From ancient times forests form an integral part of Indian culture, religion and folklore. Indian epics are strongly based on episodes in forests, portrayed wildlife as holy creatures and saints led their whole life in huts called ashrams made of wood and leaves. Indians worshipped trees and their sages meditated under them. Ayurvedic medicine - developed through centuries of knowledge on the medicinal effects of plants - depends on forest trees and herbs to find cure for ailments. Ancient scholars educated and trained their younger generation at their home situated inside forests, on the basis of which Rabindranath Tagore - India s renowned poet and Nobel prize laureate - founded the open air university at Shantiniketan in more recent times.
Even with such close cultural ties with forests, it is unfortunate thatIndia s forest cover has been dwindling at a fast rate of 1.3 millionhectares per year. The recorded forest area of the country is 75.18 millionhectares (22.8% of the total geographic area) and represents the nation sforest cover in the 1940s. Now, the forest cover is 64 million hectares ofwhich only 39 million hectares carry dense forests, i.e. 40% crown densityor above, and 25 million hectares carry open and degraded forests, i.e. 10to 39% crown density. 7 million hectares are rainforests and 16 millionhectares monsoon forests. They support over 20,000 plant species of 328families distributed within 8 floristic regions and 16 main natural forestformations. 97% of Indian forests are owned by the public, 85% administeredby forest departments of state governments and the remaining 12% owned bytownships and village communes. Reasons for the nation s decreasing forestcover are several, some of which include faulty agricultural and irrigationpractices, faulty road building on fragile hill slopes, environmentallyunfriendly mining practices, extreme pressure of a fast growing population(approaching one billion) on forests for firewood, fodder, timber and otherforest produce, grazing pressure of an ever-increasing cattle population(the nation has the largest cattle population in the world), urbanizationand industrialization.Recent developmentsIndia seems to have attained stability in forest cover by being able tosuccessfully protect what s left of its dense forest cover. This success isas a result of approaching the problem from various different ways, some ofwhich are:legal measures / protection forestryImproved forestry research and educationTechnological advancement in forest inventory and managementParticipatory managementEnvironmental awareness & NGO activities Legal measures / protection forestry: Legal measures were taken to protect forests by enacting a law for a total moratorium to felling operations in all government forests, and by establishing a network of forest reserves, wildlife sanctuaries, bird sanctuaries, national parks and biosphere reserves. Each of the above category of forests has a unique set of management guidelines specified in the Indian Forest Policy. In addition, each reserve, sanctuary or park has a set of management guidelines prescribed in the management plan for the area catering to their special needs.Improved forestry research and education: An encouraging development inpresent-day Indian forestry is that the Indian Council of Forestry Researchand Education (ICFRE) founded in 1986 to promote and coordinate forestryresearch and education of the country is now fully functional. ICFRE hasnine institutes, each actively involved in catering the research needs of acertain aspect of forestry such as wood science & technology, genetics &tree improvement, tropical forests, rain and moist deciduous forests,temperate forests, arid zone forestry, forest productivity, and socialforestry & eco-rehabilitation. This is in addition to the state forestresearch institutes already doing research in forestry. ICFRE also startedthe nation s first Bachelor of Science program in forestry in 13 stateagricultural universities all across the country. Many of theseuniversities now have their on MS and Ph.D. programs.Technological advancement in forest inventory and management: As a resultof the realization of the need for better management to save the existingforests, it was necessary to make use of modern technology for inventory anddata collection. Much of the data were not only used for research purposes,but also readily available for forest managers to make vital decisions. Forexample, the Kerala State Forest Department with the help of the KeralaForest Research Institute, Thrisoor has recently decided to make extensiveuse of a unique bio-monitoring project aimed at enabling systematic andconstant monitoring of changes in vegetation and wildlife, climatic andatmospheric variations and their effect on several species, study of insectsand microflora, and regular soil analysis for acidity, nutrient and moisturecontent. The first of its kind in the country, this study would enable theformulation a more efficient forest management strategy for forest reserves,wildlife ! parks and sanctuaries in the State. It will also study thebehavioral patterns and migratory habits of birds and animals. The stateforest department will also make use of the satellite data provided by theNational Remote Sensing Agency, Hyderabad for vegetation mapping, andcollaborate with the Tropical Botanical Gardens and Research Institute andthe Center for Earth Science Studies.Participatory management: Through programs of people s participation, thegoal is to increase nation s forest cover by the afforestation of non-forestlands while providing the participants with fodder, firewood, some timberand other forest produce. The presence of such vegetation also improves thesoil structure, aeration and organic matter content of the area, therebymaking agriculture viable in near-by fields. The national social forestryprogram is based on people s involvement and sharing of benefits between thegovernment and local communities. In the state of Gujarat for example, over18,000 villages participate in a village woodlot program designed to provideeach with a 4-5 hectare woodlot for fuelwood and fodder. There areself-help villages where village panchayats (local governing bodies) bearthe costs of, raise and maintain the woodlots, and all benefits are enjoyedby the villagers. In the supervised villages , the state forest departmentincurs al! l the direct costs. At time of harvest, all direct costs, a feeof 10 % for interest, and a management fee of 25 % on direct costs arerecovered by the forest department, with the balance accruing to thepanchayat. Strips of land along roads, railways, and canals are used forvillage woodlots. In another nation-wide program, the government suppliesmaterials to schools, and train children to raise nurseries in their sparetime, and eventually buys back the seedlings from the schools to use inafforestation programs. The schools earn up to US$ 250 per year and thechildren gain awareness about conservation and environment. These programs,however, have only moderate success due to very little people-governmentinteraction and the general mistrust of people in the government.Environmental awareness and NGO activities: General increase inenvironmental awareness among people is seen over the years. Today, thereare several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and environmental groupsthat involve themselves in educating people for environmental awareness, andalso take up issues with the government when there is a threat posed on theenvironment due to faulty or short-sighted government policies. The Chipkomovement was a people s movement headed by prominent environmentalists inwhich people hugged trees to prevent them being cut down by the government. Similarly, Narmada Bachao Andolan ( save Narmada movement ) was aimed athalting the construction of a dam on the Narmada river valley which wouldhave lead to the destruction of vast areas of forests in the submergencezone and deprived the inhabiting tribals of their home and livelihood. Another environmental group called Prakriti Samrakshana Samiti ( meaningnature protection foru! m ) has opposed several hydro-electric projects inthe state of Kerala and has also taken up an eco-restoration project toreforest an area in Kerala state which had been heavily degraded due tototal deforestation. Volunteers from various universities and nature clubsactively participate in wildlife censuses conducted annually in variouswildlife sanctuaries such as Parambikulam, Thekkady, Neyyar, Agasthyar andPeppara of Kerala State. In addition to forming a database for wildlifepopulation dynamics that help managers to better manage the sanctuaries,such events provide the opportunity for foresters and wildlife managers tointroduce people to forests, wildlife and environment, and to educate themon the benefits of forests and environmental conservation. The forestdepartment is also planning to set up interpretation centers at all thesanctuaries to educate tourists about conservation efforts.India has the grave problem of deforestation to handle, which is aggravatedby the heavy pressure posed on them by it s 900 million people and anever-increasing cattle population. Even though the solution largely dependson political leadership and appropriate government policies, the keyingredient is the active participation by millions of small farmers andlandless people who use forests and trees daily to meet their നീട്സ്.
