Section 19 in Jammu and Kashmir Biological Diversity Rules, 2015
19. Constitution and functions of Biodiversity Management Committees.
- i. Every local body shall constitute a Biodiversity Management Committee within its area of jurisdiction.ii. The Biodiversity Management Committees as constituted under sub-rule (l) shall have six persons nominated by the local body, of which there shall be atleast two women members and one from Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe. These six local knowledgeable persons being so nominated should be drawn from amongst the-• herbalists ;• agriculturalists ;• non-Timber Forest Produce collectors/traders• fisher folk ;• representatives of user associations/community workers• academicians• any person/representative of organization, on whom the local body trusts that he/she can significantly contribute to the mandate of the Biodiversity Management Committee.All the persons should be residents of the said local body and should be in the voters list. The tenure of the members shall be three years or till a new committee is constituted. Any member may resign at any time by giving in writing to the Chairperson of the Biodiversity Management Committee.iii. Every Biodiversity Management Committee shall have atleast six special invitees from amongst Forest, Agriculture, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry, Health, Fisheries and Education Department to be nominated by the concerned local body.iv. The Chairpersons of the Block Development Council (BDC)/ Urban Local Body concerned shall be Ex-officio Chairman of the Biodiversity Management Committee and will have tenure as long as he continues as Chairperson of the Block Development Council (BDC)/Urban Local Body.v. Every meeting of the Biodiversity Management Committee shall be presided over by the Chairperson and in his absence, by a member, to be nominated by the members present from among themselves.vi. In matters related to wild biological diversity and/or biodiversity found in forest land, it shall be mandatory for the Biodiversity Management Committee to seek assistance of the concerned Joint Forest Management Committee (JFMC), Village Forest Management Committee (VFMC) and/or Eco-Development Committee (EDC). This will be applicable to areas other than recorded forests and protected areas notified under Wildlife Protection Act, 1978.vii. The local Members of the Legislative Assembly/Legislative Council and Member of Parliament would be special invitees to the meetings of the Biodiversity Management Committees at different levels.viii. A technical support group comprising of experts in the field of biodiversity drawn from Government Agencies, Non-Government Organizations, academic and research field, community and individuals shall be established by State Biodiversity Board. The expert group shall lend support to Biodiversity Management Committees.ix. The Biodiversity Management Committees shall prepare the people's Biodiversity Registers in consultation with local population. The Register shall contain comprehensive information on availability and knowledge of local biological resources, their medicinal or any other use or any other traditional knowledge associated with them.x. The Board shall provide guidance and technical support to the Biodiversity Management Committees for preparing People's Biodiversity Registers, and shall ensure that all information recorded in such Registers receives legal protection against misuse and appropriation by outside agencies and individuals.xi. The Biodiversity Management Committee and local bodies will be responsible for ensuring the protection of the knowledge recorded in the people's Biodiversity Registers, especially to regulate its access to outside agencies and individuals through Prior Informed Consent (PIC).xii. The People's Biodiversity Registers shall be maintained and validated by the Biodiversity Management Committees.xiii. The other function of the Biodiversity Management Committee is to advise on any matter referred to it by the State Biodiversity Board or Authority for granting approval, to maintain data about the local Vaids, Hakims and practitioners using the biological resources.xiv. The Biodiversity Management Committee shall also maintain a Register giving information about the details of the access to biological resources and traditional knowledge granted, details of the collection fee imposed and details of the benefits derived and the mode of their sharing.xv. The Biodiversity Management Committee may decide the terms on which it would permit access to biodiversity resources and associated knowledge to different parties for various purposes within their jurisdiction and levy charges by way of collection fees from any person for accessing or collecting any biological resources for commercial purpose from the area falling within its jurisdiction. The major share of levy charged for the material eollected/cultivated from private land should be given to the owner/ cultivator of the land/knowledge holder(s) and the balance should be deposited in Local Biodiversity Fund of Biodiversity Management Committee. The levy charged for the material collected/cultivated from Government land should be totally deposited in Local Biodiversity Fund of Biodiversity Management Committee.xvi. The Biodiversity Management Committee shall take initiative to generate awareness regarding the biological resources available in the locality, their economic and ecological importance and the need to conserve them.xvii. The Biodiversity Management Committee shall report any incidence of misuse of biological resource to the concerned Range Officer (Territorial) or to the Member-Secretary of the Board or any other officer authorized under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002.vviii. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings shall lie against the members of Biodiversity Management Committee or the forest officer for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done under the Act or the rules or regulations made thereunder.
