Shimla, June 29 -- Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur while presiding over the 9th meeting of Himachal Pradesh State Board for Wildlife held here today said that a better coordination between development and conservation of eco system was the need of the hour.

Chief Minister said that being a Himalayan State forest plays a major role in maintenance of ecological balance, the State Government was laying special emphasis on afforestation in the State. He said that target has been fixed to plant about 1.20 crore saplings during the current year. He said that the forests of the State comprises of rich biodiversity and apart from providing fodder, timber and medicinal plants to the local community, the forest also were home to large variety of wil...