Meghalaya PBR

Biodiversity or ‘Biological Diversity’ is a term that describes the variety of living beings on Earth. Specifically, Biological Diversity means the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are a part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems (CBD, 1992).

Section 41 of the Biological Diversity Act 2002 states that “Every local body shall constitute a Biodiversity Management Committee (BMC) within its area for the purpose of promoting conservation, sustainable use and documentation of biological diversity including preservation of habitats, conservation of land races, folk varieties and cultivars, domesticated stocks and breeds of animals and microorganisms and documentation of knowledge relating to biological diversity” The key mandate of the BMC will be to ensure conservation, sustainable utilization and equitable sharing of benefits from the biological resources. The first step towards conservation is sustainable utilization of biodiversity and its documentation. The main function of the BMC is to prepare People’s Biodiversity Register (PBR) in consultation with the local people.

The PBR is a vital document which records the existence of bio-resources, their use and the associated traditional knowledge available in an area. The PBR is expected to serve as a tool to prevent bio-piracy, provide a basis for access and benefit sharing and serve as a guide in conservation planning and action at the ground level. The PBR shall record various components of biodiversity found under various ecosystems in an area, traditional crop and animal varieties, their status, their uses, associated traditional knowledge, manner of existing access, etc. The PBR has to be prepared in a scientific way, in collaboration with the local people, with their inputs. The PBR so prepared will be subsequently endorsed and owned by the people through the respective BMCs. The PBR will contain comprehensive information on the availability and knowledge of local biological resources (Flora and Fauna), their medicinal or any other use or any other traditional knowledge associated with them. PBR provides Information on Local Biodiversity Hotspots, Sacred Groves, locally endemic and endangered Species and biologically significant areas. PBR also focus on Lifescape diversity of the people, their knowledge, special features such as rituals and ecological history of the area. PBR documentation helps, sustainable resource management in Restoration of Traditional fishes, Crops, Wildlife habitats and locally endangered wild species. Documentation also supports claims of local ownership of biodiversity & traditional knowledge. PBR is a legal document for IPR and Patent issues. This helps empower the local communities, making them aware of their rights, as well as conserving the biodiversity. PBR is also as a mechanism to create awareness among the people about the condition of plants and animal species and their conservation and sustainable utilization. This mechanism can bring the people to participate in development planning which would be ecologically sustainable and socially justifiable.