Oran protection (10,000 ha), biodiversity management
RFBDP (Rajasthan Forestry & Biodiversity Development Project)	AFD (France)	₹1,693.91 crore; 13 districts, 800 villages	Aravalli watershed, forest restoration
GIB Captive Breeding	WII + IFHC (UAE)	Sudasari, Jaisalmer	Ex-situ conservation of critically endangered GIB
Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam	Central + State	5.62 crore saplings (2024-25)	Mass plantation, citizen engagement
TOFR Scheme	State	409.41 lakh saplings (2024-25)	Free seedling distribution to farmers

Source: Rajasthan Economic Review 2025-26, Chapter 7; NTCA Annual Report 2023-24

6.3 Community Institutions

Van Forest Protection and Management Committees (VFPMC) and Eco-Development Committees (EDC):

• 6,508 VFPMCs protecting 14.94 lakh hectares of forest land
• 770 EDCs around national parks and wildlife sanctuaries
• These committees receive micro-plan funding for livelihood activities (eco-tourism, honey production, bamboo crafts) as alternatives to forest extraction

Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs):

• 160 BMCs strengthened under CRESEP project
• Function under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 and the State Biodiversity Board (Rajasthan)
• Responsible for maintaining People's Biodiversity Registers (PBR) documenting local species, traditional knowledge, and medicinal plants

Plant Micro Reserves (PMR):

• Rajasthan has established Plant Micro Reserves covering 3,000 hectares for Rare, Endangered, and Threatened (RET) species
• These are small dedicated in-situ conservation plots, often in community/revenue lands, protecting species facing habitat loss

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