From poor person’s timber to rich man’s green gold, bamboo is truly the “cradle to coffin timber” for the people of various strata and geographies. Bamboo is a gift of nature and India is blessed with the world’s largest bamboo resource. But the existing utilisation of the bamboo sector in the country remains underdeveloped and its share in domestic consumption and international trade is negligible. With depleting natural resources and changing policy scenarios, such as the ban on single-use plastic, bamboo is increasingly looked upon as the most preferred alternative wood material. It has thousands of well-documented applications in daily life. Despite having such enormous potential for both nature and society, the bamboo industry in the country is still at a nascent stage. Although bamboo management may appear to be a “wicked problem” with no immediate solution, changing policy regimes and growing interest of various stakeholders can potentially provide a way to revive the bamboo sector.
