Forest & Wildlife Resources

1.0Introduction

"The tree is a peculiar organism of unlimited kindness and benevolence and makes no demand for its sustenance and extends generously the products of its life activity. It affords protection to all beings, offering shade even to the axemen who destroy it". Gautama Buddha (487 B.C.)

We share this planet with millions of other living beings, starting from micro-organisms and bacteria, lichens to banyan trees, elephants and blue whales. This entire habitat that we live in has immense biodiversity.

We humans along with all living organisms form a complex web of ecological system in which we are only a part and very much dependent on this system for our own existence. The plants, animals and micro-organisms re-create the quality of the air we breathe, the water we drink and the soil that produces our food without which we cannot survive. Forests play a key role in the ecological system as these are also the primary producers on which all other living beings depend.

Biodiversity or Biological Diversity is immensely rich in wildlife and cultivated species, diverse in form and function but closely integrated in a system through multiple networks of interdependencies.

2.0Flora and Fauna in India

India is one of the world's richest countries in terms of its vast array of biological diversity. This is possibly twice or thrice the number yet to be discovered. These diverse flora and fauna are so well integrated in our daily life that we take these for granted. But lately, they are under great stress mainly due to insensitivity to our environment.

Some estimates suggest that at least 10 per cent of India's recorded wild flora and 20 per cent of its mammals are on the threatened list. Many of these are on the verge of extinction like the cheetah, pink-headed duck, mountain quail, forest spotted owlet, and plants like madhuca insignis (a wild variety of mahua) and hubbardia heptaneuron, (a species of grass). In fact, no one can say how many species may have already been lost.

The IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List Threatened Species, also known as the ICUN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, in an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological species.

Vanishing Forests

The dimensions of deforestation in India are staggering. The forest and tree cover in the country is estimated at 79.42 sq. km which is 24.16 per cent of the total geographical area (dense forest 12.2 per cent; open forest 9.14 per cent; and mangrove 0.14 per cent). According to the State of Forest Report (2015), the dense forest cover has increased by $3,775\mathrm{sq}\mathrm{km}$ since 2013. However, this apparent increase in the forest cover is due to conservation measures, management interventions and plantation, etc., by different agencies.

Based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), we can classify as follows -

Normal Species: Species whose population levels are normal for their survival, such as Cattle, sal, pine, rodents, etc.

Endangered Species: Species which are in danger of extinction, such as Black buck, crocodile, Indian wild ass, Indian rhino etc.

Vulnerable Species: Species whose population has declined to level that it likely to move into the endangered zone. Such as blue sheep, Asiatic elephant, Gangetic dolphin, etc.

Rare Species : Species with small population may move into endangered zone if negative factors continue to operate. Such as Himalayan brown bear, Wild Asiatic Buffalo, desert fox & Hornbill, etc.

Endemic Species: Species which are found only in particular areas usually isolated. Such as Andaman teal, Nicobar Pigeon, Andaman wild pig, etc.

Extinct Species: Species may be extinct from a local area, region, country, continent, or the entire earth. Such as Asiatic Cheetah, Pink head Duck.

3.0Need for conservation of forest and wildlife in India

Conservation in the background of rapid decline in wildlife population and forestry has become essential. Conservation preserves the ecological diversity and our life support systems - water, air and soil. It also preserves the genetic diversity of plants and animals for better growth of species and breeding. For example, in agriculture, we are still dependent on traditional crop varieties. Fisheries too are heavily dependent on the maintenance of aquatic biodiversity.

4.0Steps taken for conservation of forest and wildlife in India

(i) In the 1960s and 1970s, conservationists demanded a national wildlife protection programme. (ii) The Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act was implemented in 1972, with various provisions for protecting habitats. An all-India list of protected species was also published. The thrust of the programme was towards protecting the remaining population of certain endangered species by banning hunting, giving legal protection to their habitats, and restricting trade in wildlife. (iii) Subsequently, Central and many state governments established national parks and wildlife sanctuaries. (iv) The central government also announced several projects for protecting specific animals, which were gravely threatened, including the tiger, the onehorned rhinoceros, the Kashmir stag or hangul, three types of crocodiles-fresh water crocodile, saltwater crocodile and the Gharial, the Asiatic lion, and others. Most recently, the Indian elephant, black buck (chinkara), the great Indian bustard (godawan) and the snow leopard, etc. have been given full or partial legal protection against hunting and trade throughout India. (v) The conservation projects are now focusing on biodiversity rather than on a few of its components. There is now a more intensive search for different conservation measures. Increasingly, even insects are beginning to find a place in conservation planning. In the notification under Wildlife Act of 1980 and 1986, several hundred butterflies, moths, beetles, and one dragonfly have been added to the list of protected species. In 1991, for the first-time plants were also added to the list, starting with six species.

Project Tiger

"Project Tiger", one of the well- publicised wildlife campaigns in the world, was launched in 1973. Tiger conservation has been viewed not only as an effort to save an endangered species, but with equal importance as a means of preserving biotypes of sizeable magnitude. Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand, Sundarbans National Park in West Bengal, Bandhavgarh National Park in Madhya Pradesh, Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary in Rajasthan, Manas Tiger Reserve in Assam, and Periyar Tiger Reserve in Kerala are some of the tiger reserves of India.

5.0Types and distribution of forest and wildlife resources

In India, much of its forest and wildlife resources are either owned or managed by the government through the Forest Department or other government departments. These are classified under the following categories. (i) Reserved Forests: More than half of the total forest land has been declared reserved forests. Reserved forests are regarded as the most valuable as far as the conservation of forest and wildlife resources are concerned. (ii) Protected forests: Almost one-third of the total forest area is protected forest, as declared by the Forest Department. This forest land is protected from any further depletion. (iii) Unclassed forests: These are other forests and wastelands belonging to both government and private individuals and communities.

Distribution of forests in India

Reserved and protected forests are also referred to as permanent forest estates maintained for the purpose of producing timber and other forest produce, and for protective reasons. (i) Madhya Pradesh has the largest area under permanent forests, constituting 75 per cent of its total forest area. (ii) Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Maharashtra have large percentages of reserved forests of its total forest area whereas Bihar, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Orissa and Rajasthan have a bulk of it under protected forests. (iii) All North- eastern states and parts of Gujarat have a very high percentage of their forests as unclassed forests managed by local communities.

6.0Community and Conservation

Forests are also home to some of the traditional communities. (i) In some areas of India, local communities are struggling to conserve these habitats along with government officials. In Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan, villagers have fought against mining by citing the Wildlife Protection Act. In many areas, villagers themselves are protecting habitats and explicitly rejecting government involvement.

Sacred groves

Certain societies revere a particular tree which they have preserved from time immemorial. The Mundas and the Santhal of Chota Nagpur region worship mahua (Bassia latifolia) and kadamba (Anthocaphalus cadamba) trees, and the tribals of Odisha and Bihar worship the tamarind (Tamarindus Indica) and mango (Mangifera indica) trees during weddings. To many of us, peepal and banyan trees are considered sacred. Indian society comprises several cultures, each with its own set of traditional methods of conserving nature and its creations. Sacred qualities are often ascribed to springs, mountain peaks, plants and animals which are closely protected. You will find troops of macaques and langurs around many temples. They are fed daily and treated as a part of temple devotees. In and around Bishnoi villages in Rajasthan, herds of blackbuck, (chinkara), nilgai and peacocks can be seen as an integral part of the community, and nobody harms them.

Joint Forest Management (JFM) Programme In India joint forest management (JFM) programme furnishes a good example for involving local communities in the management and restoration of degraded forests. The programme has been in formal existence since 1988 when the state of Odisha passed the first resolution for joint forest management. JFM depends on the formation of local (village) institutions that undertake protection activities mostly on degraded forest land managed by the forest department. In return, the members of these communities are entitled to intermediary benefits like non- timber forest produces and share in the timber harvested by 'successful protection'.

The clear lesson from the dynamics of both environmental destruction and reconstruction in India is that local communities everywhere have to be involved in some kind of natural resource management. But there is still a long way to go before local communities are at the centre- stage in decision-making. Accept only those economic or developmental activities, that are people centric, environment-friendly and economically rewarding.

7.0Glossary

• Biosphere: Part of the earth which is covered by living organisms both plants and animals.
• Flora : Plants of a particular region or period are referred to as flora.
• Fauna: Species of animals are known as fauna.
• Forest : Extensive area covered with tress.
• Wildlife Sanctuary : A reserved area for preserving natural beauty, e.g., wildlife.
• Biodiversity: It is the sum of all the varieties of species of plants, animals and microorganisms living on the earth.
• Wasteland: Land which is not fit for cultivation.
• The Indian Wildlife Act: It was an act implemented in 1972, with various provisions for protecting natural habitats.

8.0MIND-MAP