Essay on the Forest Resources of India

India is one of the 12 mega diversity countries, commanding 7% of the world’s biodiversity and supporting 16% of the major forest types, varying from alpine pastures in the Himalayas to temperate sub tropical, tropical forests and mangroves in the coastal areas.

But nearly half of the country’s area is degraded, affected by problems of soil degradation and erosion. Sixty percent forests are located in ecologically sensitive zones. These forests need to be managed in a way to ensure that they are ecologically protected and maintained, as well as sustained at the highest productivity level to meet the growing population’s burgeoning demands for fuel, food, fodder, and timber.

India has a large and diverse forest resource. Its forest types vary from tropical rainforest in the north-east, to desert and thorn forests in Gujarat and Rajasthan; mangrove forest in West Bengal, Orissa and other coastal areas; and dry alpine forests in the western Himalaya. The most common forest types are tropical moist deciduous forests, tropical dry deciduous forests, and wet tropical evergreen forests.

According to the Forest Survey of 1997, the country has 76.5 million ha of forest. The degraded area was 26.13 million ha and there was another 5.72 million ha of scrub; thus, in total 31.85 million ha of forests were degraded or open.

The land use outside for habitations (rural and urban), industries and infrastructure, such as roads, rivers, canals, railway lines, under permanent snow, rocks, desert, or not available for other reasons amounted to 264 million ha. It consists of cultivated land of 142 million ha, forestland of 67 million ha, fallows of 24 million ha, pastures of 12 million ha, tree groves of 3 million ha, and cultural waste of 16 million ha. Thus, in order to achieve the national goal of one third of the country under forest/tree cover, an area of 29.7 million ha has to be brought under plantations.

It was reported that the country’s achievement in raising forest plantations, in terms of area, has been impressive. Up to 1998, the total area of tree plantations was 28.38 million ha, of which about 17 million ha were planted before 1990’s. The current annual rate of plantation is 1.2 million. The quality of these plantations varies considerably. It should be noted that forest plantations are a means to meet the increasing demand for industrial raw material or for direct consumption, i.e. fuel wood, but not to justify deforestation or claim restoration of biodiversity and other environmental services.

There are other woodlands established in small blocks on non-forestry lands, which are not included in the forest survey because of limitations of interpretation of satellite data.

The performance of forest plantations, in terms of survival, growth and yield, has been poor caused by several factors, including inadequacies in site selection and site-species matching, poor planting stock, lack of proper maintenance and protection (from fire, grazing, pests and diseases), lack of timely tending/thinning, delays in fund allocation, and inadequately trained staff. In this regard, some people are of the opinion that a master plan for tree plantations should be developed specifying categories, management regimes, utilisation and investment needs; and emphasis should be given to enhancing qualitative and quantitative productions.

Involvement of the private sector in plantation development has not been substantial and is not adequately supported by the government through relevant research, extension, technological packages, input delivery, market information or credit facilities. This sector is dominant in the area of harvesting and processing. It was noted that the needs and problems relating to this area are different from those producers of wood in rural areas.

According to the latest State of Forest Report, 1999, the total forest cover was 633.73 million ha or 19.39% of the geographical area, with dense forest accounting for 11%. The Report stated that the forest cover has increased by 4,000 km2 since the last survey in 1997.

Thus, the overall decline in the forest cover has been halted. In this regard, the Minister of Environment and Forests stated that a major constraint facing the forestation programmes is funding, which requires Rs 66.95 billion per year (1US$ approximately equal to Rs 43.5 in September 2000) in order to achieve one-third forest cover within the next 20 years. Rs 16 billion per year are available from both the central and state budget together to be allocated for a forestation.

Involvement and investment from various NGOs, corporate, public and private sectors to fund this sector is being approached. In this connection, consultation with several donor agencies, including international and bilateral banks, for possible support have also been carried out. In this regard, WB and EU have provided substantial support to several forestry programmes in some states.

In regard to national parks, sanctuaries and other reserves, the country’s achievement in terms of area is substantial. The Protected Areas (PA) cover about 14.8 million ha/ or about 14% of the forest area, consisting of 80 national parks, 441 wildlife sanctuaries and 8 biosphere reserves. However, the condition of several PAs is poor because of fire, grazing and inadequate management. The Management plans of some PAs are not comprehensive. Some are below the minimum size required to be effective.

Non-wood forest products (NWFPs) have a great potential to support the socio-economic development of the country and also the principles of sustainable forest management. These products are essential to local communities. Some products have great potential for export. Some products have also provided employment and income earning.