PDFFiles-NSR-National Status Report (ITTO) - 23.9.06-Compiled Report-Compiled Report - F

COMPILATION OF PAPERS FOR PREPARATION OF
NATIONAL STATUS REPORT

on
Forests and Forestry in India
(Survey and Utilisation Division)
Ministry of Environment & Forests

Government of India, New Delhi September 2006
Consultant/Facilitator
Amity School of Natural Resources & Sustainable Development

Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Sector-125, Noida, U.P., India
Compilation of papers 1
CONTENTS
S. Topics No. 1 The Present Forest Scenario in India Economic Value of Forests/Green Accounting and Non-market valuation of forests 2 An Overview of the policy development in Indian Forestry for Sustainable Management Contribution of Forestry Sector Towards Gross Domestic Product of India Assessment of Forest and Tree Cover: Role of Forest Cover Assessment in Monitoring Sustainable Forest Management Author Dr. Ram Prasad Dr. Ram Prasad Pages 1-20 21-24
A.K. Mukerji
25-35
J.C. Kala Dr. Bipin Behari A.K. Joshi Dr. Bipin Behari
36-41
42-53
5 6
Tree Outside Forests Forest Fire Control and Prevention Sustainable Forest Management for
J.P. L. Srivastava J.P. L. Srivastava
54-65 66-89
Non-Wood Forest Products (NWFP) including Aromatic and Medicinal Plants for poverty alleviation and Sustainable Forest Management Strategy for Sustainable NTFP Management in India Status of Bamboo in India Status of Rattans in India Establishing Medicinal and Aromatic (MAP) plants supply Chains: A case of Sanjeevani Neglect of Forestry and Wildlife Sector in Indias development planning under the Five-Year Plans
Dr. D. N. Tiwari
90-92
Dr. Ram Prasad
93-108
9 10 11
Dr. Bipin Behari A.K. Joshi Manomohan Yadav A.K. Mukerji
109-120 121-132 133-139
12
140-142
S. Topics No. 13 Forest Products Trade and Marketing
Author Ashwani Bhat
Pages 143-172
Rules and Regulations to enhance access to and ensure import (and export) of Sustainable Produced Tropical Timber; Utilization and Quality Experience Value addition of timber and utilization Case studies in Maharashtra and Gujarat about current timber use and trends 14 Sustainable Forest Management in India A critical analysis of Peoples participation and emerging management issues Applying Criteria and Indicators Sustainable Forest Management in India Forest Certification and its Role in SFM Research and Development Requirements for promoting SFM Status: for
Ashwani Bhat
173-177
Ashwani Bhat Ashwani Bhat
178-183 184-214
Dr. V.K. Bahuguna
215-235
15
P.C. Kotwal
236-244
16 17
Dr. Bipin Behari Dr. S.S. Negi
245-266 267-277
18
Clonal Pulpwood Tree Farms Change the Rural Landscape in Andhra Pradesh State Level Energy Park, Indira Gandhi Musical Fountain, Bangalore Providing climate change mitigation services in the Forestry Sector: challenges, opportunities and the State of Preparedness Brining Forest Environmental Services into the Economics of Tree Growing in India National Status Report Forestry Database, Timber, NTFP and SWP
S.N. Rao
278-279
19
Arun K. Bansal
280-284
20
Promode Kant
285-298
21
Promode Kant
299-304
22
Arun K. Bansal
305-316
S. Topics No. 23 Organizational and Institutional issues with special reference to Sustainable Forest Management
Author Prof. Dillip K. Bandyopadhyay
Pages 317-332
24
Institutional and Administrative Issues, role of National and State Government Local Authorities and Civil Society in Forestry and SFM; Role of Forest Development Corporation/Private Sector in forestry and SFM Budgetary Allocation for Forestry and Wildlife Sector at National Level and in Tropical States of India
B.K.P. Sinha
333-375
25
Dr. Bipin Behari and A.K. Joshi
376-379
*****
COMPILATION OF PAPERS for PREPARATION of NATIONAL STATUS REPORT on FORESTS AND FORESTRY IN INDIA
The analysis and interpretations expressed in these papers are solely that of the authors, and do not represent the position or opinion of Amity School of Natural Resources and Sustainable Development or other institutions involved. Nor does it purport to represent the views of any of the individual commentators.
THE PRESENT FOREST SCENARIO IN INDIA

Dr. Ram Prasad, Principal National Consultant
1.0 The Present Forest Scenario in India

1.1 Forest Resource Assessment
The forest cover estimates from 1987 2003 are given in Table 1.
Year of state of forest report 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 Data period 1981-83 1983-85 1987-89 1989-91 1991-93 1993-95 1996-98 1998-99 2000-01 Forest tree cover sq km 640,819 638,804 639,364 639,386 638,879 633,397 637,293 % of Geographical area 19.49 19.43 19.45 19.45 19.43 19.27 19.39 23.03 23.68 Dense forest % 59.06 60.27 60.31 60.30 60.27 57.98 59.21
(Source: FSI-SFR 1987-2003, Dehradun India)
The Forest Survey of India (FSI), Dehradun undertakes the assessment of forest cover based on digital interpretation of satellite imageries and ground verification on a two-year cycle. The State of Forest Report (SFR) of 2003 indicated a forest/tree cover of 23.68 per cent, which has marginally increased over 23.03% assessed during 2001. Although in 2003 assessment, there is an upward trend in respect of forest area the quality of green cover has deteriorated. There has been reduction in dense forest cover to the extent of 6.3% which indicates continuing forest degradation despite the fact that a substantial forest area has been brought under Joint Forest Management.
1.2
Forest Management Practices
Indias forests are under severe pressure for meeting growing demands for fuel, fodder, grazing, timber and non-timber forest products from an ever increasing human and livestock population, and industrial demands. Due to rapid increase in human population from 390 million (1950) to 1 billion in 2001 and domestic animals from 350 million to 500 million in the same period, the demand-supply gap for forest produce has enormously increased. In addition, there is large-scale harvesting of medicinal plants, gums, fruits, fibres, seeds etc., for local use and sale. About 70% of village population are reportedly using local herbs for medicines. Fuelwood requirement was estimated at 220 million tonnes in 2001 as against the available supply of 102 million tonnes (MT) (46 MT from degraded lands and forests, 40 MT from private lands and 16 MT from home gardens). This demand was projected to grow to 241 MT by 2006. This projection is based on the study by Ravindranath and Hall (1995). The National Forestry Action Programme of Ministry of Environment and Forests
(MoEF, 1999) indicated demand at 223 MT (in 1996) and 247 MT (in 2006) against the availability of 115 MT leaving a huge gap to be met from over-exploitation. Fuelwood removal from natural forests being free is preferred to alternative source of fuels in rural areas. It is a non-monetized commodity, and therefore, subjective to overuse. In respect of timber for household, housing, agriculture, furniture, industrial use, paper pulp, plywood match etc., NFAP projected the demand to grow to 73 million cu m in 2001 and 81 million cu m in 2006, against the supply of 12 million cu m from forest (ITTO, 2004 indicates only 6 million cu m) and 31 million cu m from farm forestry and forest plantations. In order to meet the rapidly growing demand for wood, NFAP suggested need for large scale plantations and concentrated regeneration operations in next 20 years. Unfortunately the NFAP could not be implemented due to financial constraints. Needless to say that the requirements of wood for meeting domestic needs of housing, furniture and allied activities in rural and urban areas result into unsustainable extraction. The principle of sustained yield management, which was the hallmark of scientific forest management, originated from the vision of the pioneers of forestry profession. The sustained yield principle was enshrined in the working plan prescriptions in India, and was essentially for timber harvesting. It essentially meant that the cumulative tree increment should be harvested leaving the capital intact (In other words, harvesting wood at an average rate, which is not greater than the forest in question can regenerate it). However, some environmentalists consider this concept to be narrow and irrelevant to Sustainable Forest Management in a comprehensive sense. They probably overlook the fact that the tree, which is the principal source of timber, is an outcome of ecosystem functioning. In disturbed conditions, the tree may not grow to its full potential. If the trees were managed scientifically and sustainably, the ecosystem would be fully functional. Thus, the sustained yield principle is an effective proxy for SFM, for optimizing both tangible and intangible values of forests. The scope of management, including yield regulation, can be widened to incorporate both tangible and intangible values. Sustained yield forestry is influenced by the silvicultural system adopted. The silvicultural system defines the type of operations to be carried out as part of production management of forests. It is a process by which the crop constituting a forest are tended, removed and replaced by new crops, through natural regeneration or through plantation. The choice of silvicultural system under traditional forestry was influenced by the concept of sustained yield. If a forest is to produce sustained yield in perpetuity, it should possess certain characteristics, i.e. normal series of age gradations or age classes, a normal increment and a normal growing stock. Most tropical forests in India worked with the application of silvicutlural systems such as (i) clear felling with natural or artificial regeneration; (ii) selection system; (iii) selection-cum-improvement system; (iv) coppice system (simple coppice, coppice with standards, coppice with reserves in central India). All these silvicultural systems were aimed at regenerating and replacing the old growth without constraining the sustained yield principle stipulated in working plan prescriptions.
1.3
Scientific Forest Management in India
Scientific management of forest under modern concepts was initiated in the early part of 1800s. With so many eco climatic zones covering the country, there are 16 major forest types with several sub types, several types. Different silvicultural systems were adopted in different forest types. While selection system was applied in the wet evergreen, semi evergreen and moist mixed deciduous forest, shelter wood system was
applied in the coniferous and certain types of moist deciduous forests. A more radical silvicultural system such as clear felling with artificial regeneration with valuable species (teak, bamboo, rose wood, eucalyptus etc) in moist deciduous/monsoon forests was applied. Coppices and coppice with standards (coppices with reserve system in central Indian dry deciduous forest low site quality forests) was followed in most dry deciduous forests. The earlier teak plantation in India was raised in 1839. Eucalyptus was introduced in 1843 and rubber in 1873. All these however, seem to have converged on deforestation and forest degradation. And, systematic, consistent and accurate information on the geographic extent and physical condition of the forest is lacking (Freezailah et al., 2004) i) Forest Working Plans: The forests are divided into forest divisions and further into forests working circles and compartments), for purposes of forest management. The forest divisions are managed on the basis of forest working plans, which are periodically revised and updated. Preparation of working plans for scientific forest management was initiated in 1884 to ensure sustainable harvesting of timber within the limits of annual incremental growth followed by regeneration and protection. Today about 75% of Indias forests are covered under scientifically prepared working plans. Generally, the working plans are prepared for a period of 10 years with possible extension of up to 5 years. Supreme Court of India has directed the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) to sanction the working plans of a Forest Division before allowing the regeneration felling. Besides collecting information on management strategy such as financial allocation, regeneration survey and review operations prescribed in working plans for natural regeneration ensuring effective proper. ii) Deforestation and Forest Degradation: Forest degradation and deforestation have happened in India due to unsustainable practices and pressure from other forms of land uses. Forest resources in India have been under tremendous biotic stress, primarily from shifting cultivation, encroachments, unsustainable wood harvest, timber smuggling, and unregulated and excessive grazing and forest fires. Most of these pressures became more pronounced in the post independence period (1947) because human needs and greed were allowed to gallop primarily due to socio-political and socio-economic compulsions. India has been able to reduce the rate of deforestation during the last decades and a half. The annual average rate of deforestation fell from about 1.3 million ha in the 1970s to about 1,25,000 ha in the 1990s. After the launch of Forest Conservation Act (1980) which stipulated that forest areas cannot be diverted for nonforestry purposes without the prior approval of Govt. of India and that forest area equal to diverted forest area have to be planted. The rate of deforestation came down to about 25,000 ha/year. However, while there has been improvement in significantly reducing and controlling the rate of deforestation, forest degradation appears to be continuing, as evidenced by the fall in the average growing stock of wood and bio mass volume per ha. Declining production of timber and fuel wood is also indicative of continuing forest degradation. Referring to the data in Table-1, one gets an impression that Indias forest areas are showing an increasing trend with every 2 yearly scale assessment (2003) because of large scale of afforestation/regeneration efforts. However, analyzing the forest cover it is clear that there is reduction of 6.3% in the dense forest percent. Deforestation is to be assessed in terms of loss of natural forests; and agro-forestry crops and fuel wood lots raised by farmers cannot of set losses of natural forests (Chandraskharan, 2004). iii) Forest Plantations: Looking to the area under forests plantation (32.6 million ha) Indias achievement definitely appears very impressive. However, most of these plantations, particularly those raised by State Forest Departments and
State Forest Development Corporations, in terms of survival growth and yield have been poor. In adequacies in site selection and site species matching, poor planting stock, inadequate preparation, lack of post plantation care, lack of timely tending, and lack of adequately trained staff are some of the causes for this situation. Forest plantation being a major investment activity, the low level of productivity is a cause of concern. A review of tropical plantation by Pandey (1992) observed that plantation planning is generally poor, particularly in relation to vital issues such as the matching of species to the site. Plantation projects are often designed in haste, with scant attention paid to important preparatory steps, time or financial constraints. There are, however, large areas where the natural forest has been badly degraded or where the soil fertility has been lost due to unsustainable use, which could be used for plantation. Such schemes could provide a source of empowerment and long term income, provided the existence and needs of local people are recognized and incorporated in the plantation projects. In spite of the large area and investment involved, a full inventory of plantations classified by species, objectives age site quality/density classes, use classes, volume etc. does not exist. About 50% of the plantations raised since 1980 are in agro forestry environment with varying intensities of management. The National Forest Policy 1988 had aimed or observed that as far as possible Forest Industries should meet their raw material requirement from wood, grown in collaboration with farmers and local community. Due to lack of incentives and extension and insecure tenure for trees grown in private lands, accomplishment fells short of expectation. As of 1990, less than 30% of all forest plantations, the rest being raised for non-industrial purposes. If the forest plantation care adequately managed to achieve their potential productivity, India will be in a position to meet future domestic demand, and will probably be able to undertake export-oriented activities. Thus emphasis should be placed on enhancing productivity, quantitatively and qualitatively. Plantation development should be undertaken as enterprises, stressing efficiency and not on mere spread (area). iv) Private Sector Companies and Farmers Partnership: In accordance with the stipulation in 1988 NFP, subsidized supply of raw material to forest based industries gradually ceased. By 1990, many companies (particularly the pulp and paper companies) started working with farmers to encourage farm forestry activities with their active technical and financial assistance. The following approaches were tried. Supply of free or subsidized quality stock with or without buy back guarantee. Facility of bank loan assistance and providing planting stock, technical extension and buy back guarantee. Leasing or share cropping scheme under which the company raises and maintains plantations on farmers lands based on appropriate arrangements. Intensive research and development and commercial sale of clonal planting stock to farmers by companies with or without buy back guarantee. These schemes under different concept of partnership achieved three major objectives. First, they have generally popularized the concept of tree farming. Second, they have directly, contributed to the cultivation of a large number of commercial trees on private lands. Third, these schemes have made the farmers discover an alternative source of land use for improving their farm income particularly in the event of crop failure.
v)
Protected Areas: Indias achievement in PA development is significant. PAs in India cover about 14.8 million ha representing about 14% of the forest area
consisting 80 National Parks, 441 Wild life sanctuaries and 23 Tiger Reserves. However, the condition of several of the Pas are poor, because of bio tic pressures such as fire, grazing, fuel wood head load removal and in some cases even destructive gathering of NTFPs. Lack of adequate financial resources has also hampered their management and development. People - wildlife interface in several cases have given rise to serious conflicts and tension. vi) The Logging Ban: The growing concern for environmental degradation made it necessary for the government to lay greater emphasis on the conservation role of forest in preference to their economic role. Forest conservation Act (1980) and NFP (1988) assigned a lower priority for production forestry. As a result such silvicultural systems (selection- cum improvement for example) were prescribed which stipulated conservative felling intensity and which generally discouraged green felling in natural forests. In many situations, total ban on felling was imposed. As a result these areas received very little attention of foresters as no silviculture operations were carried out in those areas. However, local community continued using these forests particularly for browse and fuel wood gathering without any restrictions. As a result of these approaches (1) the areas were further degraded and (2) the quantum of production of timber drastically declined. The wood scarcity made government to allow liberal import of wood products. On positive side the wood scarcity situation has provided an impetus for development of farm forestry, homestead forestry, agro-forestry and trees outsides forests. Currently about 50% of the wood supply in the country is received from non-fore sources. Of the rest, a substantial portion is accounted for by imports and the balance obtained from state forests mainly forest plantations. While logging is being restricted in natural forests, there have not been commensurate efforts in management interventions and protection thus making the natural forests further degraded. vii) Non-Timber Forest Products: With the new emphasis an environmental conservation, NTFPs have recently emerged as eco-friendly products as their harvest/gathering are believed to cause less damage to the ecosystem, compared to logging. NTFPs deserve special mention because of their great potential to support economic development, consistent with the principles of SFM. They cover a wide range of products (goods and services) including bamboo, thatching materials, fruits, seeds, nuts, tubers and medicinal plants. NTFPs in India play an important role in the social and traditional life of millions of forest department population, particularly the tribal and land less people, women and other section of rural poor. According to a study by Prasad and Bhatnagar (1991) about 67% of all gatherers are women and 13% are children. It contributes over 75% of total forest export revenue in India. Nearly 400 million people living in and around forests in India depend an NTFPs for sustenance and supplementary income. NTFPs contribute significantly to the income of about 30% of the rural people. Several studies suggest that NTFPs contribute 20-24% of household income of the rural people (Kaushal and Kala, 2004; Belcher, 2005) More than 80% of forest dwellers depend on NTFPs for basic necessities. NTFP collection comprises the main source of wage labour of 17% of land less labors, and 39% more are involved in NTFP collection as a subsidiary occupation (Prasad and Phukan, 2000). The high potential of NTFPs in India should be rationally used through scientific approaches aided research, acquisition of technology and peoples participation. viii) Peoples Participation: The concept of peoples participation in forestry has gained acceptance in India and there has been attempts to introduce limited participation as seen in the different models of JFM. However, informed, active and organized participation is yet to become a favorite of forestry. Local
organizations such as co operative are still rare in forestry. There is need to do much more, to fully involve people in SFM. The efforts of self-initiated forest protection groups in many parts of India should also be recognized as a reliable strategy for SFM. ix) Joint Forest Management (JFM): This programme has been gaining ground in India, as an effective means of regenerating/rehabilitating degraded forests. Initiated informally in the early 1970 to enlist the participation of local people in forest rehabilitation efforts, JFM has become the flagship programme of India in peoples participation since 1990. Benefits sharing and protection responsibilities are the main basis of participation but the mechanism differs from state to state. Participation of women and poorer section of society have to be ensured. Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh have demonstrated benefits of sharing forest resources through empowerment of communities. Joint Forest Management (JFM) is one of the thrust areas of tenth plan of the govt. of India and it is proposed to continue even in XI Plan period. There are estimated 1,70,000 forest fringe villages, which are all to be involved in the management and sustainable development of forest. Till mid 2006 about 1,00,000 JFM committees constituted by about 1,25,000 villagers have been constituted covering an estimated area of over 20 million ha (Planning Commission, 2006). It may be possible to meet the target of 33% forest cover by 2012 in case the MoEF streamlines the procedure to bring all forest fringe villages under the ambit of JFM programme. The Ministry of Environment and Forest provides assistance for afforestation activities through JFM under the centrally sponsored scheme, National Afforestation Programme (NAP) which includes formation of new Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMCs) as its components. However, this strategy is not adopted in some other afforestation programme of the states. JFM needs to be adopted for all afforestation programmes in addition to the National Afforestation Programme (NAP). Community participation in afforestatian with right on the produce will help increasing forest cover and generating income for the participants. The findings of JFM impact studies by Singh et al. (2005) and ICCF/IIFM (2006) suggest that the current strategy of decentralized forest management is not able to ensure active cooperation of the participating communities. In most cases covered by these studies, there is a feeling that JFM continues to be a programme of State Forest Departments which appear satisfied with the number of JFMCs formed and the area covered. There is strong need felt that the design of the programme should be reviewed to ensure democratic participation of the communities, greater empowerment for decision making and proper benefit sharing mechanism to ensure flow of benefits to household so that even the landless persons feel motivated to fully participate in the programme. Proper linkages with Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) for generating a sense of responsible ownership among communities over the forest resources are highly recommended. x) Private Forestry Initiatives: A number of private companies, industrial houses and private individuals with large holdings forest farmers and household with home gardens etc. are now getting involved in raising forest plantations for producing timber, wood fuel, NTFPs, medicinal plants etc. Currently the area of private tree planting covers an area of over 6 million ha. In addition to these there are also other non forest sources of wood, namely rubber, coconut, cashew, mango, jatropha, several woody agricultural bio mass etc. The non forest sources together provide about 50% of total wood supply in the country, and probably an
equal or large share of NTFPs. There are also a large number of small private nurseries, meeting the local demand for tree seedlings. While the Government had dominated the forestry scene for the last 150 years, there is a growing realization now that the private sector should be encouraged to play a greater role than it has hitherto played. It has been widely accepted that there is an urgent need to loosen bureaucratic control and simplify procedures to allow private sectors to contribute more effectively (Saigal et al., 2002). The timber felling and transit rules and regulations need to be further relaxed so that private tree planting becomes attractive and the country becomes self sufficient in wood requirements. xi) Forest Dependency of communities: Forest dependent communities are involved in some cases in an organized manner (through their societies, cooperatives) in collection (also cultivating) and marketing of NTFPs. Most Indian states have special arrangement to support such activities. The Tribal Cooperatives Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) focuses on the economic development of Indias ethnic minorities. Among the economic support system created by TRIFED is a national network for the procurement, processing and marketing of forest produce from tribal areas. TRIFED has established over 5000 single window service centres in traditional tribal markets in the rural areas of the country. These centres serve the tribal communities by procuring their forest and agricultural produce at support prices and acting as primary agencies for the sale of essential commodities and other consumer goods and for extending credit facilities to these communities (Chandrasekharan, 2004). At State level, another example is of the Madhya Pradesh State Minor Forest Produce (Trading and Development) Co-operation Federation Limited (MP-MFPCFL) which is an apex organization, having a number of district MFP cooperative Unions at the intermediate level and many Primary MFP Cooperative Societies at the grass roots level. This case study (Prasad, 2004) brought out that collection and trade of NWFP under the monopoly of MP-MFP-CFL has been found to be better than under private control. The efforts have shown tremendous potential for forest based livelihood of forest dwelling communities. xii) Legal Instruments: Indian Forest Act 1927, continues to be the main guiding legislation for forestry issues. While policies have undergone changes, the legislation has not correspondingly changed. Thus, the laws, rules and regulations relating to forestry are incongruous with policy provisions. The laws focus on prevention of offenses rather than an promotion of development. There is thus an urgent need for formulating a new forest enactment when related rules, regulations and procedures could help (a) to facilitate promotion of institutional autonomy, (b) to remove for participation of the people and private sector in forestry, and (c) to support investment in the sector. Human Resource Development: There is a cadre at policy level. Supervisory professionals categorized as Indian Forest Service Officers are recruited by apex Govt. recruitment agency, Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and trained at Dehra Dun in the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy (IGNFA). For field work implementation there are 3-4 tier professionals, the lowest being the post of Forest Guard with superiors like Foresters/Dy. Rangers and Forest Rangers. This cadre is also called front line foresters responsible for the implementation of Forest working plans and related activities. State service officers called Assistant Conservator of forests (ACFs) are supervisory field officers. Today, the biggest crisis is that of the aging cadre of front line foresters staff with average age above 55 years for over 60% of staff (case of Madhya Pradesh, the largest cadre is referred to, but situations are same in most other states). Although all personnel receive technical forestry training at same stage or the other during their tenure,
xiii)
they lack skills required for social engineering being an important requirement for participatory forestry. Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) has thrown new challenges for information gathering interpretations and decision making. The field foresters are therefore, ill equipped to implement SFM. The emerging areas of forestry such as carbon sequestration and issues connected with climate change; IPR and related issues, forest policy analysis capabilities are some of the important areas in which most forestry professional lack knowledge and skills. xiv) Research and Development: Research on multifaceted forestry issues is an important requirement for SFM. Apart from ICFRE funded by the MoEF with mandate for research in Silviculture, utilization, forest ecology etc. there are a number of other public institutions engaged on different thematic research areas (IIFM, for application of business management principles to forestry, Wild Life Institute of India for management research on PAs). In addition there are several State Forest Research Institutions and Forestry Research setups in the State Forest Departments who carry out R&D on local forestry issues. Further, there are several Universities and Institutions engaged on research in the subjects of biology and socio-economic studies relating to forestry. However, the present situation of the forestry sector is a reflection of lack of significant contribution or major breakthrough made by the forest research institutions. Research is a neglected area of forest sector development. The present research scenario in India is unfortunately very gloomy. ICFRE and its various institutions remain headless for a considerable time (1-3 years). Wild Life Institute of India (WII), Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM) and other institutions under Ministry are supposed to be autonomous institutions but in practice face bureaucratic hurdle commonly seen in other Govt institutions and are not adequately staffed. ICFRE and its institutions require considerable strengthening in terms of qualified research personnel, facilities and infrastructure, and equipment and funds. Problem solving task orientation, participation of clients in research planing, demonstration of research results, dissemination and sharing of research information, networking of research institutions, establishment of technology centres to highlight the do how aspect of research are inter alia the areas requiring special attention. xv) Criteria and Indicators (C&I) For SFM: In conformity with the International thinking on SFM, Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM) took suo-motto initiatives to develop National level Criteria and related Indicators in 1998. A set of 8 criteria and 43 related indicators have been developed under Bhopal-India process. These set of C&I were developed after several rounds of deliberations in the form of local, regional and national workshops. IIFM also joined FAO/UNEP/ITTO/USFS in organizing a Regional meeting of 9 countries of the dry zone forest of Asia to evolve C&I in 1999. Govt. of India received an ITTO sponsored research project to be implemented by IIFM Bhopal on operationalizing C&I though community forestry. It was aimed at field testing the C&I for SFM. A number of publications have resulted from the project. Some lessons have been learned by project staff, but for field foresters it remains to be an academic exercise beyond their comprehension and understanding. National Forestry Action Programme (NFAP): In 1999, MoEF issued the NFAP to cover a period of 20 years (four Five Year Plans from the 10th Plan onwards) starting in 2002. The NFAP projected large gaps between demand and supplies of timber, wood fuel and fodder resources and recommended several strategic action points to reduce the gap. It also tried to diagnose the causative factors for forestry degradation of forestlands. In order to address the above problems and restore the forests of desirable extent and contents the National Forestry Action Programme (NFAP, 1999) proposed 5 strategic action plans: viz.)
xvi)
Protect existing forest resources Improve forest productivity Reduce total demand Strengthen policy and institutional framework. Expand forest area.
NFAP recommended an annual need based target of 3 million ha for regeneration, plantation and agro and social forestry programmes in close collaboration with the local people and stakeholders. It laid emphasis on livelihood based on forest resource management development and use by local people ensuring self-reliance and sustainability.
Some of the main reasons for degradation of forests were as follows: Loss of nearly 4.5 million ha since 1950, mainly for agriculture and diversion for development projects. Per capita forest area is only 0.064 ha, one tenth of the world average of 0.64 ha. The need for increasing forest tree cover from existing 19.39% to 33% of the land area (FSI 1999) The growing stock in Indian forests is 4,740 million cubic meters with a productivity of 0.07 cubic metre/ha/yr. Against world average of 2.1 cu.m/ha/yr. This is mainly due to non-recycling of biomass in forest soil due to fire, grazing, over exploitation. Over 78% of the forest area is subjected to unregulated grazing adversely affecting productivity and regeneration. On an average 51% of the forest area suffers from occasional forest fire. Nearly 10 million ha of forest area is subjected to shifting cultivation. The availability of forest bio mass per capita is only 6 tonnes in India as against an average of 82 tonnes in other developing countries. Land use changes (area under agriculture was 118 in 1950 and now 142 m ha). This diversion has removed buffer community areas adjoining the forest/grass land. There has been very low financial allocation (less than 1%) under plan budgetary outlay to the forestry sector development in spite of forests covering nearly 20% of the country land.
xvii)
Sustained Yield Forestry to Multidisciplinary SFM: In 1795, a German forester, George Hartig, came up with the concept of sustainable yield by which he meant that in order to ensure continuous wood supply over generations, harvest should not exceed growth. This idea formed the backbone of modern forest management in Europe and in North America (ISCI, 1996) and also in India. The principle of sustained yield management, which was the hallmark of scientific forest management, originated from the vision of the pioneers of forestry profession. The sustained yield principle was enshrined in the working plan prescriptions in India, and was essentially for timber harvesting. It essentially meant that the cumulative tree increment should be harvested leaving the capital intact. In other words, harvesting wood at an average rate, which is not greater than the forest in question can regenerate it. However, some environmentalists consider this concept to be narrow and irrelevant to Sustainable Forest Management in a comprehensive sense. They probably overlook the fact that the tree, which is the principal source of timber, is an outcome of ecosystem functioning. In disturbed conditions, the tree may not grow to its full potential. If the trees were managed scientifically and sustainable, the ecosystem would be fully functional. Thus, the sustained yield principle is an
effective proxy for SFM, for optimizing both tangible and intangible values of forests. Sustained yield forestry is influenced by the silvicultural system adopted. The silvicultural system defines the type of operations to be carried out as part of production management of forests. It is a process by which the crop constituting a forest are tended, removed and replaced by new crops, through natural regeneration or through plantation. The choice of silvicultural system under traditional forestry was influenced by the concept of sustained yield. If a forest is to produce sustained yield in perpetuity, it should possess certain characteristics, i.e. normal series of age gradations or age classes, a normal increment and a normal growing stock. Most tropical forests in India worked with the application of silvicutlural systems such as (i) clear felling with natural or artificial regeneration; (ii) selection system; (iii) selection-cum-improvement system; and (iv) coppice system (simple coppice, coppice with standards, coppice with reserves in Central India). All these silvicultural systems were aimed at regenerating and replacing the old growth without constraining the sustained yield principle stipulated in working plan prescriptions. In the 1970s the concept of sustained yield was broadened from basic wood production to the multiple uses of forests such as the production of forest products (timber and NTFPs) provision of recreational opportunities, protection of the environment etc. However, traditional sustained yield management focussed primarily on the production of commodities has proven inadequate to meet the requirements of the present day society for various products, services and other non material benefits. Consequently, not neglecting economic aspects of sustainable forestry SFM have been developed. With an objective to ensure continuous supply of forest products (wood and non-wood) as a theme in forest policies. The general concept of SFM was considered as an important element of sustainable development (S.D.) in the UNCED in 1992. According to the Forest Principles forest resources and lands should be managed sustainably to meet the social, economic, ecological, cultural and spiritual functions as also maintain and enhance biological diversity. Health and vitality of the forest are widely recognized elements of forest policies and management. These are emphasized in many efforts through which countries and organizations seek both political understanding and practical means and ways to sustainably manage all types of forest. These efforts include, among other things, the development and implementation of guidelines, criteria and indicators of sustainable forest management. Though, there is a common understanding of what constitutes the fundamental elements of SFM, descriptions of the concept vary due to differences in perspectives of various stakeholders (Government, forest dwellers, NGOs, academicians, industry etc.) in respect of different economic, social, ecological and cultural environment and conditions in global and regional forestry dialogue.
1.4
SFM Situation, Monitoring, Evaluation and Assessment
Al the time of Rio Earth Summit (1992) there was little technical understanding what SFM means and how it could be practically achieved. Following major research initiatives and discussions throughout the globe, SFM is now a better understood concept. SFM can be broadly defined as a management approach to maintain the full range of forest values ensuring that ecological, socio-cultural and economic needs of the present and future generations can be met from the forest.
1.4.1 Evolving Concept of SFM

SFM has very high positive externalities. If all costs and benefits, direct and in direct, private and social are taken into consideration, SFM is the most efficient, effective and least cost option for management of forest resources. The components of SFM depend on ecological, social and economic conditions. SFM should cover all aspects of forestry, in an appropriately balanced manner. It needs to incorporate natural forest, large plantations, animals, microflora and fauna, water and soil, as well as traditional knowledge and heritage. SFM is specific and practical solutions for translating the concept of sustainability into reality in forestry. SFM in India would involve. Production of wood and non-wood forest products, first of meeting subsistence needs and the surplus for commercial purposes. Protection or setting aside areas to be managed as plantation or wildlife reserves for recreational and environmental purposes. Regulating the conversion of forest lands for n on forestry uses. Regeneration of wastelands and degraded forests.
The current level of forest utilization in the country is unsustainable. In order to control and reverse this trend, it is necessary to work at different fronts (Chandasekharan, 1999). Various approaches to achieve SFM would thus include inventory of resources and bio-prospecting (flora and fauna) to assess the quality and extent of the resource base. Functional and land capability classification of forests and land use planning to ensure healthy and sustainable land use (production, protection, and conservation) systems within acceptable safe minimum standards. Protection of adequate extent of natural forest for their long term contributions, including conservation of bio diversity, wetland values and other externalities and controlling deforestation. Management and utilization of forest resources (wood and non wood products, and environmental and recreational services) for maximizing their sustainable contribution and value addition towards improved welfare of society. Creation of new or expansion and enhancement of existing, forest resources and their intensive and scientific management to meet industrial and commercial needs, particularly through raising of plantations (providing wood and non wood products) an d including waste free and sustainable harvesting and efficient use. Promotion of efforts for producing forest goods and services outside forest areas (e.g. agroforestry plantations, home gardens) and development of potential substitutes for wood from non-forest sources (e.g. rubber wood, coconut wood). Waste reduction and waste recycling programmes Feasible medium for encouraging participation of peoples and the private sector. A proper and realistic system for cost, values and benefits attributable to forestry to ensure a strong ecology-economy interface. Forest management is no longer seen as a timber oriented activity, yet total protection of natural forests in practical terms, for conservation purpose alone is impossible in the region.
The natural forests in most developing countries are inadequately managed. The Forest Resource Assessment (FAO, 1995) further indicated that the growing stock per hectare has increased steadily in almost all developed countries. In developing countries, however, apart from a net loss of forest area and associated stock, there has been a reduction in the quality of growing stock and bio -mass per unit area of the remaining forest. Instead of measures to address the causes of forest depletion, a restriction has been imposed on extraction of timber from natural forests. Without means and proper instruments to implement this decision, the result in several cases has only been a stoppage of investment and scientific management practices. This resulted in deterioration of forests, especially when unrecorded withdrawals/removals are continuing. The major issues in Indian forests. These will also help us to suggest a set of Criteria and Indicators (C & I) for sustainable management of forests in India. 1) Extent of Forest and Tree Cover: Forest resource expansion is possible through plantations. Forest plantations have been initiated to create and to expand the forest resource base, especially to fulfil the needs of the people and as a reliable source of industrial raw material. Forest plantations established under a system of clear felling followed by artificial regeneration, or by afforestation of bare lands, wastelands, grasslands and other degraded lands, have been common in the past.
Plantations can also be seen as a means to conservation of natural forests, because of their several advantages: Plantations supplement production from natural forests, thus, reducing the pressure on the latter. They allow choice of species of desired characteristics for an area. Homogeneity of production is ensured through plantations. Harvesting is less expensive in case of a carefully planned plantation. Vegetation growth and yield can be manipulated using appropriate inputs.
However, plantation forestry involves much larger investments than natural forest management and needs continuous protection and upkeep. Yet, plantations can provide a solution to the resource scarcity faced by the country. The same piece of land may be claimed for many other purposes, as land scarcity is also a major issue here. For making sufficient land available for undertaking plantations the following potential areas can be suggested to supplement the natural regeneration: village common lands degraded private lands margins of roads, railways, canals and tanks vacant lands belonging to schools, offices and hospitals,
By appropriate selection of species and system (mixture of species, rotation, input levels, method of planting and maintenance), it will be possible to raise, need oriented plantations or mixed tree crops in the dry areas through social forestry programmes. Area under tree cover can also be improved by rehabilitating and enriching tree growth in marginal and degraded forest lands, promoting tree plantations in farming
systems, expanding and intensifying agroforestry and homestead forestry, and planting trees in the periphery of urban centres. Expansions of State-forests are constrained due to lack of resources, land and financial allocation. However, private participation (community, individuals and corporate) in sustainable forest development could be a reliable strategy. These efforts could be invigorated by offering different incentives such as (legal and policy, institutional, financial marketing etc). Desertification is becoming a serious threat in the region, and controlling its spread has become a Herculean task. Restriction should be imposed on harvesting of trees from protected (forests, from areas falling beyond a specific degree of slope and other fragile areas like riverbanks, margins of reservoirs, wetland, fragile watersheds, etc. The objective of natural resource conservation and protection of biodiversity can be served at least partially by cultivation of Non Wood Forest Product (NWFP) species and through development of NWPFs in agro-forestry to diversify the resource and economic base. 2) Forest Health and Vitality: The various factors causing damage to the dry forests, and against which protection is required, include pests and diseases and natural causes such as drought and flood. Forest fire, overgrazing and other extractive activities like pilferage, deforestation, encroachment, and shifting cultivation are all anthropogenic factors that are negatively affecting the region' s forests. Insects, pests and diseases assume epidemic proportions when the health and vitality of ecosystem are in a poor condition. The epidemic proportions of Sal (Shorea robusta) heartwood borer, Teak skeletonizer and defoliator are some of the common examples of manifestations of reduced vigour of trees in the degraded forest areas of Central India (Prasad, 1998). Stability of the resource base is very important for sustainable production, especially in the dry region. Improved forest health and vitality can be achieved through rehabilitation and enhancement of degraded lands, as well as through measures to remove or control factors that cause degradation. Forest Resource Productivity: Sustainability and productivity are intricately linked. Productivity has aspect of both quantity and quality (physical scale). There is an urgent need to improve and sustain productivity of the dry forests of the region. These forests have high biological potential, but their present growth and productivity is far below the demand for various reasons. Productivity of forests has to be increased in terms of volume of wood and non-wood products and services, and this increase should be consistent with the environment, as sound basis for long -term development.
3)
A sustainable increase in forest productivity can be achieved by upgrading technology, appropriate silvicultural manipulation of species, rotation and tending schedules and stand improvement operations along with infrastructure development. Each forest management unit needs to be managed to achieve its highest level of efficiency and sustainability in accordance with the main function assigned to it. Dedicated efforts are required to replant the existing, poor quality plantations and to increase quality and productivity. Insufficient land availability may, however, necessitate intensive and integrated land use and development to optimize benefits. Considering increasing population and the consequent heavy pressure on land in the Asian region, there seems no other alternative feasible except intensive forestry, as we can no longer afford to keep productive lands under low levels of production. The management prescriptions also need to be reviewed continuously and improved on the basis of research and new information to increase the level of sustainable yield from the existing and newly created resource base. Proper management planning that is necessary for sustained productivity should
address all relevant issues like halting forest degradation and -waste -free utilization of forest resources. Natural forests need to be managed so that they continue to provide direct and indirect benefits on a sustainable basis. Today, sustainable yield management means: to be ensured that a continuous flow of timber (wood) and nonwood products is available, while supporting biodiversity conservation and other ecological services. Introduction of the quality aspect to productivity yields a different scale of productivity-compared to the one based on physical measures only (Prasad, 1999). 4) Forest Resource Conservation: Forest resource is essentially heterogeneous as it covers soil and water, ecosystems, trees, shrubs, herbs, microflora and wildlife, biodiversity, knowledge about flora and fauna and intellectual property. Hence, conservation extends beyond sustaining productivity, since it highlights the need for air, soil and water conservation, maintaining essential ecological process and life support systems, control of global warming, affording protection of flora and fauna, conserving biodiversity, management of parks and wildlife and much more. The concept of safe minimum standard for resource conservation provides a socially determined demarcation between imperatives to preserve and enhance natural resource systems, and the free play of resource tradeoffs. Soil and water conservation: Soil and water in several parts of the region, particularly in mountain watershed, river valleys, arid areas and ravines lands, have undergone considerable degradation. Deforestation has not only resulted in a fall in forest resource stock and its sustainable level of production, but has also affected the environment in these areas in various ways. This includes soil degradation, fall in agricultural productivity, damage to relatively fragile ecosystems, impoverishment of fish and wildlife population, negative impacts on the quantity and quality of water resources, and deterioration of the microclimate and other environmental services of forests. Forest depletion and consequent soil erosion in the mountainous regions has resulted in the siltation of water reservoirs and in their reduction of storage capacity and hydroelectric generations. Millions of hectares of land in the region is situated in ecologically fragile areas of mountain ranges, valleys and Ghats. Soil and water conservation assumes great importance in these areas. Apart from the economic and industrial plantations, there is a need to promote a massive programme of tree planting on a voluntary basis for environmental amelioration and use of watershed management technology for land rehabilitation and soil conservation. Rehabilitation of degraded lands for soil and water conservation would necessitate the following actions: (b) Control of deforestation Protective afforestation and soil conservation Improvement of marginal lands through tree planting Rejuvenation of soil through supplements and Nitrogen -fixing trees Rehabilitation of saline environment through the introduction of halophytic shrubs Protection of fields from wind through properly -designed wind breaks, shelter belts and row planting Promotion of farm forestry and agro forestry
(a)
Bio Diversity Conservation: It is very difficult to probe beneath the static descriptions of any ecosystem and assess its long-term 'health'. Bio diversity conservation is important to ensure that the underlying components of living
resources i.e. habitat, species and genetic diversity are maintained. Loss of genetic resources accentuated by forest degradation poses a grave threat to food security in the region. Destroying a "Keystone species" triggers off a deadly "domino effect" where other species and genes, along with the entire ecosystem crumble into extinction. These losses close off various little understood options for the future generations. Once genetic resources and their variability are lost, the promises of biotechnology will be aborted. Protection of these resources is an investment for continued life on earth (Umali, 1991). At the national level, it will be difficult to separate the issues of environmental degradation and poverty alleviation. Poor people-faced with marginal environmental conditions will have no choice but to go for immediate economic benefits at the expense of the long-run sustainability of their livelihoods. Creation and Management of Protected Areas (PAs) of all representative ecotypes in the country; lining by corridors of natural or planted forests to extending conservation efforts to all the surrounding areas of P As, man- made forest areas and other areas is of special significance. In the context of NTFP development, conservation of natural forests and their species richness is very important. Many of the plants providing NTFPs are found only in the primary forests of the dry regions. Some of them can only thrive within natural habitat and do not lend themselves to domestication of any sort. Their growth and cultivation in plantations depend heavily on regular infusion of germplasm from the wild gene reservoirs. Only the continued existence of species variability in the wild will allow plant breeders to have a better chance for creating new, disease resistant and high yielding varieties for the future. Thus, the genetic wealth and variability are also crucial for the development of NTFP (F AO, 1996). 5) Forest Resource Utilization: Forest harvesting system in the region should be improved and wastage reduced. Income generation through non-destructive uses of forests should only be promoted. Rational development of NWFP through integrated forest management and agroforestry system carried out in a phased, flexible and socio-economically acceptable manner, can considerably contribute to the welfare of the indigenous communities in the Asian subcontinent. Forestry based small -scale enterprises has considerable potential as a means of improving welfare of the communities.
It is essential to view forest harvesting as a part of a renewal operation and an essential part of management of the resource, and not as deforestation. Some degree of production orientation to harvesting can also promote an integrated and waste -free utilization of the resource. Careful planning is, however, needed at the operational level. Prescriptions for post harvest operations are important to ensure that the sustainability of the resource is maintained. Forest-based processing industries need to have strong backward and forward linkages and, should be capable of addressing the problems of underdevelopment. There may be a need to restructure existing enterprises and to develop new ones to use forest resources as an important means for development. Innovation, residue control, plantation research, transfer of technology are parts of an important instrumental restructuring that would improve efficiency of forest based industries in the region. There may be a need to phase out obsolete mills and non-performing establishments, and to establish new processing units as growth centres. Research and development and a meaningful involvement of local community, with non-subsidy incentive packages are important. Harvesting of NTFPs (from both wild and cultivated sources) is different from
wood harvest, in terms of the use of tools and equipment, technology, pre-harvest preparation and post harvest treatments and requirements of immediate processing. Harvesting is a particularly weak link in the utilization of NTFPs, due to the variety of tools, techniques and situations involved. Sustainable management and utilization of NTFPs as a renewable resource, essential for meeting human needs, demand scientific knowledge, technology, skills and research support. Efficiency in production implies improving productivity, reducing wastes and indirect costs and registering an increase in the economic rate of return through processing and value addition. A code of practice for sustainable forest harvest needs to be developed and waste -free and low impact logging and harvest should be promoted. Research, demonstration and promotion are needed to enhance understanding and to support and encourage efficiency in forest harvesting and processing. 6) Generation of Income And Employment In Forestry: As the pressure on forest will further increase, it may become necessary to commercialize all forests products and services and to develop intensive management at the forest / farm interfaces for increasing production of both agricultural and forests goods. Even in cases where forest areas can be set aside and managed for the local and by the community, each forest area must at least breakeven on costs.
Socio-economic contribution of forests should aim at making the lives of communities living in and near forest area increasingly comfortable. A socio-economic environment needs to be created that would provide conditions perfect and sought by the community including diversity and flexibility in their economic activity. Forestry has tremendous potential to alleviate poverty through the creation of both on-farm and offfarm employment and income (Prasad, 1999 c) Income can be earned as wages in forest plantations. Forest -based growth centres can be created and developed to solve the problems of backward and underdeveloped regions. People can be involved and employed in a chain of activities of seed collection, nursery operations, seeding, sales, plantation and maintenance of trees/plantation, tending operations, infrastructure development, logging and transportation, etc. Harvesting of NTFPs, primary and down stream processing of varying scales and sophistication, etc., also offer immense employment potential for the local people. Simple value addition options for NTFPs carried out at primary collector's level enhances income of gatherers and ensures sustainable harvesting practices (Prasad et al. 1999 a). Forestry activities can be specially planned and organized to benefit rural women and the landless. On farm income, for example, can be generated through tree growing and agro forestry enterprises; and off -farm through forest -based, small scale and cottage level enterprises, developed particularly on NTFP, bamboo, canes and small timber. Forest-related entrepreneurship development requires increase of wood and nonwood forest products. Increased sources also increase employment, incentives, downstream activities and welfare. This will support further expansions of forestry resource base. Wood fuel supply to urban centres also provides year-round employment to land less labourers and marginal farmers. In the absence of other gainful rural employment opportunities to the poor and the tribal, fuel wood head loading offers sustained employment. In many cases, such practices are said to be the main factor leading to forest degradation. Improving biomass supply through agroforestry and its variants can minimize this unnecessary pressure on natural forests.
7)
Forest Policy, Legislation and Institutional Framework: Earlier forest polices tended to consider timber production as primary contribution of forests. During the second half of this century, however, there has been considerable influx of ideas and information that guided a change in policies and instructions. This has been partly due to development of technology and changes in socioeconomic concepts and values. There has been increased acceptance of concepts such as decentralized people's participation, involvement of the private sector, development roles of NGOs, sustainable development, economic efficiency, social equity and environmental conservation.
The forests largely owned and managed by the government with people's involvement in forestry being essentially restricted to homesteads, common land plantations, agro-forestry and farm forestry. Forest policy development and implementation are the responsibility of the government. A formal mechanism should exist for regular revision of the policy in the light of new circumstances or availability of new information. While the whole process of policy development and review/revision calls for a strong and continued political will and commitment, leadership to guide and facilitate the process is equally important. It is important to involve in discussion, all those who are and will be affected by the policy and to obtain their views and opinions on one hand and to provide them clarification and elaboration on the other. The policy should be based on the philosophy of people -based development and forest management should be able to facilitate and benefit from people's participation. The policy imperatives for the country reflect the goals of environmental conservation, economic development and" social progress. Hence, their major and interrelated imperatives are sustainability, efficiency and people's participation. Policy priorities should be decided in a holistic and balanced manner, within the overall context of environment and development. Periodic monitoring of policy measures should be done by an institutionalized mechanism. The legitimate range of interests should be allowed, including those of local inhabitants and efforts should be made to bring about their effective participation in all stages of policy formulation and implementation process. The forest laws, rules and regulation should be reviewed and revised to be in tune with the new forest policies, such that they will act as an instrument to facilitate forestry sector development. Forest laws need to be consolidated and updated and made uniform all over a country. Also, the process of development of forest laws, rules and regulations should be made simple. The changing forestry scenario calls for the assignment of several new roles to the forestry organization. The State Forest Departments need to undergo structural changes and for this it is necessary that organizational structure, linkages, orientation, inter-institutional relationships and mission, are suitably fine- tuned. As emphasized in the World Bank's Forest Policies Paper, the frontier of development in forestry sector is not technology, but institutions and their human capital. Admittedly, technology and technological progress are important, but the desired links of technological changes will not take place without an adequate and supportive institutional environment, opportunity to private and public sector to play important roles, and community participation in development. Substantial restructuring may be necessary to allow for active participation of the private sector, co-operative sector, small farms and NGOs, in forest development. There is a need to create an appropriate business environment in the sector for attracting investment.
Forestry sector should co-ordinate with other important sectors of the national economy to avoid conflicts and to ensure mutually beneficial development. A form of institutionalized participation in operational units should be promoted by giving long term lease or rights to the people, to enable then to join as partners. Enterprise development in the forestry sector should be organized under a system of autonomous and self financed enterprises, which will promote the participation of the private sector, the co-operative sector, the people and NGOs in the functioning of the system. There is a need to strengthen existing forestry education and training by providing adequate facility in terms of trained teaching staff, improved course content and curriculum. There is a need to establish facilities for training trainers and enhancing research guidance capabilities. It is essential to deploy adequately trained people for all technical jobs in the field, such as nursery operations, wild life conservation, forest plantations, agroforestry and related activities etc. Also those with skills in other areas and dimensions should be employed in forestry to enhance overall inter-sectoral abilities. Education and training facilities and resources should be reviewed, rationalized and upgraded periodically to cater to the changing needs of forestry sector. 8) Private Sector Participation: The private sector-comprising community, individual farmers, industrial farms, cooperatives, NGOs etc. have a comparative advantage over the government agencies in managing forestry enterprises. Homestead forestry and agro -forestry have developed as people or private initiatives. For gaining better productivity and self sufficiency, and that too with limited support from the government community organizations have shown their competence in managing seed centres, production of planting materials, establishing forestry plantation and undertaking consultancies (Chandrasekharan, 1999).
However, a number of Government regulations act as dis-incentives and barriers to afforestation of wastelands. These included restriction on species that can be felled from private lands, timber transit rules, etc. These restrictions need to be reduced to the barest minimum. Appropriate incentives, like improved planting material and providing technical information and support could motivate farmers to expand farm forestry. Tree growing is still not a lucrative land use option. The role of trees grown on private lands needs to be viewed from their contribution to amelioration of climate extremes, in carbon sequestration, regulation of run-off and preventing soil wash, and in increasing the supply of tree products to the market. Apart from legal and policy facilitation for tree growing and harvest, financial, infrastructure, and marketing facilitation incentives also need to be provided to motivate private participation in sustainable forestry development. There is a greater need to involve women, disadvantaged groups, tribal communities, local people, private organizations and NGOs in the planning and operation of forestry development programmes. 9) Role of Forestry Research and Technology Development: Technological innovation and development is a strategically important dimension of forestry development and it is to be made possible by research. Forestry in the region critically needs research support to improve productivity, reduce losses and wastage, maximize utilization, to improve quality and value of plantations, for sustainable management of forest resources, improved conservation of genetic resources and wildlife, development of NTFPs and diversification of plantations. Research support is also essential for carrying out basic surveys and studies (e.g. on biodiversity, land sustainability, inventory and bio prospecting), for providing basic technical data (e.g. growth and yield under different management intensities) and for documenting and validating indigenous knowledge. Further,
resource input is essential for producing and supplying improved and certified seeds, for in situ and ex situ conservation of genetic resources and for the transfer of technology to the users. Research input is especially vital for the following areas: homestead forestry/ agroforestry, watershed management, protective and restrictive afforestation, high yield plantations, sustainable NTFP management, wildlife conservation and management, multipurpose forest management, genetic resource conservation and forestry interactions at interfaces with other sectors. Forest policy, forest economics and management are other important areas requiring research support. 10) Public Awareness, Information And Technology Dissemination/ Extension: Public awareness and forestry extension, are closely related aspects aimed at mobilizing willing support and co-operation from the people and for fostering better understanding. Media, exhibitions, fairs/carnivals or other public activities, annual tree planting festivals, incorporating forestry subjects in curriculum of schools and colleges, all these are important for sustaining forest management.
Forestry extension can act as an outreach programme for dissemination of research results and technological innovations at the rural level. Feedback from the rural recipients of extension/ technology aids research institutions in developing and providing them with improved technology. Effective extension support is needed to improve people's tree and conservation consciousness, and improve rural income/employment through forestry related activities. Ultimately, this will increase awareness and efforts to promote the sustainable management of forest resources. 11) Monitoring, Evaluation and Assessment: Realization of ecological, economic and socio- cultural values of forests necessitated the revision of 1952 National Forest Policy. This resulted into NFP of 1988. Flowing from that came the recognition of local community is role in conservation and sustainable development of forests and related national resource management. The government resolution of 01 June 1990 on participatory forest management with programme named as Joint Forest Management (JFM) came as the path breaking forestry initiative. NFP (1988) and JFM (1990) laid strong foundation for SFM. Armed with these positive developments at home, the Indian delegation at Rio earth summit played key role in shaping the Agenda 21 (1992). The call was made for the formation of scientifically sound Criteria, Indicators, and Guideline for moving the management of forests towards sustainability. ITTO had already pioneered the development of Criteria and Indicators(C&I) for SFM of forests in 1991. India being a producer member country of the ITTO, is committed to its year 2000- objective, i.e. to ensure that all timber (also NTFPs) should come from sustainably managed forests. To honour this national commitment and to synchronize Indias SFM efforts with the rest of the world., IIFM took initiative to develop a set of C&I and named it Bhopal India process of SFM in 1998. The set of C&I initially developed were refined in workshops organized at JFM committee levels,, with different State Forest Departments (SFDs) and in forestry and academic institutions . Finally, 8 criteria and 43 indicators (details available at www.iifm.ac.in) were accepted. In 1999, IIFM jointed FAO, UNEP, ITTO and USFS to develop C&I for dry zone Asia (called dry zone asia initiative) participated by 09 counties (India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Srilanka, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, China, Pakistan, Mangolia) This initiative validated the set of C&I developed under Bhopal- India process.
The 8 Criteria and 43 Indicators are applicable at national and State Forest Departments level. These have also been applied at Forest Division level, which is considered as FMU because s working plan is prepared for each Forest Division. Regarding implementation of C&I for SFM it is in the formative stage. IIFM is , implementing a SFM project titled operationalising C&I for sustainable forest development through community participation in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. This is being applied in 8 JFM areas of the two states with respective JFM committees. As an outcome of this project a number of publication containing the workshop proceedings, conceptual text, forestry information, community I responses, forest valuation etc. National Task Force on SFM was constituted b y Govt. of India (4-16/99-FPD, dated 9 Nov.1999) MoEF in 1999. Govt of India accepted the recommendations in 2000. One of the recommendation of the task force was to create a SFM cell in the Ministry. As a follow up of this recommendation, a SFM cell has now been set up in the MoEF vide N o.16-12/2005-54 dated 15/6/2006. As part of ITTO project assignment (consultancy), Prasad (2003) prepared strategy and guidelines for operationalising C&I for SFM with the suitable assistance of ITTO project staff at IIFM in 2003. Similarly a practical guidelines for the assessment, monitoring and reporting at national level C&I for SFM in dry forests in Asia was published by FAO in 2003(FAO/RAP/2003/05). So far these guidelines are yet to be applied in the field despite the fact that JFM is regarded as a reliable strategy towards achieving SFM in India.
ECONOMIC VALUE OF FORESTS/GREEN ACCOUNTING AND NON MARKET VALUATION OF FORESTS

Dr. Ram Prasad, Principal National Consultant
Forests and wild life area natural national wealth or stock. However, unlike many other goods and services, the forest resources may not have a ready market. The use, overuse, misuse, or abuse of such natural resources is a flow towards the welfare of society. Since their use uses adds to the welfare and abuse reduces it, their valuation and accounting on the line of capital formation is necessary to understand the state of welfare of the nation. Forest has very high resource inter connection and the dynamics of an economic system is heavily dependent on forest conditions. It is therefore logical to assume that SFM will have very strong influence on national economy. Economic valuation of forests is not an academic exercise but its is also a tool to asses the land forests for t heir contribution to national economy as an alternative land use option. In view of competing land use practices forests occupying about th of the total land area it is always a question as to what is the total contribution of forests to the GDP. This information if available can make a case for the quantum of investment in this sector. Often, the Forest Departments are complaining about poor allocation to forestry sector as planning commission of the Govt. of India reckons only the revenue realized from harvesting of timber and non timber forest products. The forest services and their interconnection to the other economic sector is of not taken into account. Despite making considerable contribution to the ecology, economic and socio-cultural development of the country, the forests hardly get due recognition of their contribution in national income (GNP) The value of forest reflected in the System of National Accounts (SNA) represents less than 10% of the real value. In 2002-2003 forests contributed INR 270,130 million to Indias GDP at the current prices, which was 1.2% of the total GDP. The contribution of forest to Indias GDP has varied from 1.0-1.5% over the Nine Year period from 1993-94 to 2002-2003. Similarly the contribution of forestry and logging to Indias Net Domestic Product (NDP) also varied from 1.6 1.3% during the same period. The current approach for accounting of forestry sector contribution to GDP grossly under estimates its contribution to the national economy as many tangible benefits are underestimated through some thumb rules have been used by central statistical organization (CSO) to consider value of unrecorded benefits like timber, fuel wood, fodder etc. But ecological services are completely ignored on account of lack of markets available for them. In order to assess the total economic valuation makes sense so as to provide the sector its due recognition and to receive adequate compensation in case of forest degradation. In a study done by Chopra et. Al. (2002) the forest wealth of India was valued at INR 259845.30 million. Net of repairs, maintenance and other operational costs, the gross domestic product from the forestry sector came to INR 230034.30 million of the gross value, some 52.21% was out put of fuel wood, 9.27% was industrial wood, 15.91% was NTFPs Eco-tourism and Carbon sequestration accounted for 13.85% and 6.7% respectively. This study tried to correct the CSOs estimate of 1.2% of GDP between 1996-97 - 1993-94) to 2.37%. However even this assessment has been found to be an underestimation. In an earlier study Verma (2000) assessed the forestry contribution to the state economy of Himachal Pradesh, a mountainous state. This assignment was part of DFIDIndia assisted forestry project. The total economic value o (TEV) of multiple contribution of forests to the economy of Himachal Pradesh was arrived at INR 1066,640 million. Total Direct benefits as INR 98,9240 million. Thus, forests contribution was assessed to
be 92.40% of the total gross state domestic products. (GSDP) This study had followed the methodological frame work suggested by FAO (1995) in which the direct values associated with consumptive uses and non consumptive uses were taken into account. Indirect values such as watershed function, soil protection, gas exchange and carbon sequestration, bio diversity values, soil productivity etc were suggested for their inclusion in the study. Some intrinsic values were also suggested for consideration. Another study was done by Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR) Mumbai in 1999 for Maharashtra Forests. According to this study in 1993 the value of timber, fuel wood and NTFP was calculated to be INR 35,000 Million as against the estimate of INR 14000 million reported in the conventional system of National Accounts (SNA). According to the IGIDR (1999) report forests of Maharashtra contributed some 3.56% to state GDP earlier estimates of 1.46% of National System of Domestic Product Calculation (NSDP).
1.1
The Value of Forests including the unrecorded value of Removals
On account of absence of any frame work of natural resources accounting, the present system of income accounting in Forestry sector only takes note of contributions such as recorded removals of industrial wood, fuel wood and certain category of NTFPs. That too, only recorded removals are taken into account leaving large amount of unrecorded removals for which no valuation and accounting is done. Ecological services such as watershed benefits, eco tourism value of bio diversity and habitat etc are not taken into account. In India forests meet nearly 40% of the energy needs of the country of which more than 80% is utilized in the rural areas and about 30% of fodder needs of the Countrys total livestock population. In addition, a range of non timber products are collected by forest dwellers partly for their own consumption and partly sell in the market for cash income. Land less labourers and marginal farmers also get gainful employment in a number of forestry activities. IN forested areas where agriculture is of marginal consequence, forestry engage the surplus labour force and this in many cases help in reducing migration of population to other areas it is estimated that about 270 million tones of fuel wood, 280 million tones of fodder, over 12 million cubic metre of timber and a range of NTFPs, several hundred thousand tones are removed from forests annually. At a conservative level of pricing (Say INR 500/t fuel and fodder and INR 5000/t NTFPs) the direct market value of these commodities will approximately aggregate to over INR 300,000 million per annum MoEF, 1999) This figure however, does not consider the huge unrecorded removals of NTFPs for subsistence need, and other good and services (watershed benefits, eco-tourism, carbon sequestration and other ecosystem services. If all the direct and indirect contributions from India forests are quantified, the standing forests of India accounting to the estimates made by Down To Earth (2005) be worth INR 59201.902 billion As a matter of fact in the current system of National Economic Account, there exists insufficient accounting of tangible benefits, non recording of intangible benefits, non recording of unauthorized extraction, insufficient recordings of losses in the forests. Above all there is lack of system of flow and stock accounting system. For reflecting true contribution of forest of India its National Income such that proper budget allocation can be made in relation to its consideration it is imperative to value such contributions and set up an integrated system Economic and Environmental Accounting of forests of India.
1.2
Issues relating to Forest Resources Accounting
The estimation of Gross Value added from the Forestry and logging sector is presently carried out by the production approach. It aims at estimating the value of output at factor costing the first instance and then deducting the value of various inputs in the present system are as follows. Forestry operations: gathering etc. Regeneration, planting, conservation forest product
Logging: Harvesting, transport, sale depot, handling etc. Farm wood: Industrial wood and fuel wood collected by primary producers.
Central statistical organization of Govt. of India is mandated to collect data from the State Forest Department on a financial year basis. However, this data is based on authorized or recorded removal and a substantial quantity of production as unrecorded removal goes unnoticed. Further due to various limitations and inadequacies, the data on unrecorded removal (fuel wood, grazing, NTFPs, Poles, bamboo) is not reliable. Most studies carried out by Forest survey of India (FSI), State Forest Research Institutes, State Forest Departments, IIRM and several NGOs were based on samples lacking scientific rigor. Currently the data available from the state forest department on production and prices suffer from other limitations as well. One such limitation is that species wise production and prices are often lacking. Forest timber in the country has a lot of variability with regard to their quantity and the prices. Depending upon the climatic conditions and other factors, trees of same species may have variable market prices on account of varying site quality.
1.3
a)
Limitations of Existing System of Forest Resource Accounting

Under estimation of the true contribution: The value of forest reflected in the System of National Accounts (SNA) less than 10% of the real values. The under valuation of material goods alone from the forests of India is reflected in their estimated (real) value of about US $43.8 billion, compared to forestry recorded share of GNP of US $ 2.9 billion representing only about 1.3% of the total GNP. The difference (between the estimated and recorded contribution) will increase further if an imputed value is assigned for the contribution of the forests to the society, mostly in terms of ecological service provided. Inadequacy of the System of National Accounts (SNA): This accounting system treats the cultivated forests and natural forests quite differently. For cultivated forests (Plantations) the SNA records both production and changes in the forests stock so that, consequences of depletion or reforestation are accounted. For natural forest, however, the SNA records only the income from logging but not changes in natural forests from over exploitation would be recorded as part of GDP but the corresponding depletion of forest stocks (the economic equivalent of depletion) would not be recorded. Similarly the benefits from afforestation would not be recorded as capital formation. This approach is bound to give misleading economic signals. Non cognizance of Intermediate and Environmental Service: Most of the non marketed services from forests, on the other hand, are either omitted or wrongly attributed to other sectors of economy. Forest services provide intermediate inputs to other sectors such as livestock grazing, agriculture and tourism but the value of these services is not recognized and hence, is attributed to the using sector, not to forestry. Ecosystem services such as watershed
b)
c)
protection and Carbon sequestration may not be represented at all. Thus the total benefits from forestry are being under estimated and other sectors of the economy are not fully aware of their dependence on healthy forests. Recognizing the need for a realistic valuation of forest benefits and costs, an appropriate accounting frame work for integrating Forest Resource Accounts (FRA) into the National Income Accounts (NIA) is needed. Sustainable Forest Management is being gradually realized as the most potential strategy for sustainable development. However, there are two major constraints on SFM implementation. One these are high cost of information generation and usage, and the second the gap between current practices and SFM. Forest Resource Accounting helps to keep down the costs of information usage by focusing on what is essential i.e., the information which is required to set, achieve and review forest policy and management goals. This helps bridge the gap between current and improved practices in a step by step practical manner. A well developed FRA system would be base for many decisions making policy objectives.
(Madhu Verma, CVRS Vijaya Kumar, B.R. Phukgan, Akhilesh Yadav and Statistical accounting of land and forest resources Atann Raxshit, 2006 workshop at IIFM 28-29 April 2006.
References
Chandrasekharan, C. (1999). Some Thoughts about forest productivity and Sustainable Forest Management with particular reference to India. Paper presented in Natt. Tech. Workshop on Evolving C&I for SFM in India . 21-23 Jan 1999 IIFM, Bhopal. Chandrasekharan, C. (2004). Sustainable Forest Management: Issues Arising from Private Sector Experiences Regional Report for Asia Pacific Region. Presented at the Malaysia / ITTO International Conference on Sustainable Management of Tropical Forests Private Sector Experiences, 13-15 April 2002 Kuala Lumpiur Malaysia. FAO (1993a.). The Challenges of Sustainable Forest Management: What Future for the Worlds Forests. FAO (1993). Forestry Policies of Selected Countries in Asia and the Pacific. FAO Forestry Paper 115. FAO (1995). Forest Resource Assessment 1990: Global Synthesis, FAO Forestry Paper 124 FAO, Rome. Gadgil, Madhav and Guha, Ramchandra (1992). This Fissured Land An Ecological History of India. Oxford University Press Delhi. ITTO (2000). Annual review and assessment of the World Timber situation ITTO, Yokohoma, Japan. Kaushal, K.K. and J.C. Kala (2004). Applying the sustainable livelihood approach to Joint Forest Management Projects in India. International Forestry Review b (1): 13-18. MoEF (1990). Govt. Resolution on Joint Forest Management, Ministry of Environment and Forest New Delhi, 1 June 1990. MoEF (1999). National Forestry Action Programme, India, Min. Environment Forest (MoEF) Govt. of India, New Delhi Vol I & II. Planning Commission (2006). Mid term Appraisal of Tenth Five Year Plan. Pt. I Priority Areas for Action Planning Commission, Govt. of India, New Delhi. Prasad, R. and P. Bhatnagar (1991). Socio Economic Potential of MFP in Madhya Pradesh (SFRI, Jabalpur) M.P. INDIA Rao, V.S. Sagaraiya, K.P. Bhadran, C.A.R. and Venkatramany, P. (1961). (Eds.) Hundred Years of Indian Forestry F.R.I . Dehradun 1992.
AN OVERVIEW OF THE POLICY DEVELOPMENT IN INDIAN FORESTRY FOR SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT

A.K. Mukerji 1. INTRODUCTION
Sustainability of forest management is an essential component of the environmental conservation efforts and any degradation of forests will have an adverse impact on various systems such as water resources, agriculture, biodiversity, environment, climate and human health besides the subsistence living of tribals and other communities living in and around forest areas. Forests provide direct benefit to the people in terms of timber, bamboo, fuel, fodder, grass, medicinal plants, food, resins, dyes, tannins, and host of other materials for local and national needs. Moreover, the functions of forests with respect to conservation of soil, water and biodiversity are vital for the welfare of present and future generations. India is the largest democracy in the world having the seventh biggest geographical area (328.72 million ha) and second largest population (+ 1000 million). It has 29 states and 6 union territories. It has a Union Government having its center at New Delhi. There is much diversity in geographical features; towering Himalayas in the north; Thar desert, Aravalli hills and semiarid plains in the west; Vindhyachal mountains in the center; Deccan plateau in the south; Western and Eastern Ghats with coastal plains to the east and west and the north-east region with a large variety of ecosystems. India is one of 17 mega diversity countries in the world having vast variety of flora and fauna, commanding 8% of Worlds biodiversity and supports 16 major forest types, varying from Himalayan Alpine pasture and temperature forest, sub-tropical forest, tropical evergreen to mangroves in the coastal areas etc. India also has two biodiversity hot spots in the northeastern states and the Western Ghats. Having about 2.5% of worlds geographic and 1.8% of forest area, India at present is supporting 16% of planets human population (1000 million) and 18% of domestic animal population (around 470 million). About 41% of forest cover of the country is degraded and dense forests are losing its crown density and productivity continuously. A large number of Indias livestock population graze in forests causing serious damage to regeneration and productivity. The use of forests beyond its carrying capacity and encroachments are the main cause of continuous degradation of forests. At present 70% forests have deficient natural regeneration and 55% are prone to fire (FSI1999).
2.0 2.1
FORESTS OF INDIA Present Status:
At the time of independence (1947), government owned recorded forest area was around 40m.ha., but by mid-1970, it reached the level of 77 m.ha. (23.42% of the geographical areas of the country) due to take over of forests of erstwhile princely states zamindari forests and areas under land ceiling Acts in the states. These newly acquired areas were mostly unmanaged and degraded and were notified as protected forests by the state governments in the period of 1950 to 1970.
However, by 1980, nearly 4.5 million of forests were also diverted to agriculture and other uses. The present ground situation as revealed in the Forest Survey of Indias Report of 2003 indicates that the country now has only 67.83 m.ha. of forest cover i.e.20.64% of the land area against the Forest Policy requirement of 33%. Out of this, 51.28 m.ha. [1.56%] is very dense forest (70% and up density), 33.39 m.ha.of moderately dense [10.32%] forests [40 to 70% density], and 28.78 m. ha. [8.67%] of open forests. Moreover, there are 4.02m.ha. [1.23%] of shrub forests bringing the total to 71.80 m. ha. or 21.87% of the geographical area of the country. Moreover, nearly 10 m. ha area is under tree cover outside the recorded forest area thus the total forest and tree cover comes to 77.83 m. ha. or 23.68% of the land area of the country. The report also indicates that though over the last few years the forest cover has stabilised, but the matter of concern is the rapid loss of good forest cover in the northeastern states, which comprise on of the 18 biodiversity hot spots in the world.
2.2
Reasons for Degradation
Indian forests are under severe pressure for meeting growing demand for fuel, fodder, grazing, timber and non-wood forest products from ever growing human and livestock population and industrial needs. Some of the important issues requiring attention for initiating remedial measures are as under: Loss of nearly 4.5 million ha since 1950 for agriculture and other uses. Per capita forest area is only 0.064 ha. Against world average of 0.64 ha. (FAO) i.e. only 1 /10th .of the world average. The growing stock in Indian forests/tree cover is estimated at 6414 million cubic meters [4782 in forest and 1632 outside] i.e. 61.72 cum. Per ha. [FSI-2003] with only 0.7 cubic meter/ha/year productivity against world average of 2.1 cubic meter/ha/year. This is mainly due to non-recycling of biomass in forest soil, fire, grazing, over-exploitation etc. 78% of the forest area is subjected to heavy grazing adversely effecting productivity and regeneration. On an average, 51% of the forest area suffers from occasional forest fire. Nearly 10 m.ha. of forest area is subjected to shifting cultivation. Land use changes (Area under agriculture was 118 million ha in 1950 and now 142 m. ha.). This diversion has removed the buffer community areas for fuel, fodder etc adjoining the forest / grassland. There has been a very low allocation (less than 1%) under plan, to the forestry sector development in-spite of forest covering nearly 23 % of the land area of the country.
2.3
Demand Supply Scenario
Due to rapid increase in human population from 390 million (1950) to 1 Billion in 2001 and domestic animals from 350 million to 470 million in the same period, the demand supply gap for fuel wood, construction and industrial timber, fodder and nonwood forest products is rapidly increasing leading to over harvesting and degradation of ecosystem. The Forest Survey of India (1966) indicated following demand-supply scenario:
Table 1A: Demand supply scenario of Fuel wood (in million tones)
Area 1996 Rural Urban Industry etc. Total Note: ii) 152 10 39 201 Demand 2001 169 11 40 220 2006 187 12 42 241 46.0 (Degraded lands and forests) 40.0 (Private) 16.0 (Home garden) 172.5 Supply (1995)
i) Supply is based on study by Rabindranath and Hall- 1995 The gap in 2001 of 47.5 million tones is mostly met by over exploitation of forests beyond its productive capacity leading to degradation of growing stock. It will grow to 69.5 million tones by 2006.
iii) The study group of Planning Commission (1985) had projected demand of 343 MT for 1996 and 394 MT in 2001. iv) NFAP (1996) indicates demand at 223 MT (1996) and 247 MT (2006) but availability at 115 MT and gap at 86 MT. v) Fuel wood is mostly gathered (85%) and hence is free from local use and is preferred to alternate fuels in rural area. It is a non-monetized commodity and subject to overuse.
Table 1b: Demand-supply scenario of Timber (in million cubic meters).

Demand 1996 A. B. i) Household, Housing, Agriculture, Furniture, Packaging etc. ii) Industrial wood, Paper pulp, Plywood, Match etc. Total Note: i) ii) iii) iv) 54.4 10.0 64.4 2001 60.4 12.6 73.0 2006 66.6 15.2 81.8 12 (Forest) 31 (Farm forestry & Forest plantation) 172.5
Area
Supply (1995)
In domestic sector, the rural requirement is around 70% of the total requirement. Future availability is estimated as 51% from forests and plantation and 49% from private and social forestry. The gap of 21 million cu.m. in 1996 and 30 million cu.m in 2001 will grow due to growing demand. NFAP indicates the demand to grow to 73 million cu.m in 2001 and 81 million cu.m in 2006. Consequently the gap will grow rapidly in future unless large-scale regeneration operations and plantations (social and agro-forestry as well as forest corporations) are taken up over the next 20 years as proposed in NFAP. The growing shortage especially in industrial sector is being met through import since 1985 of raw material or finished products like logs, pulp, paper, plywood, etc. amounting to nearly Rs.9000/- crores during the year 2000-2001.
v)
Table 1c: Demand-scenario of Dry and Green Fodder (in million tones)
Organisation A. Demand Dry Green Supply Dry Green Dry Gap Green
National Commission Of Agriculture (1976) Estimate:a) 2000 373 590 357 575 16 15
B.
Committee on Fodder and Grass (1985) -Planning Commission a) b) 1995 2000 890 949 1064 1136
C.
Forest Survey of India (FSI) - 1996 a) b) 2001 2006 552 615 699 817 435 534 117 165
D.
Grass and Fodder Research Institute, Ranchi a) b) c) 1999 2001 2003 524.0 531.6 439.7 943.3 956.9 970.7 521.1 530.0 539.7 430.3 432.0 433.6 3 6 Nil 513.0 524.9 537.1
Note: i)
It is estimated that 30% of all supplies comes from forest area through lopping and grazing (NFAP). This again is a non-monetized free supply and is being over utilized. The gap in green fodder is obviously being met from lopping and grazing in forest and community lands much beyond their carrying capacity leading to severe soil erosion and ecological degradation of a very important productive natural resource system. There is no adequate provision in Animal Husbandry or Agriculture department to meet the growing gap especially for green fodder. From the above data, it is also clear that forest and grazing land both in government and community areas are subjected to unsustainable biomass withdrawals leading to rapid degradation both of the growing stock and soil fertility. This is a matter of serious concern, as these areas are the main source of biological diversity, wildlife habitat and various types of natural ecosystems, which are the base for all life support systems, especially in rural India.
ii)
iii) iv)
The demand supply scenario brought out in these tables clearly indicated the urgent need for initiating an effective policy and programme for a new people oriented forest management approach for regenerating and sustainable use of forests.
3.0 3.1
MANAGEMENT AND POLICY INITIATIVES Pre-Independence
The foundation of scientific and organized forestry was laid when Sir Dietrich Brandis, a German forester was appointed as the first Inspector general of Forests of India in 1864 and passing of the First Indian Forest Act in 1865. It was revised in 1878 and finally in 1927 [still in operation] which provided for formation of the Reserved and Protected Forest followed by forest settlement to record the rights of the local people. Dr Brandis also laid down the basic principle for sustainable forest management to be followed in all working plans i.e. Removal of less than the incremental growth from any forest area to ensure improvement in the forest growing stock.
The first Forest Policy was adopted by Govt. of India resolution of 19th October 1894. The main thrust areas were I) to ensure maintenance of adequate forest cover for general well being of the country. II) Meeting needs of local people. III) After meeting local needs maximum revenue collection and IV) Permanent cultivation to have priority over forestry for land. The last provision resulted in large scale clearing of forestland for agriculture and other purposes. Preparation of Working Plan for forest management was initiated in 1884 for ensuring sustainable harvesting of timber within the limits of annual incremental growth followed by regeneration operations and protection. A comprehensive Forest Act was passed in 1927, which is still in force. Forestry Research was put on firm footing by establishment of the Forest research Institute (FRI) in Dehradun in 1906 and training was organized in India with opening of the Indian Forest College in 1932. In 1935, management of forests was transferred to states.
3.2
Post-Independence
An independent India saw a lot of new political initiatives when large forest areas of princely states and zamindaris were taken over by states. The growing demand for forest produce and land called for a new approach leading to adoption of the Forest Policy of 1952. It was considered as the most comprehensive policy in the world at that time. It also provided for intrinsic right of land for a minimum forest cover and recommended that 33% of the total land area of the country should be brought under Forest or tree cover. It also provided detailed guidelines for management and protection of forests and wildlife. In 1972, The National Commission on Agriculture recommended raising of large scale plantations on degraded forest areas and through social forestry in community and private lands to meet the growing gap in timber and firewood requirement. It also suggested formation of Forest Corporations to use bank finance (NABARD) at 7% interest. States established Forest Development Corporations and raised nearly 1 million hectares of plantation. Since mid-1980s, their activities have come down to a very low level due to criticism of raising monocultures in miscellaneous degraded forest as well as due to NABARD loan, being at 14% interest, which was too high for forestry plantations with a minimum maturity period of 8-10 years. However, with international fund assistance and as part of rural development program in the VIIth five year plan the NCAs recommendation on social forestry led to initiation of large scale projects in 1980 onwards. In 1976, by 42nd amendment in the constitution Forest was brought under concurrent list followed by the enactment of the Forest (Conservation) Act in 1980 (amended in 1988). This made it mandatory for the states to take prior approval of the Ministry of Environment and Forests in Government of India before diversion of any forestland for non-forestry purpose. This had a salutary effect as the diversion, which was on average level of 150 thousands ha a year due to indiscriminate transfer by states from 1950 to 1980 (4.5 million ha.) came down sharply. During the last 5 years, it is now at 15000 ha. annual level and that too with provision for compensatory afforestation preferably in a non-forest area. In 1985, the subject of Forestry and Wildlife was shifted from Ministry of Agriculture to a new Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF) to ensure a more focused attention to emerging forestry issues. An autonomous body, National Wasteland Board (NWDB) was also set up in the MOEF in 1985 with a mandate to regenerate degraded forest as well as non-forest wastelands in the country with the active involvement of the people and the stakeholders. However, it was bifurcated in 1992 with MOEF retaining the mandate of regenerating forest areas under the National
Afforestation and Eco-development Board (NAEB) and the NWDB was transferred to the newly created Ministry of Rural Development with the mandate of regenerating non-forest wastelands in the country. In 1988, the new Forest Policy was adopted, which covers all the sustainable management approaches subsequently provided in the 1992 Rio adoption Forest Principles. This new policy had a few unique features in its main objectives i.e. i) ii) iii) iv) v) Maintenance of Environmental stability and restoration of ecological balance, soil and water conservation. Conservation of natural heritage and genetic resources. Increasing substantially forest/tree cover (33% of land mass and 66% in hills) Increasing productivity of forest to meet first the local and then national needs Creating massive peoples movement to increase and protect forest and tree cover to achieve the main objective to reduce pressure on existing forests and meeting peoples need sustainably. Deriving economic benefit must be subordinated to these principal aims. It again laid emphasis on bringing 33% of countries land under forest/tree cover.
vi) vii)
4.0
THE NEW APPROACH OF PARTICIPATORY MANAGEMENT OR JOINT FOREST MANAGEMENT
Till mid 1970s Foresters had followed the traditional system of management with little interaction with local people, (except meeting their recorded rights and involvement in fire fighting) and urban opinion makers. However due to rapid rise in human and livestock population the demand for forest produce increased dramatically specially for fuel, fodder, non wood forest products etc which were not part of the old timber oriented management practice. It also resulted in excessive harvesting of fuel and fodder as well as damage through grazing and fire as people had to meet their sustenance needs. This created conflict between people and the foresters following the old custodial approach for management. For years some foresters, ecologists and social scientists have maintained that degraded natural forests in India could regenerate rapidly and could experience significant increase in biomass and biodiversity if strategically protected. Communities living in or around natural forests could protect them if clearly authorized by the government, providing the economic returns would compensate them for their lost opportunity costs. As such attempts were made in West Bengal (Arabari) Himachal Pradesh (Dhauladhar) Orissa and few other states in 1970s to involve people in forest protection management as well as in sharing of forest produce. Recent experience with such programs from a number of Indian states demonstrate that forest departments (FDs) can successfully develop management agreements with communities which benefit both parties and result in rapid increase in biomass, genetic diversity, forest productivity and more equitable distribution. The first policy level decision was taken in the resolution passed in the meeting of the XXII. Central Board of Forestry (CBF) held in December 1987. The Prime Minister in his Chairmans address stressed the need for effective peoples participation in forest protection and management. This was also reflected in the Resolution No. 25 which reads as under: This meeting resolves that by 31.3.90 every village will have a plan for regeneration of forests and the restoration of ecological balance. This plan will
be drawn up and implemented with full participation of village panchayats or other such bodies. This also got incorporated in the basic objectives of the National Forest Policy of 1988, which emphasized the creation of massive peoples movement, with involvement of women for achieving the policy goals. Some of the states (Bengal, Tamilnadu etc.) in 1989 suggested in their proposals for agenda for the XXIII th CBF meeting that the local people joining such a participatory management process should also get a share of the net sale value of the final harvest. According Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India issued order of 1.6.1990 by the clearly laid down the procedure for peoples involvement in forest conservation and management through establishment of appropriate village level organization under a proper scheme. It also laid emphasis on the procedure of sharing of usufructs and the net sale proceeds on the lines already adopted in West Bengal. All the states have issued resolutions (JFM cell MOEF) laying ground rules for placing degraded forest under joint forest management (JFM) system and arrangement for sharing of usufructs and net sale proceeds between the forest department and the local people organized in the form of a village Forest Development Committee (FDC) or FPC or VDC etc as they are locally called. It is reported that as on 31st March 2005, 99,868 such committees [13.8 million fafilies] have been formed in these states covering 21.44 sq. km of degraded forestlands in the country [NAEB data] At this rate it is possible that by the year 2010 AD nearly 20 million ha.of degraded forests may come under JFM program. Moreover, in view of recommendations of the standing committee on JFM MOEF issued a supporting circular on 21st February 2002 for strengthening the JFM programme in the country. The main features are: i) ii) Providing legal status through registration of JFM committees under Societies Registration Act of 1860. Women should constitute 50% of the membership of the general body and atleast 33% of the JFM Executive committee. A woman must hold one post either of President, vice-president or Secretary. JFM may also now cover good forest area (40% crown density and up) upto 100 ha and within 2km of the village in each case. The normal working plan should have a JFM overlapping working circle with flexible guidelines for preparation of JFM micro-plans covering both good and degraded forests. It provided for setting up of district level JFM conflict resolution working groups.
iii) iv)
v)
5.0
5.1
THE WAY AHEAD

In 1996-1999, MOEF undertook the task of preparation of the National Forest Action Programme (NFAP) for a period of 20 years (4 five years plans from 10th Plan onwards). This was also presented to the donor agencies for assistance in the year 1999. This should also form the basis for the X th Plan proposals. It recommends an annual need based target of 3 million ha.for regeneration plantation, agro and social forestry programmes. However unfortunately even under the Xth plan the fund allocation was only sufficient for covering only around one million ha per annum through forestry and social forestry
programmes. Substeantial increase of resources will be needed under the xith plan [2007- 20012] to meet the NFAP goals. 5.2 In the year 2000-2001, a new pilot scheme of undertaking the integrated village afforestation and eco-development under a new set up named Forest Development Agency (FDA), each covering a group of JFM committees in a forest division, was initiated with the long range objective to cover, through forest development activities, all available areas in and around nearly 1.7 million villages, which are situated close to forests and where people are largely dependent on forest resources for sustenance. The basic objectives of the scheme, which will cover all the above villages in a phased manner are: i) ii) iii) iv) v) Arrest and reverse the trend of forest degradation Provide sustainable, assured employment opportunities to tribals and other weaker section of the society Create durable community assets for socio-economic development Involve the village community to participate in planning and execution of all works. Create an effective mechanism in order to ensure that all government departments reach the beneficiaries for various development programmes using the medium of FDA.
This will ensure co-ordination amongst all development departments and projects for an integrated planning and execution on the pattern of the District Rural Development Authority (DRDA). The participatory management or JFM approach elevates the local people from being receivers of some benefits from forest area to the level of co-managers along with the forest personnel of a designated area of forest. It also ensures equitable benefit sharing of the usufruct as well as the financial returns from timber harvest. It also brought to focus the need for development of modified silvicultural systems and flexible management approach for ensuring local need based and sustainable multiproduct output from the previously degraded forest area. And better NWFP yield from good forest areas. There is an urgent need for propagating this new and major shift from the contemporary timber oriented and custodial forestry practices to a more socially and environmentally as well as local people friendly approach of a micro planning and management. It also calls for a holistic trade off between ecological and economical benefits from forests. This requires a rapid attitudinal change on part of both forest personnel and local villagers for giving up the feeling of antagonism. They must work as member of a team and as partners with the common goal of conserving and enhancing the forest resources for its sustainable use by the society in general and local people in particular. 5.3 The focal issues deserving immediate attention are as under: i) Different states have formed different criteria for formation of the village level committees, executive committees and womens participation. It is necessary to bring them on a common pattern with mandatory provision of at least 33% representation of women in the executive committees (in line with panchayats). Large scale grass-root level training has to be organized for field level forest staff, local village leaders and NGOs about capacity building and for
ii)
assuming the added responsibility in adoption of participatory approach. There is need to develop the basic skills of silviculture, technical details of raising of nursery with certified seed or genetically superior seedlings, cultural operations which favour non wood forest product growth, nondestructive harvesting technology for NWFPS, soil and water conservation etc. It will require research support and assimilation of the local knowledge in close collaboration with the people. iii) Developments of proper guidelines for a PRA approach for resources and need assessment will go a long way in preparation of need based microplans by using GIS based large scale maps along with implementation schedule, possible silvicultural options for multiproduct management. The cross-sectoral linkages will be essential with other developmental activities like agriculture, animal husbandry, rural development etc. The maintenance of records of technical operation, yield of NWFPS, fuel wood and timber etc. and its distribution should become an essential part of JFM activities. It would be necessary to develop skills of local leaders and staff to ensure equity in distribution of benefits amongst local people, for community development works, conflict resolution as well as maintenance of proper accounts of receipt and expenditure both of government funds and locally raised resources and share of sale proceeds from the working of the JFM forest area. Once the training and human resource development process has been completed adequate administrative and financial power along with necessary funds should be given to the village level committees for ensuring smooth work of JFM. Joint forest management is a process aimed at regenerating/reviving the degraded and semi degraded forests with the help of the community. Naturally it is expected that these effort will lead to development of a forest system, which will be as close as possible to natural forests suited to that eco-system. In this effort, JFM will help not only in the production of fodder, NWFP and fuel wood but also of timber required for construction and other forest based industries. As such if promoted on correct lines this could form a viable option for meeting the national requirements of timber at the same time to ensure economic return for the local community. In due course JFM approach may also cover all good forest areas where people have rights like in tribal areas and the forests are situated within 5 km of walking distance from the concerned village. However, in such areas microplan though favoring better production of NWFPs should not aim at changing the silvicultural rotation of the main tree species for quick financial gains. Proper institutional set up and standards will have to be developed for monitoring and evaluation of JFM units, for ensuring effective functioning. There is need to develop special approach for joint management of National Parks and Sanctuaries where usufruct sharing may not be possible, but benefits from eco-tourism can be shared. Similarly a new approach is also necessary for managing forests of community and clan ownership in N. Eastern states.
iv)
v)
vi)
vii)
viii)
ix) x)
6.0 6.1
CONCLUSION Joint Forest Management: A New Hope For Sustainable Forestry
Participatory forest management (also referred to as Joint Forest Management (JFM), of forests offers new hope for communities most directly dependent upon forest lands for their multiple benefits. Exciting beginnings have been made in a number of states. Local forest protection committees are proliferating; some spontaneously others with the encouragement and assistance of forest department field staff and NGOs. 6.2 Forest Departments now have a challenge to reorient their perspectives, to shift from being forest managers to community facilitators. They will need to develope and effectively adopt more flexible planning processes, which are truly participatory and at the same time completely integrated into their overall working plan system. Innovative silvicultural systems to maximize benefits from multiple uses, will need to be evolved with the input of traditional knowledge and increased understanding of the ecological and economic role of non-timber forest products. Special emphasis will need to be given to ensure that women and disadvantaged communities have an equitable role in management and decision-making. Village institutions will have to apportion responsibilities, develop internal rules and practices, distribute benefits, manage savings and organize marketing and processing enterprises. NGOs will have to deal with more complex intermediary roles as trainers, researchers and policy advisors, in addition to community activists and facilitators. Decision-making and management will have to shift to new institutional forums, at different levels. Forest protection committee meetings, divisional and state level working group meetings will become the laboratories for an evolving process. As elected bodies, the panchayats and Jilaparishads have the necessary political base. Already, through natural management, necessary political support of JFM has been ensured. The panchayats have been providing patronage and supports to the FPCs and helping them in dispute resolution. Apart from providing some stability this relationship has also given the FPCs institutional look and social acceptability. While new policies and programmes represent historic opportunity to shift from management practices of the 19th century to newly adapted systems that may better respond to the social and environmental needs of the 21st century, many challenges remain. Indias social, cultural and ecological diversity requires that emerging local management be tailored to respond to prevailing problems and opportunities. This requires an understanding of vegetative conditions, local leadership and institutions and the importance of forest to the local and regional economy. Viable management partnerships need to be based on a solid understanding of forest use dependencies, balancing economic and ecological objectives to benefit both to participating village families and the state.
6.3
6.4
6.5
6.6
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1) Ministry Of Environment And Forest National Forestry Action Programme - India (June 1999) Ministry Of Environment And Forest Annual Report (2004-2005) Forest Survey Of India Forest Survey Of India (1996) Mukherji A.K. (Feb 2001) The states of Forest Reports of 1987,1999,2003 Fuel wood, Timber and Fodder from Forests National Resource Assessment & Management through application of GIS Technology. An invited paper presented in Asia Geo Spatial Technology in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 6) Mukherji A.K. (April 2001 Protection of Biodiversity in Indian Forest - New ecodevelopment approach. A keynote paper presented in the 16th Commonwealth conference in Perth, Australia. 7) 8) FAO 2001 State of the World Forest
2) 3) 4) 5)
Indian Council of Forest Research & Forestry statistics- India Education - 2004 VIKSAT, SPWD, AKF (1) Gujarat Forest Department (Feb 1999) Proceedings of National workshop on JFM.
9)
CONTRIBUTION OF FORESTRY SECTOR TOWARDS GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT OF INDIA

J.C. Kala and Dr. Bipin Behari
Forests in India are marked by differences in terms of density, growing stock and biomass volumes that they represent. In addition, age and growth rates differ across species and in different regions. This implies that they constitute a capital stock with many dimensions. This has many implications. From the viewpoint of the annual flow of goods and services it implies that one has to understand this link between nature of forest cover and the accrual of benefits from it. Plantations of different ages may be critical in determining the carbon sequestration value of forests. Diversity of species, associated with mature forests results in wildlife protection and accrual of non-timber benefits and tourism. Managed plantations determine timber outputs.
METHODOLOGY FOR ESTIMATION

The economic activities considered for estimation of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from forestry sector include forestry (planting and conservation of forests, gathering of forest products, charcoal burning carried out in the forests) and logging (felling and rough cutting of trees, hewing or rough shaping of poles, blocks etc.) and transportation of forest products to the sale depots/assembly centres. Farmyard wood is kept out and is included in the agriculture sector. The forest products have been classified into two broad groups: (a) (b) Major products comprising industrial wood (timber, round wood, match and pulpwood) and fuel-wood (firewood and charcoal wood) Minor products comprising a large number of heterogeneous items such as bamboo, fodder, lac, sandalwood, honey, resin, gum, tendu leaves etc.
The estimation of Gross Value Added (GVA) from the forestry and logging sector is carried out by the production approach, wherein the value of the output at factor cost is estimated in the first instance and then the value of various inputs at purchasers prices is deducted.
Data Sources
The major sources of data are State of Forests Report and Forestry Statistics of Ministry of Environment & Forests. Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture (DESA) previously published the India Forest Statistics and Forestry in India. These have been discontinued. The publication Indian Agricultural Statistics gives data for area under forests up to 1990 91 only. Other publications like "The Timber Trends Study for the Far East Country Report for India" (TTS), which is based on an extensive study undertaken in 1957-58 by the IGF on behalf of the FAO. This report gives information on (i) (ii) Methods of logging operations, wastes and losses incurred during logging. Production costs at different stages of forest exploitation such as stumpage prices, felling costs, transport charges from stump to permanent lines of transport and transport charges along the permanent lines.
Director General of Forests & Special Secretary, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India Deputy Inspector General of Forests, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India
(iii) (iv) (v)
Supply and consumption of round wood, fuel wood and charcoal, bamboo and palm species. State wise movement of pulpwood and round wood. Future supply of raw materials from indigenous sources etc. Another publication entitled "Timber Trends and Prospects in India (1960-75)" brought out by the Ministry of Agriculture (1962) contains very useful information on the various aspects of forest exploitation work.
There exists a considerable time lag in forestry data. Data on outturn of forest produce is collected by Central Statistical Organization (CSO) directly from SFDs. The response is reasonably good. Statistics on major Statistics on major forest products are to some extent complete. Statistics on minor forest products are generally not satisfactory. Limitation of these outturn data is that they represent only the authorized exploited forest resources and a substantial quantity of production goes unrecorded. This unrecorded production comprises of (i) (ii) Authorized (but unrecorded) and unauthorized removals of timber and firewood from reserved/protected forests Unrecorded production from private owned forests and non-traditional forest areas (e.g., trees in village commons, field ridges, canal sides, road sides, fruit trees no longer productive etc.)
The authorized removals are those done by the right holders staying in the periphery of natural forests and are generally not recorded in the official records of production. Central Statistical Organization (CSO) had been using a norm of 10 per cent of the value of recorded production for estimating the value of unrecorded production from forestry sector uniformly for all the states. This norm was based on the Report of the TTS for the year 1957-58. However, this study is very old and the applicability of this norm needed a thorough review keeping in view the changed pattern of supply and consumption of forest products. As per the existing norms decided during the Expert Committee Meeting on Improvement in the methodology of estimating domestic product in forestry & logging held on 17th February 1987 at CSO, New Delhi The value of unrecorded production may be taken as 10 times the value of recorded production in the case of fuel wood 5 per cent in the case of industrial wood. These recommended norms were reviewed by the Advisory Committee on National Accounts and it was decided that the revised norm recommended for fuel wood i.e., 10 times of recorded production of fuel wood in forestry, shall be adopted whereas for industrial wood current norm of 10 per cent may continue till a firm basis for revision is available. However, it was also decided not to take into account the output of farmyard wood hitherto included in the 'agriculture' sector. The value of recorded and unrecorded production of fuel wood estimated on the basis of recorded production and revised norm has been compared with the NSSO estimates of consumption expenditure for 1977-78 and it was found that the production estimates are well within the consumption figures. The revised estimates also compare very favourably with the NCAER's estimates of household consumption of fuel wood published in "Domestic Fuel Survey" for 1978-79. Data on quantity and producer prices of most of the minor forest products (MFPs) are not available. The items of MFPs vary from state to state. The status of MFPs statistics was also reviewed in the CSO Meeting of February, 1987. It was observed during the discussions that the royalty value does not
reflect the economic value of the product but at the same time there is no alternative except to use the royalty receipt in the absence of any other information on production and prices of minor forest products. The final conclusion that emerged was that the economic value of MFPs be taken as 10 times of the royalty value. However, it was suggested that if some states have conducted studies on the subject, the results of their studies may be used for the respective states. It was also suggested that the output of the MFPs should be evaluated separately for the products for which quantity and prices are available and for the rest of the products for which only royalty receipts are available.
Prices
The price chosen should cover all activities associated with the forest exploitation within the prescribed boundaries of production. Therefore, depending on the agencies involved in the forestry operations viz., felling of trees, rough cutting and shaping of poles etc., and then transportation to the sale depots/assembling centres, the producer prices are to be chosen appropriately. However, if one or more of these operations are carried out by contractors/transporters, the amounts paid for these activities commonly known as Trade and Transport Margins (TTMs) have to be subtracted from the sale value at the assembling centres. Due to paucity of data, CSO had been using a uniform norm of 25 per cent of the value of output as TTMs. This norm was based on the TTS. The technology of forestry operations has changed a lot. This point was, therefore, discussed at length in CSO Meeting mentioned earlier. The meeting after taking into consideration all relevant aspects suggested a modified rate of the 10 per cent of the value of output of major forest products as TTMs. This modified rate of TTMs is being applied currently and is subject to revision as and when more reliable estimates based on scientific studies are available. Accordingly the value of output of recorded production of industrial and fuel-wood sold at places other than the Government Sales Depots is reduced by 10 per cent to arrive at the output of forestry sector.
Inputs
Material inputs in the forestry sector include (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) expenditure on transportation, water, electricity, fuel, normal repairs and maintenance of the fixed assets etc.
The average ratio of expenditure on the purchase of goods and services and on repairs and maintenance of fixed assets to the value of output of this sector for a number of years was found to be around 10 per cent. This norm is utilized for estimating the material inputs in this sector.
Estimates at Constant Prices

In the case of major forest products (industrial wood and fuel-wood) for which information on physical output is available, state-wise estimates of the value of output are obtained by using the corresponding base year (1980-81) prices.
For minor forest products for which data on the value of output only are available, a ratio method is used to estimate the value of output at 1980-81 prices. The ratio of the value of minor forest products to the value of output of major forest products at current prices is multiplied with the value of output of major products at 1980-81 prices to arrive at the value of minor forest products at 1980-81 prices. The implicit assumption in using this method is that the movement of prices of minor forest products and major forest products are similar. The same proportion of inputs to value of output as for estimates at current prices are used to obtain the estimates of gross product at constant prices.
Quality and Limitation of Database

The forestry products have a lot of variability with regard to their quality and the prices even vary within the same species. Depending upon the climatic and other factors, trees belonging to the same species may belong to different quality classes. The products of these various quality classes may also fetch prices which are largely varying from one quality class to another. Thus, for proper evaluation of forestry products, it is necessary to have the production as well as price data, not only species-wise but also quality/class-wise for the same species. However, under the present system of reporting of forestry statistics, many SFDs are reporting a single figure for production and a single price against that volume. This has a telling effect on the quality of the estimates. Another major drawback of the available statistics of production is that there is no way to check its completeness. The data availability position on the minor forest products needs considerable improvement. As far as possible, the State Governments should collect data on production as well as prices of all such products which are important for their States so that economic value of the MFPs can be worked out. The data position with regard to various inputs for this sector is also very weak. The scope of present day forestry has gone beyond the traditional forest areas. Programmes of social forestry, farm forestry etc., are being implemented on a massive scale with public participation. Several international agencies like Swedish International Development Agency, World Bank, FAO etc., are funding these programmes in addition to large-scale investment by Government of India. Since a substantial portion of this money is going into the private hands and owing to the economic nature of this activity, a lot of income is being generated. However, there is no proper recording of the output of timber, fuel-wood, pulpwood etc., from these privately owned forests. The quantity of outturn from this sector of forestry may be partially covered under estimates of unrecorded production. However, a need is felt for proper recording of production and other aspects of these programmes. This would, no doubt, improve the database for national product estimation, but at the same time provide sufficient information for monitoring purposes.
Assessment by Institute of Economic Growth (IEG)

In order to put a welfare interpretation on the contribution of the forestry sector, we need to do more complete stock accounting and estimate values of depreciation. This shall ensure that the flow of services and goods is maintained in the future. The multiple products produced by the forestry sector then lead to the question: depreciation with respect to what kind of capital stock do we need to estimate. Three components of the stock of natural capital embedded in forests have been pointed out. Is it possible to conserve all three components simultaneously? Further, how will conserving one component impact the vector of flow of goods and services? For example, adding single species plantations adds to the production of industrial wood and to the availability of carbon sequestration services. How does it impact the non-timber forest product accrual or the services of eco-tourism, both of which accrue more from multi-species forests. In
other words, questions of the substitution and complementarities between flows of different kinds of goods and services remain. Table 1: Contribution of Forestry Sector to GDP (Previous Assessments)
(Rupees in crores) Products Gross DP Net DP 1993-94 11454 11166 1994-95 12978 12647 1995-96 13390 12999 1996-97 14493 14042 1997-98 16249 15736 1998-99 18573 17992 1999-2000 19916 19278
Source: Institute of Economic Growth, 2002
Table 2: Contribution of Forestry Sector to GDP (Current Assessments by IEG)

(Rupees in crores) Products Value/ha in rupees 1,675.54 7,443.40 1,366.73 Forest Area million hectare 25.00 4.90 10.49 Total Value Total Value (%) 9.39 54.93 16.12 14.04 5.52 100 Source
Industrial Wood Fuel Wood NTFPs Eco-Tourism Carbon Sequestration Total Value Total Cost Contribution to GDP at market price
2,441.75 14,272.00 4,188.85 3,647.27 1,433.70 25,984.53 2,404.83 23,579.70
CSO with adjustments CSO with tree value IEG IEG IEG IEG IEG
Source: Institute of Economic Growth, 2002
Forests play an important role in environmental and economic sustainability. They render numerous goods and services, and maintain life-support systems so essential for life on earth. However, forests are consistently and seriously undervalued in economic and social terms. For example, the contribution of the forestry sector to GDP was only 1% in 1996-97 (measured at constant prices of 1980-81). A latest estimate of gross value of goods and services provided by forestry sector fixes its contribution to GDP at 2.37% (IEG, 2002).
Conclusion
Share of the forestry sector in GDP is estimated at 1.0%. The percentage of estimates based on direct data is estimated to be 28%. The percentage share of forestry and logging sector in total GDP in 1980 81 was estimated to be 2.5 per cent which fell to 1.9 per cent in 1985 86. The following table gives the contribution to GDP by Forestry sector
Table 3: Contribution of forestry to GDP Year Contribution to GDP at constant prices (Base year 1993 94) 1993 94 1994 95 1995 96 1996 97 1997 98 1998 99 1999 2000 2000 01 2001 02 2002 03 2003 04 1.46 1.40 1.30 1.22 1.19 1.13 1.11 1.08 1.04 1.01 0.94 1.46 1.41 1.24 1.16 1.16 1.11 1.10 1.17 1.08 1.08 1.06 Contribution to GDP at current prices
GDP estimates currently do not take into account the unrecorded removals which are estimated 10% of (a) above and 5 times of (b) as a very conservative estimate. Taking note of this, the contribution of forestry sector to GDP with reference to tangible products would be around 1.5%. Further, the GDP estimates do not take note of ecological services rendered by the forestry eco-system. Estimates have been made (Chopra et al, 2002) for ecotourism, carbon sequestration and other ecological services in forest areas, which would increase the national GDP share of the forests by another 1.4%. Thus, the overall GDP share from forestry sector from tangible and non-tangible outputs can be placed at 2.9%. The Ministry of Environment & Forests has taken forest/tree cover from present 23.68% to 25% by 2007 and increase will occur outside forest lands in the shape of activities will increase the availability of wood for industrial increase the GDP further. initiatives to increase the 33% by 2012. Most of this Agro/Farm forestry. Such and other uses and would
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ASSESSMENT OF FOREST AND TREE COVER: ROLE OF FOREST COVER ASSESSMENT IN MONITORING SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT
A.K. Joshi and Dr. Bipin Behari* I. Introduction:
Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) requires proper support systems for effective and timely decision making. An important component is the prompt availability of relevant information, without which the effectiveness of SFM is often jeopardized. Studies have shown that there is an urgent global need for spatial data and information on forests. The information so collected has to include both Static and Dynamic parameters. It is imperative that the existing data sources are fully utilized in assessing the forest and tree cover and in the monitoring of the forest cover for Sustainable Forest Management. Considering the crucial role forests play in ecological stability, socio-economic well being and development of a country, the Government of India, in its National Forest Policy, has aimed at having a minimum of one-third of its geographic area under forest and tree cover. In the hills and mountainous regions of the country, this proportion has been targeted at two-third of the geographic area. Information on forest over last five decades can be obtained from three sources, viz.; (i) year-wise land use statistics compiled by the Ministry of Agriculture which is based on revenue records (ii) Ministry of Environment and Forests compiles information on forest area based on legal status of land and the source of information is the various State Forest Departments and (iii) assessment of forest cover using modern technologies like remote sensing and interpretation of satellite data. In India, forest cover assessment is being carried out using Satellite Remote Sensing data for more than 2 decades. Forest Survey of India (FSI) under the administrative control of the Ministry of Environment & Forests has been mandated to assess the forest cover of the country on a two year cycle using Satellite Remote Sensing Technology and it publishes the results in the form of State of Forest Report (SFR) on a biennial basis. The first SFR was brought out in 1987 and the latest SFR2003 is 9th in the series. The forest cover is assessed and monitored by interpreting the latest Satellite data procured from National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA), Hyderabad. The SFRs provide valuable information for policy formulation and planning both at the National and State levels. The main objective of Forest survey of India in mapping and monitoring forest and tree cover of the country on a two-year cycle is to know the dynamic changes of forest resources in terms of quantity and quality over a period of time so that appropriate planning and management interventions can be developed for their conservation and sustainable utilization. Remote Sensing based forest cover mapping and monitoring adopted by FSI has proved to be cost and time effective over traditional forest resource monitoring. Besides forest cover, Forest Survey of India has also estimated the tree cover of the country using field survey and inventory, which was taken up recently and published for the first time in SFR, 2001.
Assistant Inspector General of Forests, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India ** Deputy Inspector General of Forests, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India
Periodic assessment of forest cover provides a quantitative measure of the extent of land area under forest cover along with canopy density. A comprehensive assessment of the forest resources involves measures of numerous parameters such as forest cover, tree cover, growing stock, species composition, availability and occurrence of non-wood forest products and so on.
II.
Forest Resource Assessment Process.
Legally a tract of land is recognized as forest if it is legally proclaimed to be a forest under the forest law (Indian Forest Act of 1927 or the relevant State Forest Act); and it is recorded/notified as forest in government records. All such forest and forest areas are collectively termed as Recorded Forest Area. It is possible that a part or the whole of such forest area, at any point in time, may not have trees on it but still all the provisions of the forest law under which it is notified will be applicable to it. The primary responsibility of managing, protecting and conserving forest within recorded forest areas lies with the corresponding State or UT Forest Departments. However, while assessing forest cover using satellite data, such blanks or gaps will be classified as non-forest. A distinction has to be made between the Recorded Forest Area and Forest Cover as assessed by the satellite imagery. Forest cover implies the forest and tree cover as assessed by the satellite imagery. It may also be noted that assessments done by the satellite imageries at different scales cannot be compared directly to determine and map changes in forest cover. The Recorded Forest Area is further categorized into Reserved Forest, Protected Forest and Un-classed Forest. Reserved Forest is an area notified under the provisions of the Indian Forest Act or the State Forest Acts having a greater degree of protection. Protected Forests are also notified under the provisions of Indian Forest Act or the State Forest Acts but the restrictions are less severe. Un-classed Forest is an area recorded as forest but not included in reserved or protected forest category. Ownership status of such forests varies from forest to forest and from state to state. As per the latest reports received from the State/UT Forest Departments, the Recorded Forest Area in the country is 774,740 Km2 (or 23.57 percent of the countrys geographical area) comprising 399,919 Km2 of Reserved Forest (51.6 percent of total forest area), 238,434 km2 of Protected Forest (30.8 percent) and 136,387 Km2 of Unclassed Forest (17.6 percent). Forest Cover on the other hand is defined as an area more than 1 ha in extent and having tree canopy density of 10 percent and above. This definition is based on the resolution of digital satellite data (pixel size 23.5m X 23.5m), scale of interpretation (1:50,000) and the technique used for image processing. No distinction with respect to the type of tree crops (natural or man made) or tree species is attempted since fool proof techniques are not available for making such distinctions. Moreover, no cognizance of the type of land ownership or land use or legal status of land is taken, as georeferenced maps depicting such information are neither available nor it is possible to collect such maps at the country level. Thus, all species of trees (including bamboos, fruits or palms, etc.) and all types of lands (forest, private, community or institutional) satisfying the basic criteria of canopy density of more than 10 percent density and an area of more than 1 hectare have been delineated as forest cover while interpreting the satellite data using a 1: 50,000 scale. The current report, SFR, 2003, is the ninth report in the series, which started with the publication of the first SFR in 1987. The assessment is principally based on digital interpretation of satellite data. The techniques of assessment have changed and improved over time owing to development in technology in the fields of remote sensing, data acquisition and processing and improvements in the skills of technical personnel. For the first assessment, reported in SFR 1987, the satellite data was interpreted visually
at a scale of 1:1 million. The subsequent assessments till 1999 were based on visual interpretation of satellite data at a scale of 1:250,000. The last two reports, SFR 2001 and SFR 2003, have however been based on digital interpretation of satellite data on a 1: 50,000 scale for mapping and monitoring forest cover. For these reasons, SFR 1987 (scale 1:1 million) and SFR 2001 (scale 1:50,000) cannot be compared against other SFRs with a scale of 1:250,000. But the scale used in SFR 2003 (1:50,000) is the same as that used in SFR 2001, and therefore they can be compared directly to map changes in forest cover during the intervening period. The SFR, 2003 not only provides information on the forest and tree cover of the country but also has certain additional features. The special feature in SFR, 2003 are the introduction of an additional class of forest cover by splitting Dense Forest Cover (40% Canopy Density and above) into two classes, namely, Very Dense Forests (70% Canopy Density and above) and Moderately Dense Forests (40%-70% Canopy Density), and providing information on growing stock of wood inside and outside forest areas. In both SFR, 2001 and SFR, 2003, the forest cover by definition comprises of lands more than 1 hectare in area with a tree canopy density of more than 10%, irrespective of land use and ownership. As mentioned above, the Forest Survey of India was earlier using the visual interpretation of satellite data on a 1:250,000 scale for the assessment of forest cover. However the last two assessments i.e. SFR 2001 and SFR 2003 are based on digital interpretation of satellite data on a 1:50,000 scale for the entire country. The satellite data is procured from the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA), Hyderabad in digital form. For SFR, 2003, digital satellite data of the LISS-III sensors of IRS-1D satellite with a resolution of 23.5 m has been used. Data for nearly all the states are from the period from October to December 2002, when the cloud cover is low and the deciduous trees still have leaves to provide satisfactory reflectance for the satellite sensors. Noteworthy here is that one scene of LISS III covers an area of about 20,000 km2 (140 km X 140 Km). Due to considerable overlap (15 to 20 percent) among adjacent scenes, as many as 391 scenes are required to cover the entire country. The digital data is collected from only those scenes where the cloud cover is less than 10 percent. Using Digital Image Processing (DIP) software, the digital data from satellite available on CDs is downloaded onto the Workstation. After downloading the data into the computer, rectification is carried out in each image to provide latitude information and longitude information into raw satellite scene using raster based geometric corrections. Radiometric and contrast corrections are also applied for removing the radiometric defects and for improving the visual impact of the False Color Composites (FCC). The rectification carried out in the geographic projection is re-projected in the shape of polygonal projections and the scene is geo-coded by using Survey of India topo-sheets. Based on the tone and texture the forest cover areas are delineated. The interpretation of forest cover for the whole country is done at 1:50,000 scale using a polyconic projection. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) transformation is used for density classification of forest cover. An interactive method of display is used for assigning threshold values for each class (very dense, dense, open and scrub) on the basis of the ground knowledge to highlight forest areas. Density class of forest cover and color is accordingly allocated. The output includes forest cover maps on a 1:50,000 scale. The maps show forest cover in four classes Very Dense Forest (VDF) with crown density more then 70 percent; Moderately Dense Forest (MDF) with crown density ranging between 40-70 percent; Open Forest (OF) with a crown density ranging between 10-40 percent. The highly degraded forest or wastelands with stunted trees having canopy density less than 10 percent are classified as scrub, a category of non-forest cover. Areas of less than one hectare, whether classified as forest with non-forest areas or blanks within forested areas, are excluded by clustering pixels and merged with the
surrounding classes. The mangrove cover can also be delineated due to their unique signature along the coastal areas. Mangroves are further classified into the same three density classes of forest cover described. After delineation, the mangrove cover is added up with forest cover in the respective density classes. This is then followed by extensive ground truthing/verification and all the necessary corrections are subsequently incorporated. The sheet-wise mosaic of districts and States/UTs is then made using the Survey of India (soi) and Census data to compute district-wise and State/UT wise forest cover. As stated earlier, a land may be recorded as a forest area and be under the management of the forest department but may not have any discernible forest cover. On the other hand, all wooded lands or plantations, delineated as forest cover from satellite data may not be legally recorded as forest area as these could be either private plantations or institutional wood-lots. Although, a majority of forested land happen to be within the legally recorded forest areas, all the changes in the forest cover are not necessarily due to changes in the forests managed by the forest departments. Therefore, it is important from the policy and planning point of view to know the extent and quality of forest cover within Recorded Forest Areas and outside it. This information is important and useful for the concerned forest department, civil administration and others. Data collected by the Forest Survey of India shows that on an average about 81.90 percent of area within the reserved Forests has forest cover, whereas around 18.10 percent area within the reserved forests is without forest cover.
III.
Estimated Extent of Natural Forests and Degraded Forest Lands
As per the State of Forest Report, 2003 the forest cover in the country is 678,333 square kilometers (sq. kms.) and constitutes 20.64% of its geographical area. Of this, the very dense forest, with canopy density more than 70%, constitutes 51,285 square kms., which is 1.56% of the total area. The moderately dense forest with canopy density between 40 to 70% constitutes 339,279 square kilometers (sq. kms.) which is 10.32% of the total area and the open forests with canopy density between 10 and 40 % constitutes 287,769 square kms., about 8.76% of the total geographical area. A comparison with the forest cover assessment of 2001 reveals, an overall increase of 2,795 square km. or 0.41 percent in forest cover in the country. The assessment of forest cover at district level reveals that out of the total 593 districts in the country, 199 districts have less than 5% of the geographical area under forest cover, including 59 districts that have less than 1% forest cover. In case of only 146 districts, the forest cover exceeded 33% of their geographic area. There are 123 districts in the country, which are categorized as hill districts where the total forest cover is 274,383 sq. kms. constituting 38.77% of the geographical area of these districts against a goal of 66% as laid down in the National Forest Policy, 1988. Out of the total 123 hill districts only 54 districts have more than 66% forest cover. Of the rest, 36 hill districts have forest cover between 33 and 66% and the remaining 33 districts have less than 33% forest cover (including 10 districts having less than 10% forest cover). However, compared to 2001 assessment, the forest cover in hill districts has increased by 3,057 square km. In the 187 districts identified as tribal districts, the total forest cover is estimated at 407,298 sq. kms., which constitutes 36.91% of the total geographic area of the tribal districts. A comparison of 2003 assessment in tribal districts with that of 2001 assessment shows a net increase of 3,211 square km. over the 2001 assessment. The forest cover in the tribal districts constitutes 60.04% of the total forest cover of the
country whereas the geographic area of 187 tribal districts constitutes only 33.6 percent of the total geographic area of the country. It may be noted that tribal districts are generally rich in forest cover, and hence forest resources. The mangrove cover in the country is estimated at 4,461 square km. which is about 0.14 % of the geographic area of the country. Out of this about 1,162 square km. can be classified as very dense, 1,657 square km. is moderately dense and 1,642 square km. is open mangrove. Water bodies, which include rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, creeks, straits, etc. inside the forest areas, constitute about 17,396 sq. kms. of forest area, which is 2.56% of the forest cover. The total tree cover for the countrys geographic area has been estimated to be 99,896 sq. kms. or about 3.04% of the countrys geographical area. The total forest and tree cover of the country has been estimated at 778,229 sq. km. constituting 23.68% of the total geographical area of the country. This assessment can be said to be incomplete in the sense that newly created plantations do not show up on satellite images till about the 5th 10th year after plantation, depending upon the species. If these were accounted for, then the figure for the total estimated tree cover would be significantly higher. The total growing stock of wood in the country is estimated at 6,414 million cubic meters (m.cu.m.), of which 4,782 million cubic meters (m.cu.m.) is inside the forest area, and 1,632 million cubic meter of the area classified as Trees Outside Forests (TOF). The average growing stock in the forest per hectare of recorded forest areas is estimated to be 61.72 cubic meters. Table 1: Basic Data on Forest Resource
Indias Geographical area (GA) Recorded Forest Area Forest Cover Area Tree cover Area Forest and Tree cover Total growing stock in the country (including both forest area and TOF) (Source: SFR, 2003) 3,287,263 square km. 774,740 square km. (23.57% of GA) 678,333 square km. (20.64% of GA) 99,896 square km. (3.04% of GA) 778,229 square km. (23.68%of GA) 6,414 million cubic meters. (average growing stock of wood in natural forests is 61.72 cu m per hectare)
Table 2: Forest Cover as per SFR, 2003 assessment

CLASS Forest Cover Very Dense Forest Moderately Dense Forest Open Forest Total Forest Cover* Non Forest Cover Scrub Non-forest** 40,269 2,568,661 1.23 78.13 51, 285 339,279 287,769 678,333 1.56 10.32 8.76 20.64 AREA (square km.) Percent of Geographic Area
Total Geographic Area 3,287,263 100.00 * Includes 4,461 square km. under mangroves (0.14% of countrys geographic area) ** Excludes scrubs and includes water bodies.
Table 3: Net Change in Forest Cover in the Country since 2001 Assessment
(Area in Square km.) Assessment Year 2001 2003 Change (Source: SFR, 2003) Dense Forest 416,809 390,564 -26,245 Open Forest 258,729 287,769 29,040 Total Forest Cover 675,538 678,333 2795 Scrub 47,318 40,269 -7049
Table 4: Forest & Tree Cover State-wise in different Assessments (1987 to 2003)
1987 State/UT Forest cover 49,573 64,132 25,160 28,482 15 1,240 11,991 513 12,480 20,905 32,268 10,292 130,099 45,616 17,475 16,466 19,084 14,394 53,253 943 12,758 2,756 17,472 5,953 31,226 1989 Forest cover 47,290 69,002 24,832 26,668 22 1,255 11,921 513 12,480 20,449 32,104 10,292 135,541 44,044 17,685 15,645 18,170 14,399 47,227 1,338 12,884 3,041 16,992 5,535 33,627 1991 Forest cover 47,290 68,757 24,751 26,668 22 1,255 11,907 513 12,480 20,449 32,199 10,292 135,541 44,044 17,685 15,875 18,853 14,321 47,205 1,343 12,889 3,041 16,992 5,535 33,609 1993 Forest cover 47,256 68,661 24,508 26,587 22 1,250 12,044 513 12,502 20,443 32,343 10,336 135,396 43,859 17,621 15,769 18,697 14,348 47,145 1,343 13,099 3,119 17,005 5,538 33,961 1995 Forest cover 47,112 68,621 24,061 26,561 26 1,250 12,320 603 12,501 20,433 32,382 10,336 135,164 43,843 17,558 15,714 18,576 14,291 47,107 1,342 13,280 3,127 17,045 5,538 33,986 1997 Forest cover 43,290 68,602 23,824 4,832 21,692 26 1,252 12,578 604 12,521 20,440 32,403 10,334 74,760 56,435 46,143 17,418 15,657 18,775 14,221 46,941 1,387 13,353 3,129 17,064 5,546 10,751 23,243 1999 Forest cover 44,229 68,847 23,688 4,830 21,644 88 1,251 12,965 964 13,082 20,441 32,467 10,323 75,137 56,693 46,672 17,384 15,633 18,338 14,164 47,033 1,412 13,871 3,118 17,078 5,745 10,756 23,260 2001 Forest cover 44,637 68,045 27,714 5,720 22,637 111 2,095 15,152 1,754 14,360 21,237 36,991 15,560 77,265 56,448 47,482 16,926 15,584 17,494 13,345 48,838 2,432 16,367 3,193 21,482 7,065 13,746 23,938 2003 Forest cover 44,419 68,019 27,826 5,558 22,716 170 2,156 14,946 1,517 14,353 21,267 36,449 15,577 76,429 55,998 46,865 17,219 16,839 18,430 13,609 48,366 1,580 15,826 3,262 22,643 8,093 14,118 24,465
Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar Jharkhand Delhi Goa Gujarat Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu & Kashmir Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh Chhattisgarh Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Orissa Punjab Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttaranchal
1987 State/UT Forest cover 8,432 7,601 2 Nagar 238 0 0 0 640,819 19.49
1989 Forest cover 8,015 7,622 5 206 0 0 0 638,804 19.43
1991 Forest cover 8,015 7,622 5 206 0 0 0 639,364 19.45
1993 Forest cover 8,186 7,624 5 206 0 0 0 639,386 19.45
1995 Forest cover 8,276 7,615 7 204 0 0 0 638,879 19.43
1997 Forest cover 8,349 7,613 7 204 0 0 0 633,397 19.27
1999 Forest cover 8,362 7,606 7 202 0 0 0 637,293 19.39
2001 Forest cover 10,693 6,930 9 219 6 27 36 675,538 20.55
2003 Forest cover 12,343 6,964 15 225 8.34 23 40 678,333 20.64
West Bengal Andaman & Nicobar Islands Chandigarh Dadra Haveli &
Daman & Diu Lakshdweep Pondicherry Grand Total Percent (%)
IV.
Tree Cover and Trees Outside Forests
Trees outside Forests (TOF) are trees on lands outside the Recorded forest Area, whereas Tree Cover refers to the area covered by trees but too small to be delineated by satellite data. Trees outside Forests are assessed in both rural as well as in urban areas. To assess the TOF and Tree Cover, a particular state or a group of districts with some common features are studied together. The TOF being planted along with agricultural crops is likely to be influenced by the Agro-ecological variables and therefore the study area is stratified according to Agro-Ecological Zones (AEZ). In the study area, villages are treated as sampling units and an optimum number of sample images are selected randomly from different districts proportionate to the TOF area of that particular district. Complete enumeration of all the trees with diameter of 10 cm and above at breast height in the randomly selected villages in each district is carried out. The data is collected on pre-designed formats and the collected data is then processed. As explained above, Tree cover generally refers to the area covered by trees, which is too small to be delineated by digital interpretation of satellite data at 1: 50,000 scale. The tree cover comprises of small patches of trees (< 1.0 ha.) in woodlots, plantations, scattered trees on farms, homesteads and urban areas, or trees along linear features, such as roads, canals, bunds, etc. For assessing the tree cover below 1 hectare and which cannot be discerned by using the satellite data used for forest cover assessment, a new methodology using high resolution satellite data (PAN along with LISS III) is currently being used. The IRS PAN Data, which is monochromatic, having resolution of 5.8 m x 5.8 m is used for identifying a tree vegetated land even less than 0.1 ha. This data along with LISS III imageries are used for stratification of the tree cover on the basis of geometrical formation of trees into 3 strata, viz. block plantation, linear plantation and scattered trees. By this method, one can identify a tree validated land as small as 0.1 hectare on the ground. Ground inventory is also carried out in desired number of sample plots in each of the strata and the data obtained is processed to generate a computed tree cover at 70% canopy density. Besides generation of TOF maps, the information on block, linear and scattered patches can be used to estimate the number of trees and the corresponding volume (species wise) using appropriate sampling design by laying out optimum number of plots randomly selected in every stratum. After detailed analysis, it has been found that the optimum plot size for block, linear and scattered, stratum are 0.1 ha., 10 x 125 strip and 3.0 ha. respectively for non hilly districts and 0.1 ha., 10 x 125 m strip and 0.5 ha. for hilly districts. It has also been concluded that the sample sizes for block, linear and
scattered stratum are 35, 50 and 50 respectively for non-hilly districts and 35, 50 and 95 for hilly districts. The areas, which do not support tree vegetation , like rivers and water bodies, riverbeds, snow covered mountains, etc. are referred to as Unculturable Non-Forest Areas. Areas supporting tree vegetation and excluding the Recorded forest area, forest cover and the Unculturable non-forest areas are known as Culturable Non Forest Area (CNFA). CNFA is thus the area over which the sample data on tree cover is aggregated for the assessment of tree cover. Table 5: Physiographic Zone wise Tree cover Estimates
Physiographic Zone Geog. Area (km. ) 338,556 65,317 133,990 295,780 223,339 319,098 373,675 355,988 336,289 292,416 72,381 191,698 121,242 167,494 3,287,263 CNFA (km. ) CNFA As % of GA 26.80 11.96 23.94 90.87 76.46 88.97 75.96 73.24 57.42 79.26 42.57 57.88 69.56 83.04 66.58 Trees per ha of CNFA 17.9 9.1 13.6 12.8 14.3 6.9 9.9 10.8 10.4 12.2 21.6 12.8 20.8 18.4 12.3 Number of Trees (000) 162 446 7136 43,644 342,813 244,420 196,142 280,405 280,940 200,393 282,151 66,515 142,239 175,505 255,398 2,680,147 Tree Cover Area 4901 149 1511 9746 3014 7964 8694 7542 18742 8691 4631 6727 9569 8015 99,896 % of G.A. 1.45 0.23 1.13 3.30 1.35 2.50 2.33 2.12 5.57 2.97 6.40 3.51 7.89 4.79 3.04 % of CNFA 5.40 1.91 4.71 3.63 1.77 2.81 3.06 2.89 9.71 3.75 15.03 6.06 11.35 5.76 4.56
Western Himalayas Eastern Himalayas North East Northern Plains Eastern Plains Western Plains Central Highlands North Deccan East Deccan South Deccan Western Ghats Eastern Ghats West Coast East Coast Total
90,730 7811 32,073 268,783 170,754 283,895 283,844 260,717 193,088 231,779 30,814 110,958 84,337 139,085 2,188,668
(Source: SFR, 2003)
V.
Limitation of Remote Sensing Technology
The scale of interpretation imposes a limitation (called cartographic limit) on mapping of any geographic feature. For instance, at 1:250,000 scale, the smallest area of forest cover that could be delineated was 25 hectares (ha) while at 1:50,000 scale this limit comes down to 1 ha. The implications of the cartographic limit is that during the eighth assessment (2001), smaller patches of forest and tree canopies (1 to 25 ha in extent), could also be detected and mapped. At the same time, small blanks and gaps inside forested areas could also be identified and delineated to the extent possible. However; there are still certain limitations with remote sensing technology when used for assessment of forest cover. Some of the major ones are listed below:
Since resolution of data from LISS III is 23.5 m x 23.5 m, the linear strips of forest cover along roads, canals, bunds and railway lines of a width less than the defined resolution are generally not captured. Young plantations and species having less chlorophyll contents in their crown do not give proper reflectance and as a result are difficult to be interpreted correctly. Considerable details at the ground level may be obscured in those areas having clouds and shadows. It is difficult to interpret such areas without the help of additional collateral data. The variation in spectral response patterns during leafless periods poses problems in interpretation. Gregarious occurrence of bushy vegetation like lantana and certain agricultural crops, such as sugarcane, cotton, groundnuts, etc., often pose problems in the delineation of forest cover, as their spectral response pattern is similar to that of tree canopy. The processing of satellite data and its generation in the form of paper prints may also cause tonal variation in hue, which will in turn affect interpretation.
VI.
Comparison of Forest Cover of India with Other Regions and Countries
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) assesses the forest cover of the world regularly. There are no laid down international standards about the percentage of the forest cover to the geographic area of a country. A comparative account of percentage of forest cover and per capita availability in different regions and countries of the world, as per the last assessment of the FAO, 2005 is given in the Table 6. It shows that per capita forest in India is very low as compared to worlds average. Table 6: Forest cover and per capita availability in different regions/countries
Region/Country Percentage of forest cover to land area (1995) 29.6 17.8 21.8 46.0 17.5 3.1 27.3 10.2 30.0 58.0 58.7 Per capita forest (ha) 0.6 0.2 0.8 1.4 0.1 n.s 0.2 n.s. 0.1 0.5 0.9
World Asia Africa Europe China Pakistan Nepal Bangladesh Sri Lanka Indonesia Malaysia
Region/Country
Percentage of forest cover to land area (1995) 19.4 64.0 24.7 21.6
Per capita forest (ha) 0.1 0.2 0.8 0.1
Philippines Japan USA India
(Source: State of the World Forests, FAO, 2005).
VII. Role of Forest Cover Assessment in Sustainable Forest Management:

Sustainable forest management can mean different things to different people. Criteria and indicators to monitor, measure and assess forest trends and conditions have significantly improved understanding of the concept, yet putting into practice remains a challenge. Practitioners and policy-makers within and outside the forest sector have come to realize that managing forest in a sustainable manner involves the participation of a range of partners to balance trade-offs and resolve conflicts (State of the Worlds forests, FAO, 2005). The concept of sustainability has originated from the World Conservation Strategy (1980) of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). In order to meet the objectives of both conservation and development at the same time, the concept of sustainability as a strategic approach was recommended to meet the goals of: ( 1) sustainable utilization of resources and (2) the conservation of the ecosystem and biodiversity. Broadly speaking, Sustainable Forest Management refers to the use and conservation of forests for the benefit of the present and future generations, whereas Criteria and Indicators (C & I) are used to define, assess and monitor the progress towards Sustainable Forest Management. Sustainable forest management, which can broadly be defined as the use and conservation of forests for the benefit of the present and future generations, requires proper decisionsupport systems. The availability of relevant and timely information, especially on the extent and nature of forest cover, and the human induced transformations and modifications being brought about in the forest and tree cover have to be recorded and communicated to the forest managers in less time for their effective response towards the broader goal of sustainable forest management. The information so gathered has also to be easily accessible, affordable and timely available. These problems have been under discussion for a long time in various international forums like United Nations Conference on Environment and development, FAO, IFF, GFIS etc. The progress towards sustainable forest management in India has been uneven. Although, the policy and the legal interventions have been more then adequate right from the days when scientific management of forests began, the progress towards SFM has been mixed. The government stands committed to SFM, which is reflected in its pronouncements like the National Forest Policy of 1952 and again of 1988. As per the NFP, 1988, derivation of direct economic benefits from the forest areas is to be subordinated to the primary aim of the policy, which is to ensure environmental stability and ecological balance. The enactment of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 and rules there under, to regulate the diversion of forest lands for non-forestry purposes is also a reflection of the commitment of the government to balance the conservation of forests with the sustainable development need of the country. The government has also come up with a National Forestry Action Programme, 1999, which provides a comprehensive
long-term strategic plan for the next 20 years. Moreover, the judiciary has also played an instrumental role in the overall forest conservation. However, the investment in forestry remains much below the requirement. At the same time, the ability to enforce laws and to effectively implement programmes by the various state forest departments remains were not adequate. Sustainable development has three broad components: environmental, social, and economic. To monitor the SFM process, India has devised its own Criteria and Indicators (8 criteria and 43 indicators) as compared to the seven thematic elements used internationally. However, the fact remains that the most crucial component in the framework for discussing progress towards Sustainable Forest management is the forest resource assessment. While there has been a renewed focus on forest plantations and other conservation efforts, the primary natural forests continued to decline. There has been a real decrease of 4,605 km in dense forest cover in 2003 as compared to SFR 2001. The main reasons for this decrease have been outlined as shifting cultivation, encroachments on forest lands, felling of trees, diversion of forest lands for non forestry purposes, etc. Apart from these reasons, there are other issues, which are a matter of concern for the health of the forest resource. Illegal logging is a serious threat which has to be countered by effective monitoring and law enforcement. The other serious threat is that of forest fires through which a large area of forests are degraded every year. Incidents of pests and spread of epidemics in particular forestry species also pose a threat to the forests. Another challenge facing the forest managers is to ensure that benefits from the forest products, forest goods and services are shared with the poorest segments of the society. A significant number of people are living in the forests or are directly dependent on the forests for their livelihoods. In the days to come, forests will be increasingly looked upon as resources for rural employment generation and poverty alleviation programmes. To address all the above issues, adequate, relevant and timely information is required. At present relatively little data are available for several key parameters, which limits the ability to take the required preventive action. Information on biological diversity considerations, biotic and abiotic interference, the dependence of the poor on forest resource etc. is lacking to a considerable degree. A more concerted effort in information collection and compilation is required. This in turn will require investments to set up and initiate the required information management systems. In order to effectively and reliably measure the trends in the forestry sector, there is an urgent need for investments in forestry information systems, which could effectively monitor the progress of Sustainable Forest Management in the country. Forests are a resource having global concerns. Consequent to this realization, the focus of the international community has been towards sustainable management of this crucial national resource. However, in a country like India, the forestry sector has to complete with other multifarious infrastructure demands as well an increasing population pressure and therefore the required funds are not available. Apart from a lack of adequate resources, there are certain other forests like the adoption of environmentally sound technology and a lack of commitment towards sustainable development mechanisms, which also hinder sustainable forest management.
VIII. Conclusion:
Net forest cover is increasing in India, which is an encouraging sign. However, a decrease in the dense forest cover area is a matter of concern. Even if a huge portion of this decrease is said to be because of interpretational corrections, the fact remains that
the real decrease in dense forest cover has been assessed at 4,605 square km. In addition, the increase in planted forest areas does not really compensate for a loss of the natural forests. The role of forests in poverty alleviation and food security has now been globally acknowledged. Among other things, forests will increasingly be looked upon as resources for rural employment generation and poverty alleviation programmes. The trends indicate that planted forests and trees outside forests will also have to provide an increasing share of forest products. An equal emphasis has to be given to the non-wood forest produce. The information and knowledge situation remains poor. India being a vast country with much diversity, information collection and compilation is very often found lacking. Many times the information is available separately either at the state level or district level but an overall information system has not been developed. In fact, few countries in the world have such a forest monitoring system in place, which could provide information about social, economic and environmental trends in forestry. There is an emergent need for investments in forestry information systems, which could effectively monitor the progress of Sustainable forest management in the country. There has been a trend of over-reliance on remote sensing technology, but for the diverse and complex information required for SFM a more relevant and broad based information system relying on systematic data collection is required. There is thus a need for a Forest Information system to assess the natural and planted forest resources, their management, uses and accrued contributions to the country. Both the spatial and non-spatial data together can help in achieving SFM through focused approach and strategies. The Forest Resource Assessment of both the natural forests and the planted areas is a crucial component in the overall framework for monitoring, assessing and reporting on the progress towards sustainable forest management.
TREES OUTSIDE FORESTS (TOF)

J.P.L. Srivastava Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Haryana 1.0 NATIONAL FOREST SCENARIO
Forests play an important role in environmental stability and make significant contribution on towards economic development. Forests also help in biological rejuvenation of soils. Future of food, livelihood and environmental security depends upon proper management of land, water, forest and biodiversity. India is signatory is various conventions and principles, in the interest of protection of the global environment, including Agenda 21 to address the pressing problems of present and preparations for emerging environmental challenges of the 21st century, convention on conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, convention to combat desertification, convention on mountain development, global policy on sustainable forest management called as Forest Principles and UN framework convention on climatic change and the Kyoto Protocol of 1997. The forests of India have a growing stock of 4,740 million m3 with annual increment of 87.62 million m3. Since 78% of the forest area is subjected to grazing as well as heavy removal of forest products and 51% is subjected to occasional fire (the net annual loss being about 74,000 hectares), the productivity of forest is only 0.7m3 per hectare per year against potential productivity of at least 2 m3. The yields obtained form plantations are also less than the potential. According to a study of Forest Survey of India (FSI), the total requirement of fuel wood in the country was around 201 million tons in 1996. Out of this roughly 103 million tones was brought from the forest areas (including plantations), which constitutes nearly 51 percent of the total requirement, and the balance 98 million tones from farm forestry sector including plantations on common land. As per estimates (FSI, 1995), the annual increment of Indias forests in terms of fuel wood is around 26.3 million cum (21 million tones). Of this around 17 million tones is available on sustained basis. In this way, nearly 86 million tones of fuel wood is being removed from the forests and plantations of India every year in excess of what they are capable of producing on sustained basis. The projected demands of fuel wood for 2001 and 2006 are 223 and 247 million tones respectively. We have to bridge the gap to prevent the problem of environmental degradation. Total demand of timber has been estimate at 64 million cu. m. in 1996, which will rise to 73 and 82 million cum in 2001 and 2006 respectively. Out of 64 million cu. m., nearly 31 million cu. m. comes from farm forestry and other woodlands and 12 million cu. m. from forests. The balance 21 million cu. m. is removed from plantations and natural forests, largely (70%) as small timber to meet the domestic need. Gregarious bamboo flowering is taking place. Concerted efforts have to be made for preparation of emergency plan in order to advance harvesting of bamboo and converting them into various utility products. Out of 445 million cattle in the country, nearly 270 million graze in forests. FSI has estimated (1996) that the requirements of green and dry fodder were 593 and 482 million tones respectively. The requirement of green and dry fodder will increase to 699 and 552 millions tones and 817 and 615 millions tones respectively in 2001 & 2006. It is generally agreed that nearly 30% of the fodder requirement of the country comes from forest areas. Therefore, there is removal to the extent of 145 million tones of dry fodder and 178 million tones of green fodder annually from forest areas. In certain cases lopping of trees during crunch period is a common practice and has been causing considerable damage to the forest resources.
2. STATUS OF FORESTS & TREE COVER

The total geographical area of the country is 3,287,263 km2. According to the State of Forest Report 2003, the forest cover of the country is 20.64%, while the tree cover is 3.04 % of geographical area of the country. On the whole, 23.68% of area is under forest and tree cover while the recorded forest area (RFA) covers 23.57 % of the area of the country. As it takes about 2-6 years for plantations to develop canopy that can be registered in satellite data or for trees to attain a diameter of 10 cm, it is safe to presume that assessment of forest and tree cover presented in 2003 report does not include younger plantations which cover about 2 % of geographical area of the country. It can, thus, be safely assumed that one fourth area of the country is under forest and tree cover. The status of forest and tree cover as per Status of Forest Report 2003(FSI) in different states is as follows: Table 1: Overview of State/UT wise Forest & Tree Cover.
State/UT Geographic Recorded Forest Area Area (km2) (RFA) (km2) 1 Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar Chhattisgarh Delhi Goa Gujarat Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu & Kashmir Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Orissa Punjab 2 275,069 83,743 78,438 94,163 135,191 1,483 3,702 196,022 44,212 55,673 222,236 79,714 191,791 38,863 308,245 307,713 22,327 22,429 21,081 16,579 155,707 50,362 3 63,821 51,540 27,018 6,473 59,772 85 1,224 19,113 1,558 37,033 20,230 23,605 43,084 11,268 95,221 61,939 17,418 9,496 16,717 8,629 58,136 3,084 % 4 23.20 61.55 34.45 6.87 44.21 5.73 33.06 9.75 3.52 66.52 9.10 29.61 22.46 28.99 30.89 20.13 78.01 42.34 79.30 52.05 37.34 6.12 Forest Cover (FC) (km2) 5 44,419 68,019 27,826 5,558 55,998 170 2,156 14,946 1,517 14,353 21,267 22,716 36,449 15,577 76,429 46,865 17,219 16,839 18,430 13,609 48,366 1,580 % 6 16.15 81.22 35.48 5.90 41.42 11.46 58.24 7.62 3.43 25.78 9.57 28.50 19.00 40.08 24.79 15.23 77.12 75.08 87.42 82.09 31.06 3.14 Forest+Tree Cover (FTC) (Km2) 7 56,539 68,382 28,761 7,178 62,721 268 2,292 25,532 2,932 14,844 25,093 27,728 41,820 17,480 83,679 56,185 17,355 17,191 18,560 13,826 54,747 3,188 % 8 20.55 81.66 36.67 7.62 46.39 18.08 61.91 13.03 6.63 26.66 11.29 34.78 21.80 44.98 27.15 18.26 77.73 76.65 88.04 83.39 35.16 6.33 FTC- RFA (Col. 7 - 3) (Km2) 9 -7,282 16,842 1,743 705 2,949 183 1,068 6,419 1,374 % 10 -3 20 2 1 2 12 29 3 3
-22,189 -40 4,863 4,123 -1,264 6,212 -11,542 -5,754 -63 7,695 1,843 5,197 -3,389 104 2 5 -1 16 -4 -2 0 34 9 31 -2 0
1 Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttaranchal West Bengal Andaman & Nicobar Chandigarh Dadra & Nagar Haveli Daman & Diu Lakshadweep Pondicherry Total
2 342,239 7,096 130,058 10,486 240,928 53,483 88,752 8,249 114 491 112 32 480
3 32,488 5,841 22,877 6,293 16,826 34,662 11,879 7,171 34 204 1 0 0
4 9.49 82.31 17.59 60.01 6.98 64.81 13.38 86.93 29.82 41.55 0.89 0.00 0.00 23.57
5 15,826 3,262 22,643 8,093 14,118 24,465 12,343 6,964 15 225 8.34 23 40 678,333
6 4.62 45.97 17.41 77.18 5.86 45.74 13.91 84.42 13.16 45.82 7.45 71.88 8.33
7 24,464 3,284 27,634 8,209 21,833 25,036 14,074 6,997 23 260 14 25 75
8 7.15 46.28 21.25 78.29 9.06 46.81 15.86 84.82 20.18 52.95 12.80 76.56 15.42 23.68
9 -8,024 -2,557 4,757 1,916 5,007 -9,626 2,195 -174 -11 56 13 25 75 3,489
10 -2 -36 4 18 2 -18 2 -2 -10 11 12 77 15 0
3,287,263 774,740
20.64 778,229
The table indicates that Fifteen states namely, A.P., Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, H.P., J.&K., Karnataka, M.P., Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu, U.P., West Bengal and three UTs namely Chandigarh, Daman & Diu and Pondicherry are having less than one third area under FTCs. The two hill states namely H.P. and J.&K. which should have 66% area under FTCs as prescribed in 1988 forest policy, are having less than one third area under FTCs. Arunachal Pradesh, Delhi, Goa, Kerala, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep and Pondicherry have done exceedingly well in improving their trees outside forests as their FTCs exceeds their RFAs by more than 10%. In case of H.P., Sikkim and Uttranchal states and Chandigarh U.T The RFAs exceed FTCs by more-than 10%.
As the FTC of the country is about 23.68 % of the area, the remaining 10% will be mainly coming from outside forest areas.
3.
WORLD FORESTRY VISION 2050
According to vision of forestry - 50 years on (Una-silva 204, Vol. 52-2001) the world vision of forestry will be as follows.
3.1
Plantations
Intensive tree farming will be adopted in large-scale plantations, allowing other conservation decisions to be made for natural forest areas. The global area of plantations will, therefore, increase dramatically to between three and four times its present extent.
Rural plantations and trees outside forests will have become more important in countries where the rural percentage of the population remains high. Industrial plantations will be financed by the private sector only, and market forces will determine the extension, reduction or conversion of tree plantations.
3.2

Supply and Demand

Demand for most forest products will continue to increase. Wood not in solid form but in composite panels and other forms will be increasingly used for house building. Prices of pulp-quality logs will decline as plantation productivity begins to increase during the next decade. Pulp and paper recycling rates will stagnate, perhaps at about 60 to 70 percent of the materials, because of collection costs and availability.
3.3
Forest Cover
Between 2010 and 2020 forest cover will become stable at the global level. In the Asia and the Pacific region the area of natural forest cover will have diminished. With the largest loss occurring in South-East Asia: however, because of plantations and trees outside forest, tree cover in the region may remain the same or may increase.
4.0
4.1
NATIONAL VISION- 2020

National Forestry Action Programme (NFAP), Ministry of Environment of Forests, Government of India: To increase the area under forest/tree cover to 33% of the geographical area of the country, the target of about 60 million ha afforestation, regeneration and plantation is required with an investment of 1,33,903 crores in next 20 years. The details are as follows. (a) (b) Improve forest cover density and productivity Plantation on non-forest and farm lands about 31 million ha about 29 million ha
5.
TASK FORCE ON GREENING INDIA; PLANNING COMMISSION, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
Greening programme proposes to cover 43 million ha degraded land under watershed approach to bring 33% of geographical area of the country under forest/tree cover by 2012. The details are as follows. i. ii. iii. regeneration of 15 m ha degraded forests under JFM agro forestry in 10 m ha irrigated areas agro forestry in 18m ha rainfed areas
In order to carry out Greening India in 10 years timeframe, it is proposed to set up Green India Authority and Green India Fund for effective implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the programme. Annual investment of Rs. 4800 crores (inclusive of Rs. 1125 crores in terms of food grain under Food for Work scheme) has been envisaged over a period of 10 years for implementation of the programme.
6. SCOPE OF TOF
The per capita forest area in India is one of the lowest. It is 0.08 ha against an average of 1.07 ha for developed countries and 0.64 ha for the world as a whole. National Forest Policy, 1988, envisage that one third of the area should be under forest and tree cover. This is a departure form National Forest Policy, 1952, which emphasized that the one third geographical area of the country should be under forest. The policy makers of NFP 1988 realized that in view of increasing population pressure it would not be possible to increase the forest area, and they replaced words forest area of 1952 policy with forest and tree cover in the 1988 policy. Here lies the importance of TOF. The only way to achieve the goal envisaged in NFP 1988 is to undertake massive planting of trees outside forest areas. The approach paper of the Tenth Five Year Plan has fixed to increase/tree cover to the extent of 25% by 2007 and 33% by 2012. TOF is required for soil and water conservation, presentation of environment and to meet the requirement of forest produce. The total import of forest produce has exceeded Rs 8000 cr per annum, which must be reversed and this can be achieved only by planting trees outside forest. Total geographical area of the country is 329 m. ha. The data available for land use classification is only for 305 m. ha. About 22 m ha, is under habitation and 19 m. ha. is barren and uncultivable being under rock or perpetual snow. Thus 41 m ha is not available for agriculture or forests. Of the remaining 264 m. ha, forestland is about 64 m ha. The area under agriculture is 142 m. ha. which provides potential for development of trees outside forest. The green revolution led to increase in production through enhanced productivity. The fall outs of the green revolution, however, have been soil degradation, loss of productive land due to salinisation and water logging resulting from canal irrigation, leaching of nitrates into surface and ground water etc. National Agriculture Policy, 2000, clearly indicates Agriculture has become a relatively unrewarding profession due to generally unfavourable price regime and low value addition, causing abandoning of farming and increasing migration from rural areas. Hence the policy stresses, Farmers will be encouraged to take up farm/agroforestry for higher extension and credit support packages and agroforestry. With the advent of social forestry, diversification in agriculture was encouraged to generate higher income generation by evolving technology, extension and credit support packages and removing constraints to development of agro-forestry. There is a need to intensify commercial agroforestry in irrigated areas. Also a strategy for rainfed areas should be developed for sustained agriculture, food and environmental security. Let us review the scenario of wood based industries. Pulp and paper industry is the most important cellulose fibre based industry in India with turnover exceeding Rs. 1000 crores. There are more than 380 mills with installed capacity of nearly 50 lakh tonnes. Historically, the industry has grown @ 5% but during the 1990s, the growth rate has been faster around 8%. Most of the mills are very small compared to international standards and as many 315 mills or 83% of the mills have less than 10000 tonnes per annum capacity. Only 4 mills have installed capacity over 100000 tonnes per year. Per capita consumption of paper in India is too low around 5 kg compared to world average of around 50 kg and 40 kg for Asia Pacific Region. An Expert Committee set up by Govt. of India in their January 1996 report has forecast a shortfall of 25 lakh tonnes in possible domestic production against likely demand of 67 lakh tonnes for 2005-06. The gap between demand and likely domestic production is projected to grow to 36 lakh tonnes by 2010-11 and 51 lakh tonnes by 2015-16 unless immediate steps and taken to promote technology based pulpwood
plantations for securing the future raw materials supplies for the industry through suitable policy initiatives. Each tonne of paper production requires approximately 4 tonnes of freshly harvested pulpwood. For example, 144 lakh tonnes of additional pulpwood will be required annually to bridge the projected gap of 36 lakh tonnes of paper by 2010-11. Assuming average productivity of 20 tonnes/ha/yr from clonal plantations, 7.2 lakh ha new area will have to be maintained under pulpwood plantations. That means planting of nearly 1.5 lakh ha annually assuming 5 years harvest cycle only for pulpwood production. These plantations can support 7 paper mills of 5,00,000 tonnes per annum capacity. That will mean huge inflow of capital investments as an integrated pulp and paper mill of 5,00,000 tonnes per annum capacity will require capital investments of the order of rupees 5000 crores. Industrial processing of pulpwood from these plantations will mean tremendous local value addition and employment opportunities for large rural population. Absence of such plantations will mean surrendering our large domestic market on a platter to the exporters of paper and a huge import bill of nearly US $ 3 billion on import of 36 lakh tonnes of paper per year by 2010-11. Therefore planning for integrated development of farm forestry plantations and pulp and paper and other wood based industries should be accorded high national priority and innovative policy initiatives must be taken forthwith to bring more areas under TOF. Such plantations will attract huge capital investments in the concerned states, provide ample employment opportunities for local people, ameliorate the environment, conserve biodiversity, rich natural forest and bring prosperity to the states through multiplier effect. Simultaneously, these plantations will play very important role in promoting much needed diversification of agriculture and create vast opportunities for harnessing international funds as carbon sinks. Units are located in Yamuna nagar district of Haryana which is one of the biggest farm-grown wood market of the country. Lot of wood comes in this market from Haryana, and the adjoining states of Uttaranchal, U.P. and Punjab etc. A survey was conducted by the Forest Department Haryana indicate that the total wood received in Yamunanagar is of the order of over Rs 600 crores annually and the entire produce comes from trees planted outside forest area. TOF activity around Yamunanagar is probably the largest in the country. There is a vast potential to develop such timber markets in the country to promote TOF and wood based industries.
7.
GROWING TREES OUTSIDE FOREST
Both the greening plans described above make a provision for the development of Tree Cover on 28-29 million ha of non-forest and farm lands. About 5 % of cultivated land i.e. 7 million ha or at a more conservative estimate 5 million ha may be adopted under agro-forestry. The quality of land will be good with mostly private ownership. Rest 23 million ha will be under degraded condition with ownership mainly government, institutions, panchayats, community and partly private ownership. The degraded lands will require more investment as compared to cultivated land and the returns may not be commensurate with investment. Private persons may not be interested for the development of such type of degraded lands so the investment in degraded lands has to be made mainly by the government. The wood produced from degraded lands will definitely compete with farm-grown wood. The favourable policies are required to provide remunerative prices to wood producers.
Items Proposed area Ownership Policy Financing Investment Planting Maintenance Productivity Opportunity cost Marketing policy
Degraded Lands 21 million ha Mostly panchayat/community Reserving one third land for tree cover through incentives Central/state government High investment Forest Department/village institution Do Low Very less Favourable to tree produce
Cultivated lands 7 million ha Mostly private Will be forces decided by market
Private farmers Low investment Farmer Do High Very high Favourable to tree produce
7.1
Agencies Involved
The available land belongs to three broad categories, namely, Govt./Institutional lands, Panchayat/Community lands, and Farmlands. The adoption of tree cover will depend upon the perception of the owner, present land use, involvement of the stakeholders, and relative profitability of tree farming. Farmlands will contribute significantly in increasing the tree cover if cultivation of tree crops remains a profitable venture.
7.1.1 Govt. departments/Institutions

Concerned government departments/institutions should reserve 1-2 % of their budget for greening of their lands. The government departments/institutions should plant at their own or as a deposit work by the forest department. The plantations will be retained till physical rotation or as and when need arises for the alternative use of land whichever is early. The concerned department/institutions or the forest department will protect the plantation as mutually agreed. The plantations will be done mainly on environmental considerations. The School children are a potential force and they can be involved in tree planting and their maintenance to make them environmentally conscious. It will help them in behaving as a responsible citizen of the country in future also.
7.1.2.Panchayats
Panchayats should be motivated to reserve one third area of P/community lands under tree cover. The panchayats which reserve one third area under tree cover, could be provided incentives in rural development schemes. The forest department/village institutions will plant and protect plantations as decided by the panchayats. The cultivation of grasses in plantation will be promoted as an incentive to landless to create their interest in protecting plantations. The fuel wood plantations will be preferred to provide early income (5-6 years) to panchayats. It will lead to more adoption of tree planting by panchayats.
7.1.3 Cultivators
The adoption of agro forestry is a commercial venture for the farmers. The agroforestry is less costly as only seedlings have to be provided and rest of the cost is borne by the farmers. The profitability of tree farming should be increased through better quality of seedlings, marketing facilities and favourable policy decisions.
7.1.4 Residents
The residents should be motivated for planting trees in their houses, factories, etc. Trees are very essential in urban areas not only to increase the tree cover but also to counter the increasing pollution. The involvement of Resident Welfare Associations and local committees/corporations are essential to motivate the residents for doing tree plantations. It is the cheapest method of controlling pollution. Even trees reduce the energy requirement of houses (cooling/heating).
8.
CHOICE OF SPECIES
As has been stated earlier commercial timber species could be grown in irrigated areas. Most common species currently planted are Eucalyptus and poplar. The other species are Acaica milolica, Casuarina equisetifolia, Prospis cineraria and Bamboo. Seed grown seedlings generally result in low productivity. In agriculture the green revolution could make an impact due to introduction of high yielding varieties. Same type of revolution is required in forestry to promote TOF programme. The advent of clonal technology has shown the light. It has been proved that cloning of superior genotypes is a viable option. There is a need to develop clonal varieties of the potentially useful tree species. Clonal propagation has several advantages including uniformity of plants and higher fields. Eucalyptus hybrid clones have given the productivity of 40-50 cum per ha per year. Biofuel is another important area. Biodiesel is commercially available in the world market. Rapeseed is used in USA, palmoil in Malaysia, linseed oil and olive oil in spain, cotton seed oil in Greece, and Jatropha curcas oil in Nicaragua. The last one Jatropha has potential for India. It can be grown under a variety of conditions. It is well adapted in arid and semi and areas. The species has adapted itself to different climatic conditions. Though it has been found that well drained sandy clay loams are better suited for Jatropha, it can be cultivated on wide range of soils. Jatropha oil as fuel for diesel motors offers realistic prospects, besides its use for firing furnaces in areas where firewood scarcity is a problem. Jatropha plant lost for 40-50 yrs. It has good potential in ToF porgramme. Another area important from the point of view of choice of species is Agromediculture. There is a growing demand of medicinal plants for crude drug, health products and cosmetics. International market of medicinal plants is expected to be of the order of US $ 70 billion per year, which is growing at a rate of seven percent. Planting of medicinal species, besides bringing health and happiness to the people, will generate employment and income and boost export.
9.
FINANCIAL RESOURCES
Lack of investment in forestry sector has been the main reason for degradation of forests and slow progress in achieving the goal of bringing one third of the total geographical area under forest and tree cover. Allocation of plan funds to forestry sector has been less than one percent of the total plan outlay of the country against the desired level of 4% to 5%. According to report of task force on Greening India (Planning
Commission 2001) the financial requirement for greening programme would be of the order of Rs. 48,000 Cr against the current availability of Rs 1615 Cr. Obviously there is a huge gap. And unless financial resources are made available to increase the investment in forestry sector, the goal of bringing one third of geographical area under forest/tree cover will remain a distant dream. Presently the resources available to State Forest Deptts. is through State Plan schemes & Central schemes . The only central scheme supporting plantation program presently under the Ministry of Environment and Forests, is National Afforestation Programme (NAP) implemented through Forest Development Agency (FDA) which has been a success. MOEF is contemplating some more central schemes to boost the investment in forestry sector. Other resources include Externally Aided Projects, Employment Gurantee Scheme, NABARD etc. Ministry of Rural Development is also funding programme like Hariyali, DPAP, DDP, Technology extension etc. The schemes of NABARD for farm forestry/agroforestry have met with very limited success and the refinance under this sector during the last five years averages out to about Rs. 10.8 cr, which is too meagre for such an ambitions greening programme. The probable reasons (Task Force, Planning Commission 2001) considered for this is the internal rate of return for such activities which varied from 17.5 to 24 % and which could easily be affected by adverse market trends. Other factors may be the longer gestation period of tree farming and uncertainties because of the poor quality of lands on which such plantations were generally raised. The investment of private sector is another area which needs attention. Some like WIMCO, ITC Bhadrachalam have promoted raising of their raw material. A large number plantation companies entered the arena last decade with financial collection of the order of over Rs 2000 Cr. Their efforts, however, have not met with success. To sum up, the present level of investment in forest sector is not sufficient. An increased level of investment is required to achieve the goal of bringing one third of the area under green cover.
10.
CONSTRAINTS IN DEVELOPMENT OF TOF
The development of tree cover outside forests has been constrained by following factors in the country.
10.1 Restrictions on Tree Felling and Transport

A major constraint is restrictions on tree felling, transportation and sale. This is a strong disincentive for tree growing by farmers and in diversifying the species grown. The restriction applies selectively to species, regions and nature of land holding. These restrictions are particularly hard on small farmers who have little access to bureaucratic system for obtaining permits. Legal requirement for obtaining permit to transport timber/wood to the market encourages involvement of middlemen.
10.2 Extension Programme

The extension agency should be supported by a strong research unit which would identify suitable species, prepare yield and volume table, fix rotation, establish demonstration and collect useful data for the user farmer. This has not reached such a level to make it a real motivating force.
10.3. Marketing and Trade

Marketing for forest products has not developed in the country as a whole. Traditionally, the government had been the only major producer of timber and, therefore, an infrastructure for an open and free timber market could not develop. The farmers suffer due to lack of market intelligence and timely delivery of information. There is a lack of capacity in department in analysis and distribution of information on market trends. The information about the timber markets is also not available to farmers. There is a need to intervene in the marketing of wood to eliminate farmers exploitation by contractors & commission agents through standardizing the grading of farm-grown timber, the deduction rates for different types of wood defects, proper weighment and timely payments. It is necessary to protect the interests of the tree growers in a similar fashion as State Agriculture Marketing Boards do for agricultural crops. Supporting farmers in marketing of wood through declaration of Minimum Support Price need to be considered. It will help the farmers in assuring minimum returns on growing trees while promising the raw material to industry in long run. Farmers need to be provided information about the markets where farmers can sell their farm-grown timber. They should be provided information about the seasonal fluctuations of rates of farm-grown timber. For this, an information network of important markets of wood and other forest products should be created. Some mechanism should be developed for collection and dissemination of information regarding price, import, export and domestic trade of wood products. The farmers are not getting proper prices due to un/under developed wood market. Present marketing system is favorable to the traders, commission agents, and manufacturers. Farmers suffer losses in marketing of wood due to: a) b) c) d) Manipulation of rates Unnecessary rejections/down-grading by buyers. Under weighing by manipulations High commissions & delayed payments.
The market of agro-forestry products should be regulated through Mandi Parishad Act. Timber Markets should be developed on the pattern of State Agricultural Marketing Board. A provision of buy back guarantee could be provided by the wood-based industries to farmers. The problem of storage of wood, funds required and establishment of consumption centers should be tackled simultaneously. Forest Development Corporations (FDCs) were established in each state with a view to eliminating the private contractor. The roles and responsibilities of FDCs differ from State to State. However, they have not proved very efficient in marketing. They use four modes of product disposal such as public auction, allocation, supply order to public undertakings and retail sales. National Forest Policy, 1988 sought to discontinue the practice of raw material supplies to industries at concession. However, FDCs are still one of the dominant suppliers of timber to industries at administratively controlled prices. This acts as a disincentive to farmers both in terms of price as well as volume. The floor prices of FDCs neither reflect the market prices nor their supply capture the market trends.
10.4 Quality Planting Stock

The poor quality planting stock which results into poor productivity of plantations, causes financial loss to farmers. There is also lack of development of new clones/hybrids/varieties of tree crops. The seed from Seed Production Areas (SPAs), and Seed Orchards of priority species is inadequate to meet the demand of the plantations. The source of planting stock is also unreliable. There is a need for a systematic and time bound action for raising planting stock with adequate R & D support.
10.5 Appropriate Agro-forestry models

Various technical aspects are involved in practicing agro-forestry such as selection of appropriate species/clones for a given site, which should interfere least with agriculture, use of correct planting techniques, carrying out timely maintenance and adopting scientific management principles. The agro-forestry models should be developed for different agro-ecological regions. The proper matching of species/clones to the site is necessary through multi-location trials.
10.6 Private Nurseries:

Private nurseries have come-up in big number to meet the growing demand of plants. The nurseries do not maintain the quality of plants as these operate with a motive of earning more profit. The farmers are bearing financial loss due to poor quality of plants. The quality of seedlings & clones should be controlled through suitable Agroforestry Nursery Act & rules, so that the farmers get standard and certified planting stocks.
10.7 Management of Rural Woodlots

Forest Department undertakes plantations on panchayat/community lands regularly. The plantations are handed over to panchayats/village forest committees for management after three years or so. But the local institutions are unable to protect the plantations and these plantations are consumed locally before the rotation.
10.8 Competition of Forest Departments with farmers

Forest departments are supplying pulpwood to wood-based industries and competing with farmers, which is unnecessarily creating an unhealthy competition between them. The management policies of forest departments need a fresh look. Forest departments should concentrate on the production of timber, while farmers generally produce poles/pulpwood. The Forest Departments, should plant only long rotation (10 years and above) species like Shisham, Teak, Kikar, etc. as against the short rotation crops (less than 10 years) preferred for farm forestry. Forest department should increase the rotation of Eucalyptus to 16 years to avoid competition with farmers. It will also help in meeting the demands of timber locally and reduce the import of timber.
10.9 Export-Import Policy

Due to the large-scale import of logs and pulp, the prices of domestic timber, especially farm-grown wood have fallen. The current import policy of import of timber and pulp needs to be reviewed. The tariff on import of capital goods has been a discouragement to forest based industry modernization and green field projects. Agroforestry has a potential to meet the total wood requirements of the country. Govt. of India should encourage tree farming through imposition of heavy import duty on
wood to encourage their domestic production. The tariff on import of capital goods should be reduced to encourage the modernization of forest-industry.
10.10 Research and Technology Development

At present performance of forest plantations in the country, in terms of survival, growth, yield has been poor. The Mean Annual Increment (MAI) of forest plantations varies form about 2 m3/ha/year for valuable timber species to about 5-8 m3/ha/year for Eucalyptus and other fast growing species. This may be compared to MAI of over 10 m3/ha/year and about 50 m3/ha/year for good quality industrial plantations in different countries; over 70 m3/ha/year has also been reported in certain cases. By any measure the performance of forest plantations in the country is far below the potential. It is a matter of ecological and economic concern. The area which need attention in this regard are increasing productivity, selection of suitable clones for different edaphic and climatic conditions, forest product research and protection of existing trees through suitable silvicultural practices.
FOREST FIRE CONTROL AND PREVENTION FOR SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT

J.P.L. Srivastava Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Haryana 1. GENERAL
Nearly all countries, in every stage of economic development and in every ecological region are suffering the environmental, social and economic consequences of forest fires. The frequency and intensity of forest fires around the globe in recent years have become alarming. Even the developed countries with all their scientific and technological advances have not escaped the wrath of severe fire disasters. Forest fire threats and incidences have increased as a result of the depletion and degradation of the forest. Wild fire is no more a forestry issue alone. Fire, haze, and smoke have caused problems to human health, polluted the atmosphere and aggravated the greenhouse effect besides causing detrimental effects to biological diversity. Quite often the underlying causes of fire incidence and spread may lie outside the forestry sector, such as rural poverty and deprivation or the effects of other public policies related to land use etc. Thus the problem needs to be tackled as a coordinated approach amongst the personnel working with land tenure, community awareness and also policy makers besides forest officials. This also suggests the need to encourage fire management cost sharing among all relevant stakeholders at all levels and to develop inter-sectoral cooperation at national and local levels. The forest cover in India, according to State of Forest Report 2003, is 67.5 million ha. constituting 20.5 % of the total geographical area of the country. Of this, 41.68 m. ha (61.7 %) is dense forest and 25.87 (38.3 %) is open forest. Of the different forest types the tropical dry deciduous forest which is most common is also most sensitive to forest fire. Forest fire is as old as human civilization. It is of common occurrence and widespread in India. Incidence of forest fire in the country is on the increase due primarily to increasing biotic interference resulting from increasing human and livestock population. Forest fire causes serious environmental and economic losses due to burning of timber, firewood and fodder. It causes soil erosion. This also results increased flooding some times and water shortage at other times. Fire conflagrate and ruin forests and destroy the work of generations. It is said that a years scrupulous fire protection efforts would benefit a forest crop more substantially than a whole generation of improvement fellings. There are several adverse impacts of fires. The scale of damage both in terms of environmental impact and economics has become too serious to continue. Forest fire is perhaps the worst calamity affecting the mankind and its environment, yet it has not got the attention that it deserves. This is primarily because the fire effects are not immediately visualized nor the loss on account of fire particularly on the environment has been properly understood or assessed. Loss of human lives from forest fire is relatively low, and not comparable with calamities like earthquake and floods or even the road accidents and has, therefore, failed to stir public opinion. Things have now started moving thanks to increased awareness in general public about environmental degradation.
2.
CAUSES OF FOREST FIRE
Incidence of forest fires depend not only on climatic conditions but also on socioeconomic conditions. The cause of the fire may be natural or man-caused. Not only in India but in the whole world forest fires are caused mostly by man himself. It has been estimated that about 99 % of the forest fires in the country are caused by human beings which may be intentional or accidental. The factors responsible for natural causes of forest fires are lightning, rolling stones, rubbing of bamboos with each other. It is generally felt that most of the fires are caused by the people intentionally and have close relationship with their socio-economic conditions. Various causes of forest fires in the country are summarized below:
2.1
Grazing
India having only 2.5 % of geographical area supports 16 % of the cattle population of the world. Number of cattle grazing in the forests in India are far more than the carrying capacity. The communities living in the vicinity of the forest had been dependent on it for their basic subsistence. One of the most important causes of forest fires is the intentional fire caused by the graziers who set light to the forest to produce flush of succulent grasses in the dry season. Initially the burning may result in palatable grasses and in the short term in view of large cattle population and depleting grazing resources the graziers may have no other option, but in the long run the quality of grazing may deteriorate. According to available literature repeated burning may lead to change in species composition of the ground vegetation and intense fires tend to favour perennial grasses at the cost of annual species, but the synergistic nature of the relationship between burning and grazing intensity defies analysis from an economic point of view. Alternative fodder supplies and organized controlled burning could affect the situation to some extent.
2.2
Shifting Cultivation
Early settlers used fire in the virgin forest stands and adopted the practice themselves to keep down bush for better access and hunting and to get rid of the brush and timber so that they could farm. This custom of setting fires alongwith careless wildfires left hundreds of thousands of acres of forests nonproductive. Shifting cultivation is a social issue and has been in practice particularly in north-eastern part of the country for centuries. When this practice started the forested area did not have to provide subsistence for the large number of people as they do today. Areas were slashed and burned then farmed until the soil became unproductive, and then the people would move to another area and repeat the process. The situation has deteriorated wherever this practice is still followed due to increase in population and limited availability of land for the purpose.
2.3
NTFP Collection
Collection of non-timber forest produce particularly in central India contributes to the cause of wildfire to a large extent. Significant among them are collection of beedileaves (Diospyros melanoxylon) and the mahua (Madhuca indica) flower. Collectors of tendu leaves cause deliberate fire in summer months to promote better flush, softer and more tender leaves. Mahua pickers burn the dry leaves under mahua trees to get a clean patch of floor to facilitate collection of its edible flowers which is of considerable value to the poor villagers and tribals particularly in the years of shortages. The mahua trees are generally found scattered in the tropical dry deciduous forests in many parts of northern and central India, and though the intention of the people lighting such fires is only to have a small patch of clean floor under the mahua trees, they, however, do not
extinguish the fires which escape in to the forest generally by negligence. Since collection of mahua flowers is done in summer months, the hot dry weather aggravates the situation and it results into large fires.
2.4
Other Causes
Wildfires also start as a result of carelessness on the part of picknickers, travelers and campers. Quite often such fires are set unaware by cart men or travelers along cart track and roads. Some set fires to the forests through a die-hard superstition of propitiating a deity. Fires are also caused by collection of sal seeds, lumbering, and forest labourers. Matches or burning tobacco in any form thrown by the smokers while passing through the forest also cause fires. Other causes of forest fire include spark of fire from railway engine, careless throwing of fire after honey collection, burning of agriculture fields adjacent to forest land etc. Of the various causes of fires the ones related with social issues contribute to large areas being burned every year. Such fires need to be reduced if a fire programme is going to be effective. Where social issues are the cause of fires these social concerns must be dealt with first. Once the social issue is resolved the technical issues can be dealt with in an efficient manner.
3.
FIRE SEASON
The factors contributing the fire are heat, fuel and air. The spread of fire depends on fuel and weather. Heavy fuel like logs, stumps and branch-wood burn readily but slowly and throw off a large volume of heat, when dry. Light fuel such as dry grass, dead leaves, tree needles etc. burn quickly, accelerate spread of fire and kindle heavier fuels. So far as weather is concerned, wind, moisture, and temperature are important. Strong wind lead to rapid spread of fire by augmenting supply of air. Wind is the least generally in the early morning. Air is drier during the day and causes rapid burning. The fire season depends amongst other things on weather but it generally coincides with the driest and hottest part of the year that precedes the outbreak of monsoon. Various regions of the country depending upon the prevailing weather condition there have different fire season which generally falls between January and June. In the plains of northern and central India most of the forest fires occur between February and June. In the hills of the northern India fire season is generally from April to June. In southern India the fire season extends from middle of January to May. Though period of fire occurrence is largely governed by weather conditions yet biotic interference plays an important role as most of the fires in the country are man caused. According to a study carried out in Chandrapur (Maharashtra), 87 % of the fire incidences burning an area of more than 77 % occur in March April, and another 21 % of fire incidences responsible for burning 17.5 % of the area occur in May. This may be true for most of the central and southern States in India particularly in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Orissa. Similarly, according to another study carried out in Haldwani (Uttaranchal), 87 % of the fire incidents burning 93 % of the total burnt area occur in the months of April and May. The situation may not be much different in other northern States.
4.
TYPES OF FOREST FIRE
Forest fires are of three types the sub-surface fire, surface fire, and the crown fire. Sub-surface fire burns into the underlying soil, for example peat fire, besides burning leaf litter on the forest floor. This type of fire is most difficult to control. Subsurface forest fire is far too rare in India. The most famous example of sub-surface fire
and probably the biggest fire of the century is East Kalimantan fire of 1982-83 which raged for several months through Kalimantan and Malaysia burning an estimated 3.5 million hectares of forest. A surface fire is a fire that burns the ground cover and the undergrowth. Most of the fires occurring in India are surface fires. Crown fire is a fire spreading through the crown of the trees and burns the upper branches and foliage. Instances of crown fire in India are also few and are generally reported from coniferous forests. Sometimes a surface fire burning through taller undergrowth leads to a crown fire. A crown fire is more dangerous and difficult to control as compared to a surface fire.
5.
FOREST AREA BURNED
The total forest area of the world in 1900 was nearly 7000 m ha. and by 1975 it was reduced to 2890 m ha. according to a study conducted by United Nations. The major reduction in forest area is expected to be in the tropics and sub-tropics (40.2%), whereas only 0.6 % is accounted for temperate regions. In the tropics and subtropics of the Asia and the pacific the reduction was around 50 % which possibly could be attributed to the population pressure. Incidence of forest fire has been increasing the world over. Traditional land use practices and changes in the weather pattern seems to be the primary region. Fire has been one of the most destructive agents of the forests which are the most import resources of the environment. Now a days fire is considered to be worst calamity affecting nature and environment. Incidence of fire is on the increase throughout the world. As assessment of global forest area burnt has been made by ESA (European Space Agency) using coarse resolution (1.1 km2) SPOT 4 VEGETATION (SPOT VGT) of 2000 and it is reported that 9% (47,134 km2) of total forest area got burnt. The United States has a land area of 971 m ha of which 65% is forest and rangeland. The vegetation type vary from heavy conifer forests of the North Pacific Coast to spruce and hardwood forests of the North Atlantic Coast and from the pine stands of the South Atlantic Coast to the bush and grass lands of the South pacific coast, with different altitudes and climates. On an average over 1,00,000 wildfires occur every year. In 1980 the total area burnt was 1.25 m ha and in 1981 it was 1.69 m ha. 80,000, fires were reported in 2000. About 2% of the fires was responsible for 90% of the area burnt. The fire fighting cost has increased from half a billion dollar in 1980s to nearly one billion dollar in 1990s. The total forest area of Canada is about 300 m ha. The total area burnt in 1980 was 4.8 m ha and in 1981 it was 5.4 m ha. It was 1.69 m ha in 1982 and 1.23 m ha in 19.83. The burnt areas has increased to 2.8 m ha during 1990s. Annual burnt area vary in the range of say 0.76 m ha in 1984 to 7.28 m ha in 1989. Australia is fire prone continent. In some part of the continent, fires occur throughout the year. In Portugal, fire is the main threat to forest which cover an area of 3.64 m ha. Major fires affect pinewoods on coastal and mountainous areas in the north. In Spain, with a total forest area of 11.79 m. ha, ecological and demographic factors make fire one of the most important cause of the destruction of the environment. Mediterranean vegetation in natural formations and in reforested areas has poor fire resistance. In the period 1978-1981 there was an annual average of 8,390 fires with a burnt area of 318000 ha. 12837 fires in 1985 burnt 4.69 lakh ha. 1986 was also disastrous. Some reasons like Galicia, are by tradition more exposed to fire because of social and economic reasons.
In Italy forest fires have become an increasingly serious problem. During the period 1981-1985 the average annual fire was 11800 affecting an area of 1.68 lakh ha. In 1985, 18600 fire burnt 1.90 lakh ha with 18 people killed Normally the regions most vulnerable to fire in summer are the central and southern and the island. Also fire prone are the northern regions and high mountains in winter and early spring. In comparison to most European countries losses from fire in the United Kingdom is small varying from a few hundred hectares to few thousand hectares. On an average, the British woodland, totaling about 2.1 m ha is rarely exposed to fire, thanks to its humid climate. Germany suffered heavy losses from fire in 1975 and 1976 when high temperature and drought were exceptional over central Europe. Fire situation is generally controlled by the development of appropriate silvicultural measures and use of fire fighting equipment. In Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg forest fires normally affect small areas and are of limited importance. Forests and other woodland in France have a total area of 14.58 m ha. On an average 6500 fires burn 45000 ha every year. Now moving from Europe to Asia wildfire situation is a matter of concern. Some of the largest fires in the world have been reported from Borneo, primarily due to extreme drought and slash and burn practice of land cleaning. The area affected by fire in East Kalimantan in 1982-83 was 3.5 m ha of the total area burnt, 0.8m ha was primary rain forest, 1.4 m ha logged forest, 0.7 m ha secondary forest in the vicinity of settlement and 0.55m ha peat forest (Lennertz and Panzer 1984). Trees of various ages were killed in large scale. In Malaysia, wildfires are reported from pine plantations and Acacia mangium plantations and also from natural forests. Most of the fires are reported from monocultures and areas with increased biotic interference. In China total forest cover is 158.9 ma ha which is 16.55% of the total land area. Wildfires is mostly reported from a small region of fire provinces namely Heilongjiang, Inner Mongolia, Yunnan, Guangxi and Guizhou. This High fire occurrence Region is responsible for 42.5 percent of the total area burnt. One of the most devastating fire in China was reported in 1987 from Greater Xingan Mountains, Heilongjiang provinces where 1.33 m ha forest was burnt and 213 people killed. Timber loss was of the order 39.6 m. cu.m. In Turkey, 26.7 percent of the total geographical area i.e 20.7 m ha is under forest. However, only 51 percent of the forest land has productive forest and the remaining part is degraded forest land and eroded areas. The productive forests are mainly composed of coniferous species at higher elevations and broad leaved species at lower elevations where growing conditions are more favourable. Turkey has quite effective for control programme. People and media are very sensitive to wildfire. Reliable fire data is available. In the last sixty years 1,464,928 ha of the forest area has been burnt in Turkey. Currently annual average area burned is 12447 ha. Average size of fire works out to be 6.61 ha. 43 percent of the total forest area has fire risk. Sixty personnel have died in the last 60 years including four forest engineers, five pilots, two forest keepers, fourteen soldiers and thirty three fire fighting workers. Average annual loss caused by five is reportedly US$ 2.272 million. In 1996, the loss was US$ 7.047 million and the loss per hectare worked out to be US$ 472. Indonesias forest, situated between mainland Asia and Australia, are ecologically among the most important in the world as they are probably the richest in biodiversity. Of the total 140.3 million hectares of forest, which provides a high forest to land ratio of about 75%, 30.8m ha are protection forest, 64.3 ha production forest and 18.8 m ha nature reserves and national parks besides 26.6 m ha allocated for convertible forests. The country has a diverse forest ecosystem ranging from tropical lowland and highland
rain forests to peat swamp, fresh water swamp and mangrove forests. An increasing incidence of wildfires in forests and other vegetation areas occurred in Indonesia during the recent past. The severity of wildfires and problems of suppression increased in 1990s due to the periodic occurrence of extreme drought influenced by the occurrence of the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Some of the largest forest fires in the history have been reported from Indonesia particularly from East Kalimantam and Sumatra. The Kalimantan fires of 1982-83 were the most extensive forest fires in recorded history. Many occurred in peat forests and burned for six months over an area of 3.6m ha. During the extreme dry season, the water table falls causing the ground to crack. This exposes coal seams; with good aeration and fuel litter, ignation rates are high. This leads to burning of coal seams. Average size of fire in Indonesia, except for the year 1990 and 1991 when it was 35.39 ha and 44.06 ha respectively, varies from 100 ha to 467 ha which should be considered on the higher side. In Central Africa, no reliable data about fire damage is available yet the fire loss is perceived to be considerable. Use of fire for agricultural practices, hunting and pasture are the main reasons and thus uncontrolled burning is posing a serious threat to natural resources. Soil erosion problem is getting acute in the hills. The deposition of acid rain in some areas has been linked to the burning of Savannahs. The problem of forest fire in India is a national issue. Almost the entire country, barring probably the Andaman and Nicobar islands, is faced with the problem of forest fire. Though wildfire causes large scale damage to Indias forest yet there is no comprehensive study to indicate the loss of forest in terms of area burned, and volume and value destroyed by fire. One of the biggest problem is that the available statistics is not reliable and it is mostly underestimated. India which has a long and commendable history of good scientific forest management through Working Plans has somehow lagged behind in keeping pace with new technology in forest fire management. One of the reseasons is lack of uniform and proper reporting system in the country. No national standards have been set for reporting and assessment of fire damage in terms of value. Management Informatin System (MIS) is completely lacking. There is no reliable data base. Some foresters believe that fear of accountability including adverse reflection on part of the concerned official is a barrier for proper and accurate reporting. According to this school of thought the fire damages should be considered as silvicultural loss if correct assessment of fire damage is to be got reported. If that is the case, then Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF), Govt. of India, could consider taking up the matter with Comptroller General of India. But it appears that it could not be the only reason. Lack of uniform and proper reporting system in the country is responsible for poor data base. A reporting format was developed by Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF), Govt. of India, under Modern Forest Fire Control Project in 1990. Wherever necessary it can be modified and by all the States for uniform reporting. According to National Commission on Agriculture, the average number of annual fires between 1968 and 1973 was 3,406, affecting an area of 2.57 m ha. In view of the fact that fire damages, both in terms of area burned and financial losses reported by the States and Union Territories do not reflect the correct assessment, one may have to take into consideration various other factors before arriving at a conclusion with regard to area burned and losses suffered by forest fire in the country. A study conducted by Forest Survey of India reveals that around 50 % of forest area in the country is fire prone to varying degree. According to this study 0.87 %, 0.14 %, and 5.16 % of the total forest area are affected by incidents of very heavy fire, heavy fire, and frequent fires respectively (table 1). Another 43.06 % are affected by
occasional fires. It has been reported that 1.45 m. ha forest area is burned annually according to an assessment made by Forest Survey of India in 1995. Table 1: Extent of Fire Incidence in Forest Areas of the Country (Based on the Inventory Conducted by FSI since its Inception)
State/ District Forest Area Sample Plots Extent of fire incidence Very Heavy 60.58 70.91 57.718 163.7 7.5 0 59.71 0 136.53 0 26.75 0 204.42 71.39 47.12 34.59 871.43 4.77397 0 1817.122 0.87 Heavy 5.75 0 0 0 0 0 30.33 151.54 23.07 0 0 0 78.5 0 0 0 0 0 0 289.19 0.14 Frequent 521.99 590.25 452.6223 671.45 60.98 41.54 470.64 454.62 1838.83 186.83 269.12 1084.231 923.19 99.03 18.14 361.75 2092.51 656.4338 0 10794.16 5.16 Occasional 3335.27 4551.13 3330.7426 3811.38 1089.58 332.48 3342.94 5758.52 10644.29 4222.57 3347.25 12038.703 11345.345 4348.12 544.84 5293.65 11124.1 1356.5246 180.8953 89998.3305 43.06 No Fire 10016.34 10176.68 1505.927 5054.92 2088.05 807.7 9309.79 8789.32 6983.19 3756.94 5230.91 1831.976 7258.182 14763.26 1097.67 755.37 9076.05 3444.318 5.5947 101952.188 48.79 Urec 886.78 38.91 0 567.98 85.64 0 9.89 0 0 0 1031.6 0 333.52 896.99 0 0 0 302.76 0 4154.07 1.99 14826.71 15427.88 5317.01 10269.40 3331.75 1180.72 13223.30 15154.00 19625.91 8165.54 9905.66 14954.91 20143.38 20178.79 1707.77 6445.36 23164.09 5764.81 186.49 208973.48 100.00 Total
Andhra Pradesh Assam Bihar Himachal Pradesh Jammu & Kashmir Haryana & Punjab Karnataka Manipur Madhya Pradesh Maharastra Meghalaya Nagaland Orissa Rajasthan Sikkim Tripura Uttar Pradesh West Bengal Dadra Nagar Grand Total Percentage &
14826.71 15427.88 5317.01 10269.40 3331.75 1180.72 13223.30 15154.00 19625.91 8165.54 9905.66 14954.91 20143.38 20178.79 1707.77 6445.36 23164.09 5764.81 186.49 208973.48
2037 2482 296 4878 428 145 1780 1880 1947 1355 1659 1128 2972 2446 401 555 2825 1471 62 30747
NRSA also analysed the frequency of fire occurrences in different biogeographical regions of the country with the help of MODIS and DMSP fire data of 2004. According to this study 44.06% fire occurrences were reported from North East hills, followed by 9.96% in North East-Brahmputra valley, 8.68% in Deccan Peninsula Eastern Highland; 5.84% Deccan Peninsula Central Plateau; 5.81% Deccan Peninsula-Deccan South; 4.18% Western Ghats Western Ghats Mtms; 3.22% Deccan Peninsula Chotta Nagpur; 2.72% Himalaya East Himalaya; 2.62% Semi arid Gujrat; 2,12% Gangetic Plain upper Gangetic Plain; 1.73% in West Himalayas; and 1.20% in Malabar Plains. The remaining biogeographical region Lower Gangetic Plain, Punjab Plains, West Himalaya had fire frequency of less than one percent. This is further corroborated by another analysis carried out by NRSA wherein they assessed fire location density (fire
density=total number of fire locations per year / sq.km of forest cover). According to this study High Fire location density (>15) was found in three states namely Tripura, Manipur and Mizoram. Medium fire location density (10-15) was found in four states UP, Bhiar, Meghalaya & Nagaland. Low fire location density (5-10) was in three states MP, Andhra Pradesh and Assam. Very low fire location density (0-5) was assessed in fifteen states namely Sikkim, Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujrat, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Orissa. In both the studies highest frequency was reported from the states practicing shifting cultivation. Large forest areas are engulfed by fire every year the world over. Global data indicate that only a few large fires are responsible for most of the area burned. For example, according to a study in Canada, about 3 % of the total fires which are large are responsible for burning 97 % of the total area burned. No such data is available from India. No fire size classification has been done at this national level. However, some indications are now available on the basis of a study recently carried out by NRSA in Karnataka. The study used IRS ID WIFS Satellite data of 18 March. A total of 397 fires were counted and the area burnt was 21179.88 ha. Of the 397 fires, 295 were less than 30 ha in size and were responsible for 13.63% of the total area burnt. The size of 66 fires varied between 30 to100 ha and they were responsible for 30.98% of the area burnt. Fire of the size more than 100 ha and upto 1000 ha were only 35, and the size of one fire was more than 1000 ha, and these 36 fires were responsible for 69.02% of the total area burnt. Thus 36 % of the total fire was reportedly responsible for about 69% of the area burnt. This trend is on global pattern. One lesson learnt from this data is that fast initial attack is required to contain the size of the fire. A fire must be controlled while it is small. It is very difficult to control the large fires and therefore the area burnt by individual large fire is very large. Infact, the large fire could be controlled only when they reach river, road, wide fire lines where massive attack could be mounted. On the basis of such studies which can be extended to other areas a fire size classification could be done at the national level which will help develop a good data base.
6.
IMPACT OF FOREST FIRE
Forest fires are recognized not only as a major constraint to production forestry but also as a principal factor causing degradation of the environment. Some of the impacts of forest are tangible and others are intangible and difficult to evaluate in monetary terms. Studies of dynamics of vegetation reveal that the original species which propagate readily from seed, or coppice from stump would tend to reappear on a site after a forest fire. Thus highly flammable species would immediately revegetate and perpetuate a hazardous fuel-type. To cite an example, a fire conflagrated in Los Angeles Canyon in 1973 in a forest consisting of Quercus suber, Pinus pinea, and Pinus halepensis. These fire raged forests are now a highly flammable brushfield of Quercus coccifera and similar species. Back home similar examples are there in Himalayas where mixed forest of Quercus and Pines are being gradually replaced by pines due to drought conditions created by repeated fires. The other deleterious impact of forest fires is aggravation of surface and gully erosion. The area burnt upstream would tend to reduce the storage capacity of the reservoir downstream. It has been observed that site degradation on account of repeated fires causes soil erosion and floods which have an adverse effect on streams, lakes and man made reservoirs. Forest fires are considered as one of the major issues on green house effect, climate change, and loss of biodiversity.
6.1
Forest Productivity:
Forest fire affect productivity in several ways including adverse impact on regeneration, mortality of older plants, loss of increment, and timber quality.
6.1.1 Regeneration
Fires are reported to seriously damage the regeneration of important tree species. Regeneration is killed or dies back thereby delaying the establishment of a new crop and extending the rotation. Intense fires may also cause mortality of older crops. Young tree growth in any forest type need to be protected against all destructive agents including fire in order to get sustained yield. Failure to protect young trees from fire would lead to extension of regeneration stage till young trees develop into sizes when they would be more or less immune from fire damage. Keeping in view the long rotation Indian timber species extension of rotation would be economically unacceptable. Even light intensity fire burns down young regeneration completely. If the species possesses coppicing power, the burnt seedlings may sprout again but a years growth is lost. There are several cases where repeated fires have destroyed the regeneration completely and the existence of the species in the given zone has been endangered.
6.1.2 Loss of Increment

Forest fire leads to defoliation resulting into loss of increment and reduction in tree growth. Repeated fire causes site deterioration, changes in soil nutrient status, and accelerated erosion due to the destruction of ground flora which also reduce the growth of trees. No research work has been done in India to study the effect of wildfire on tree growth. However, a study conducted in West Bengal indicates that controlled burning reduced the diameter growth of sal plantation significantly (Rawat, 1949). In view of inadequate literature on the subject in India, the best guide comes from Australian studies which showed that the volume increment of various species of Eucalyptus is reduced following fires and that the effect persists for several years. The cumulative loss of annual increment depends on the severity of the fire, but generally lies in the range of one to three years growth. In the absence of local studies, it is reasonable to assume almost a similar effect in Indian conditions.
6.1.3 Timber Quality

Deficiency of timber and wood products in general is steadily increasing internationally. The total import of forest produce has exceeded Rs. 8,000 crore per annum in India and the trend needs to be reversed not only by intensifying greening programme but also protecting the existing resources from all destructive agents including fire. Fire may cause outright destruction of wood in severe fire. It may lead to defective logs. Fungal infection may occur through the damaged tissues and cause rot. Productivity losses lead to a reduced output of timber from the forest which in turn reduces level of harvesting activity including felling, extraction and transportation. This also affects the wood processing industries like saw mill, pulp and paper, and plywood industries. This ultimately reduces the opportunities for employment and lower the forestry sector contribution to the State and national economies.
6.2
Watershed
A major concern of forest fire is the way it affects the surface run off and soil erosion. Depending upon the intensity of fire the run off increases and carry with it the suspended soil particles, dissolved inorganic nutrients, and other materials into the stream and lakes downstream. The deleterious impact of fire, therefore, is increased run off soil erosion and silting of reservoir. Success of river valley projects which are in themselves are gigantic engineering tasks and have been executed at a colossal cost, depends on the protection of their respective catchments. Sedimentation poses a serious problem in these reservoirs. Mounting pressure on forest resources due to rise in human
and livestock population, and intense biotic interference are causing serious economic losses and degradation of environment. 26 million hectare of Indias forest is reported to be in a degraded state. The conception in the mind of people that a forest cover is an insurance against erosion will be belied if one peeps through vast stretch forest areas subjected to repeated fires. Unless the catchments of the river valleys are protected against fire the anticipated gains of such developmental activities cant be harvested.
6.3
Wildlife
Direct mortality of animals due to fire has been documented in many parts of the world. Whereas some evidence of animal (vertebrate) mortality has been reported, the general opinion is that animals are rarely killed by fires and even where death has been reported it is negligible. Effect on invertebrates, however, may be long lasting. It is generally believed that population of invertebrates comes down in a fire because the animals or their eggs are killed by flame or heat and also their shelter and food becomes scarce. The micro-organisms in soil may initially decline after a fire but soon they come to the same level or even higher level due probably to temperature and mineral stimulation. Fire does reduce grasses & bushes which is important for species which need cover for ambush, shade etc. Many of the herbivores like gaur, sambar, cheetal do need some cover. The requirement of cover for the species of wet grasslands, and the arid land is comparatively less (Rodgers 1985). It has been reported (Laurie 1978) that burnt patches of grasses are more frequently visited by Rhinos than unburnt areas. It is generally believed that burning results in fresh palatable grasses preferred by wildlife. But how much burning and how frequently needs to be determined. According to Choudhury (1974) repeated extensive annual fires may have a serious limiting factor; one way to control the hazard is the control fire which may be used as a tool to promote better resource mix. A study carried out in Sal forests of Asarori Range, Dehradun revealed that the regeneration of Sal and its associates such as Mallotus philippensis is considerably reduced in burnt areas and species such as Bauhinia variegata, Bombax ceiba, Pterospermum acerifolium and Melia azadirachta etc were completely eliminated. The herbs and shrubs however, showed increase in burnt area. Some species like Flemingia pulchella, Phyllanthus urinaria, Bauhinia vahlii, Tylophora species etc which are eaten by wild animals have shown increase in burnt area and this can be used as management tool in National Parks and sanctuaries for range management in wildlife (Maithani etal 1986).
6.4
Other Impacts
At higher altitudes in the chir zone, where the pine is mixed with oak (Quercus incana) repeated fires cause replacement of the latter by the former. It has been reported from the hills of Uttaranchal where local people have resented against diminishing oak. The situation could be controlled and normal favourable ecological status retained by providing adequate fire protection. Wherever adequate fire protection has been provided over the years, in the Shiwalik hills and and outer low ranges of Himalayas it has favoured chir mixed with miscellaneous species.
6.5
Financial Loss
No authentic data is available in India with regard to financial loss caused by forest fire. No methodology or guidelines has been made to assess the monetary damage caused. It is left to the local officials to estimate the loss who generally take into consideration only the immediate direct loss which is also underestimated. Assessment made by local officials includes the nature of timber and other forest produce destroyed outright by fire. In the absence of any reliable fire damage statistics, various attempts made to estimate the fire damage has been described below. According to an assessment made by MOEF, GOI, the fire damage was of the order of Rs. 30 Cr per annum between 1993-94 to 1995-96 and this estimation was based on the data given by states/ UTs. According to another estimate based on the fact that one percent of growing stock is lost annually, the loss was estimated to be Rs. 350 Cr. annually. According to yet another estimate based on the cost of regeneration the fire damage was estimated to be of the order of Rs. 570 Crores. Michael Gane who made an economic assessment of fire damage in Chandrapur (Maharashtra) and Haldwani (Uttranchal) has observed (1987) that by introducing modern methods of fire control a reduction of 90 percent in the area burnt annually may reasonably be expected which, through its effects on rotation length and crop productivity alone, will increase the gross domestic product generated by the forestry sector by an estimated average of Rs. 9087 per ha in the Chandarpur forest and Rs.1295 per ha. In the Haldwani Sal Forests.
7.
FOREST FIRE POLICY
The National Forest Policy, 1988, lays emphasis on protection of forests against encroachment, fire and grazing. It inter-alia states The incidence of forest fire in the country in high. Standing trees and fodder are destroyed on a large scale and natural vegetation annihilated by such fires. Special precautions should be taken during the fire season. Improved and modern management practices should be adopted to deal with forest fire. As a follow up of the recommendations made at the XI World Forestry Congress, and the result of the Information Meeting on Forest Fires held on 12 November 1977 during the 29th FAO conference, a Meeting on Public Policies Affecting Forest Fires was organized by FAO from 28 to 30 October 1998. The meeting was attended by several Governments, Private Sector, NGOs and International agencies. The meeting was also attended by India. The main recommendations of the meeting to member countries regarding broad policy principles are as under: Formulate national and regional policies, linked to sustainable land use practices, where such policies do not presently exist. Establish flexibility in policy implementation and review and revise policies periodically. Define clear and measurable policy objectives and implementation strategies. Involve all stake holders in policy development. Create a policy environment that promotes a balanced and comprehensive programme of systematic fire management including fire prevention, fire use and fire suppression. Establish policies for other forms of land use that impinge on the fire environment. For example, incentives should encourage land use options that do not contribute further deforestation.
Define policies for sustaining the health of fire adapted ecosystems that will balance public health and forest health issues related to the use of prescribed fire. Establish land use policies that include appropriate incentives and subsidies to encourage fire prevention practices among the various publics.
8.
FOREST FIRE MANAGEMENT
Integrated Forest Fire Management (IFFM) is essential to control the damaging role of fire, without unduly curtailing its beneficial aspects and to reduce the intensity of fires in case of wildfire. Scientific and planned actions for fire protection, monitoring, prediction and prevention, fire danger warning and preparedness for fire suppression, supported by appropriate policies and strategies are essential. Forest rehabilitation, a post fire activity is a vital component of IFFM. There are three specific phases of IFFM: (a) pre-fire planning and fire prevention involving fire-breaks, fuel load control, weather monitoring, fire risk assessment and early warming, equipment development, enforcement and surveillance, training in fire fighting, research and extension and infrastructure development; (b) fire suppression, including fire detection, quick communication and organization of fire areas, and (c) post fire rehabilitation and management including fire inventory and classification and rehabilitation planting. In all these aspects it is necessary to strengthen institutional framework research and public education. It is also crucial that the technology adopted is appropriate and local participation is ensured through proper incentives. The concept of IFFM recognizes the traditional role of fire. It integrates the local people and communities in the systems of fire management planning and implementation, it appropriately balances the level of technology, it calls for improved knowledge about resources and fire risks. Avoiding or reducing wildfires and capacity to quickly contain them, when started are indicative of good fire management.
8.1
Fire Prevention
The objective of fire prevention is to eliminate unplanned fires. It may not be possible to eliminate all the fires, as this would mean control over people, machinery, weather and fuel which is not possible even in theory. The chances of fire taking place will always be there. The general strategy of prevention is reduce this probability. The solution to fire problems does not lie in the ambit of Forest Department. No fire agency or infrastructure can prevent fires by itself. It can be achieved only by social reform. There is no simple solution to prevent fire. Leave aside accidental fires. Even other fires also cant be eliminated because probably society is prepared to tolerate them at the cost of other values. Take for example, refusal of stop use of fire in agricultural practices, prohibit fire works, to regulate debris burning etc. Nevertheless bulk of the fires can be prevented and more so as most of them are man caused. Though the number of fires have increased over the years, it does not mean the failure of a fire prevention programme. We know the number of fires that have taken place but we have no record of the number of fires that have not started because of preventive measures. Prevention and suppression are not substitutes. They are complimentary. Neither is complete in itself. The programme of fire prevention starts with identification of problems. Once a specific cause is identified, specific remedies can be proposed. The logic behind a fire prevention programme is obvious. A fire prevented does not have to be suppressed. It does not have any suppression cost nor causes any damage. The prevention strategy have three components the three Es Education, Engineering, Enforcement. Education refers to the process by which people are informed, educated and persuaded. Engineering as a technique of fire prevention means separation of risk from hazard by
deliberate design for example fire lines, fuel management etc. The enforcement attempts to regulate behaviour under the threat of legal action. Some of the important practices of various components of fire prevention programme are described in the following paragraphs.
8.1.1 Public Information and Education

Most of the fires in India are caused by the people. It is, therefore, obvious that public information and education would play an important role in fire prevention. It is necessary to inform and educate people about importance of forest protection, the dangers and damages caused by fire to forest, environment and human lives. People have to be educated about fire prevention practices, fire regulations, how to reach in case a fire breaks, to give cooperation and assistance in fire fighting. The success of the educational programme depend on the cause of fire and local conditions. Education is expected to be very effective to curb fire incidence caused by negligence. People can be reached through different conventional media like news releases, radio and television programems, interview and debates, motion pictures, posters exhibits, calendars, stickers, talks and speeches, slide shows, magazine articles, meeting and personal contacts. The prevention campaigns need to be organized at national as well as local levels. Role of voluntary organisations are important and they should be involved. One of the most effective campaign is to involve primary and secondary schools linking nature and forest conservation with fire prevention. Children are very sensitive to new ideas and these days they are interested in environmental problems. The children can also influence the behaviour of their parents and elders. The fires could be prevented by following measures according to the cause of fire. There is a category of people who are either ignorant, not aware or misinformed about fire preventive measures. They are not conscious of the danger of fire in the forests through their action is well meant. In this category, for example, fall those people who kindle a camp fire beside a dead stump or log. In the second category are those careless people who are heedless of the consequences of their action. They include smokers who are prone to carelessly throwing away lighted cigarette or bidi butt ends or a match, the campers who leave a comp fire unattended to or un -extinguished, and the logger who does not take proper fire preventive measures. The third category is malicious setting of fires by anti-social elements out of vandalism or for selfish personal gain. Now, the first and second category of people mentioned above need to be educated. The uninformed or misinformed people could be educated about fire danger. Careless ones could be further educated by audio-visual publicity and other means of education or as a last measure through enforcement of law. Cooperation of these two categories of people, will assist the fire fighters to counter the third. Once the anti-social elements become aware that they have to contend not only with the Government machinery in charge of forest fire control but also their neighbours and the people in general, the objective of fire prevention would be furthered. Extension activities should be well organized. Sporadic talks or a poster here and there will not be adequate. The activity should be properly orgranised through a well conceived programme, touching the aspects of education of the people, contact with them and display signs & posters. Fire prevention programme is a year long activity and no opportunities should be lost to promote public and individual fire consciousness. It is necessary to create public opinion to prevent fires. Participation of local community in fire prevention and suppression is essential. A cooperative fire prevention programme with the help of rural communities should be aimed. Forest Protection Committees/Village Forest Committees constituted under Joint Forest Management (JFM) programme provide the most important forum to further the fire prevention through creating awareness. Demonstration of appropriate systems of fire
prevention, detection, communication and suppression of fires, should be given to village level institutions. One of the most famous attempts to influence the public opinion regarding forest fires has been the creation of a special fire prevention sysmbol in the United States. The smokey bear was chosen a symbol in California as early as in 1944. It became popular few years later when a fire fighter came across and nursed a smokey bear half scorched and frightened by a forest fire. Smokey bear with a forest ranger hat, blue jeans, a shovel and fire fighting slogan only you can prevent forest fire became the centerpiece of fire prevention campaign. Several countries have since then followed a smokeys example by choosing an animal as a symbol of fire prevention. The Canadian province Alberta has a beaver, Quebec has the tamia Garofeu. In Europe, Spain has adopted a rabbit wearing a forest guard uniform. A little bear named Sylverstra is the fire prevention symbol in France. Animals are more related to nature and environment and adopting them as fire prevention symbol is more likely to sensitise people particularly children. India may consider adopting a fire prevention symbol. The results of public information and education is difficult to evaluate but it is generally recognised the world over that the results are satisfactory. In a given area even if one fire is prevented a day it could be decisive for the days work.
8.1.2 Fuel Breaks

Fuel breaks or fire lines are the most important component of fire management in India. Fuel breaks are strips cleared of vegetative cover. Their width vary according to objective of fire protection. The fire lines are maintained to prevent fire engulfing a forest area or property from area around, to prevent the spread of fire from a fire source, to break up large fuel area into relatively small viable blocks for the purpose of confining a fire in the event of out break in an area, to provide ready access routs for men and equipment to combat fires and also to serve as base from which to work and counter fire wherever necessary. Fire lines can be grouped in two categories. The External fire lines and the Internal fire lines. Existing roads and natural features like water courses fall in the category of External fire lines. Boundaries of forest compartments and specially developed cleared lines in plantations come in the category of Internal fire lines. The concept of cleared fire lines is very popular in India. It would not be exaggeration to say that Indian Foresters saw the fire lines as the end in itself. They have not thought beyond fire lines, though prescribed fire has been an important prevention tool particularly in chir forest. Fire lines need annual maintenance. They need to be cleared off all vegetation before the fire season. Sometimes enough fund is not available to maintain them. The fire lines are effective only if they are maintained and this is expensive. Situation in the country has recently improved in this regard. A UNDP/ FAO Project. Modern Forest Fire Control Project was implemented in India from 19851990. One of the most important and crucial impact of the project has been the implementation of central scheme of forest fires protection. The subject of forest in India is on concurrent list of the constitution of India. Forest lands are under the control of State Government. Little funds are made available by the State Governments for fire management Central. Scheme of forest protection is the main source of providing funds for forest fire control. Here also main component of the scheme is maintenance of fire line. Little attention is being paid to introduction of equipment and machinery. Nevertheless the scheme has proved to be very successful in fire control in the country.
No assessment has been made as how much land in India is under fire lines; and how much money is spent or required annually to maintained them. Is the concept of fuel break/fire line a white elephant? It would be interesting to analyse how much area is under fire lines and how much money in India is spent on maintenance of fire lines and other aspects of forest fire management. Are we putting too much emphasis on fire lines at the cost of other fire control activities? Atleast there is scope to think another form of fire lines called green fuel break and equally important with similar results is plantation of mixed species rather than monoculture. Green fuel break/shaded fuel break is a belt of evergreen trees planted to suppress the growth of flammable vegetation and to keep the soil moist. The width of shaded fuel break should generally be more than the width of the clear fire line depending upon the type of vegetation to be protected. The type of the tree species for shaded fuel break should be the ones which are more fire resistant than most of the species in the area. Trees selected for the purpose should retain more moisture during the fire season and their bark should also be fire resistant. In peninsular India evergreen Acacias would be a good choice. Dalbergia, sissoo act as a good fuel break. Species favoured for this purpose in other countries include Eucalyptus carnata, E. diversicolor, E. paniculata, E. fastigata, Casuarina, Sycarpia. Poplar and Oak can also be planted. Species like Wendlandia syzigium etc. grown around sholas in Tamil Nadu serve as effective fuel break. In some parts of northern eastern India villagers plant Phoebe heinensis, papaya citrus and other species around village to protect from fire. Strip planted with Agave, Euphorbia in drier tracts may serve the dual purpose of fuel break as well as a live hedge to keep the cattle away. Maintenance of fire breaks by cultivation of evergreen shrubs may prove to be more economical and effective in comparison to mechanical process (Gogate etal 1983). Gogate further suggested that sowing seeds of evergreen fire hardy shrubs (subabool etc) or succulent evergreen plants i.e, Agave may prove to be economical and effective fire break and thus study in this direction is recommended. The concept of shaded fuel break need to be given a fair trial in India.
8.1.3 Enforcement
Fire prevention programmes must include the force of law to support other measures of fire prevention. Information, education and persuasion may suffice generally for people who are morally good. Legal coercion is required for those who are not. All countries including India have regulations causing fire to forest, prohibition on carrying fire in notified forest during fire season under the Indian Forest Act etc. People are not only required to take precautions as prescribed under the regulation but they are also required to assist in suppression of forest fires. People are obliged to inform the local authorities about any wildfire that they notice. Enforcement of fire regulation is a question of common sense. It needs to be carried out with discretion and with a thorough understanding of local condition. In any case it has to be accompanied by information and education to win the full support of both local and general public and become a successful prevention tool.
8.1.4 Prescribed Burning

Prescribed burning has been in use in India since long. It has been used in chir forest to reduce the full load. Prescribed burning is a controlled fire started by the fire manager applied in a skillfull manner, under exacting weather conditions, in a definite place, and for a specific purpose. Prescribed burning is an economically sound practice in coniferous forest. Sometimes it is the only practical solution to reduce hazardous fuel accumulation. No alternative practice has yet been developed that can compete with prescribed burning from the point of view of practicality and cost. Prescribed burning could be harmful as well as beneficial. It can contribute to changes in air quality though to a lesser extent than wildfire. Proper planning and execution is, therefore, necessary.
There have been cases where fire has escaped from prescribed burning and led to serious wildfire. Public opinion is another factor which needs to be considered as prescribed burning is visible as much as wildfire. If we ask people not to set fire, and we set fire ourselves --- people need to be informed and educated. In India one of the biggest problem is accumulation of needles in pine forest which is difficult to remove physically. The cost would be prohibitive if it is decided to do so. If there is no fire in a pine forest for some years the needles get accumulated and any fire after a gap of a few years could be disastrous. Indian foresters have used it successfully in fire prevention measures. It is regarded as an insurance against the future damage. Prescribed burning besides reducing hazardous fuel could also be used to prepare sites for seeding and planting, improve wildlife habitat, manage understorey hardwoods, improve forage for grazing, enhance appearance and improve access. Lot of research work has been done in United States to determine the appropriate weather conditions like relative humidity, temperature, fuel moisture and airmass stability for different fuel types when prescribed burning could be undertaken. No such work has been done in India and as a thumb rule prescribed burning, which is also called departmental burning or controlled burning, is carried out in winter before the fire season. 8.1.5 As a measure of public awareness it would desirable to celebrate a Fire Prevention Week just before the fire season starts. It could be on the pattern of Van Mahotsava, and may be organized in February each year. Equally important is a fixed telephone number uniform throughout the country. There are already fixed telephone numbers for police help etc. On the same pattern MoEF could take up the matter with communication Ministry and get number on which people can report and send information about fire.
8.2
Early Warning System
8.2.1 Fire Danger Rating

Fire Danger Rating provides guidelines to plan the fire control activities and management of fire fighting resources. The level of forest protection needs to be uniformly high, but can vary according to the flammability of the fire environment. Fire burn more readily during some parts of a day than during other parts; on some days rather than on other days; in some seasons than the other. Accurate assessment of changes in fire danger from place to place under different fuel types and from time to time is necessary if the fire manager is to properly locate his forces and vary their strength to cope with the severity of fires that occur within his protected areas. A Fire Danger Rating System which is a useful tool in forest fire management and administration needs to be developed so that fires managers can assess the probability that fires will start on any given protected area, the relative rates of spread of such fires, and the intensity with which they will burn. The principal inputs of Fire Danger Rating System are fuel and weather and the output is the probability of ignition (Ignition Index) and the likely behaviour of resulting fires (Spread Index). The ignition index is a measure of the moisture of extinction (the moisture content at which a fire will cease to spread and will go out by itself). It is a measure of the ease with which a fire can start. It should correlate well with daily fire occurrence. It will also indicate a measure of the rate of spread when there is no wind or slope. The spread index is a measure of the effect of wind on the rate of fire spread. An index can be designed for public announcements of the fire danger. Fire Danger Rating helps in comparison of fire seasons experienced and fuel load within a region or between various regions. It serves
as a guide for the allocation of funds and fire control resources. Development and use of a Fire Danger Rating System suitable for all the major fuel types in the country is a basic necessity for an effective fire control programme. Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India, under the UNDP/FAD Project Modern Forest Fire Control has developed a National Fire Danger Rating System based on burns carried out in teak forests at Chandrapur (Maharastra) and pine forests at Nainital (Uttranchal). The process involved seven steps which are explained below. Step 1: Select Fuel Model. Model A. Stands of grass, reeds or bamboo. Forest (either conifer or hardwood) with less than 60% crown closure (measured when trees are in full leaf) where the predominant understory is grass. Stands of trees with 60% or more crown closure (measured when trees are in full leaf) where over 60% of the projected crown area is hardwood. Stands of trees with 60% or more crown closure where over 40% of the projected crown area is confiers. Stands of shrubs, briars or lantana. Stands of trees with less than 60% crown closure and with shrub understory sufficiently dense to carry fire. Shrubs 3 years old or less. Same as Model D except shrubs more than 3 years old.
Model B.
Model C. Model D.
Model E. Step 2 :
Determine and map the protection area described by each of the fuel models. Measure the average slope for each model area. The effect of slope on fire spread can be compared to an equivalent wind velocity. Determine the wind correction for each area by the formula: Model A 2.5% Slope = 1 knot wind Model B 1.25% Slope = 1 knot wind Model C 1.67% Slope = 1 knot wind Model D 1.43% Slope = 1 knot wind Model E 1.43% Slope = 1 knot wind
This means, for example, that an area of fuel Model A with a 10% slope and no wind burns as if it were flat with a 4 knot wind. To utilize this information divide the average slope of the rating area by the coefficient for the fuel model of the area (e.g. for Model A divide the slope by 2.5). Enter the result to the nearest whole number (e.g., 12% slope divide by 2.5 = 4.8. Enter 5) For all weather forecasts for that rating area, add the wind correction factor to the forecast wind velocity before using the fire danger rating tables (e.g. if forecast is for wind 3-5 knots, use 8-10 knots in using tables. Step 3 : Determine the average fuel load for each model area as follows: Model A. Height of the ground cover (measured at the beginning of fire season) in 15 cm units, e.g. if grass cover is 30 cm high fuel load is 2. If bamboo is 3 meters high, fuel load is 20. Depth of litter in centimeters measured at the beginning of fire season.
Model B.
Model C. Model D & E. Step 4.
Depth of litter in centimeters measured at the beginning of fire seasons. Average height of shrub cover in 30 cm unit.
Select a weather observation post of representative of the area for which the fuel model will be used. Every day, at the time of maximum temperature (usually between 1300 hours and 1500 hours) determine whether or not rain has fallen since the last observation and measure the relative humidity. Obtain a weather forecast of the wind velocity expected for tomorrow and the change expected in relative humidity between today and tomorrow. Add the wind correction factor from Step 2 to the forecast wind velocity and correct todays measured humidity to tomorrows forecast. Record the number of days since the last rainfall. Using the Fire Danger Table for the selected fuel model and number of days since rain, determine the ignition and spread indexes. From the index so made Fire Danger Rating can be predicted as under. 0-29 30-49 50-69 70-99 100 + Fire Danger is Low Fire Danger is Moderate Fire Danger is High Fire Danger is Very High Fire Danger is Extreme
Step 5.
Step 6.
Step 7.
Determine the Fire Load Index by multiplying the spread index by the fuel load from Step 3. The fire load index is a measure of the amount of men and equipment needed to control a fire. The fire load indexes cannot be compared between fuel models e.g. a fire load index of 200 in Model A and 200 in Model B does mean that fires in each area require the same number of men and equipment. But a fire in Model A with a fire load index of 200 would require twice the men and equipment as a fire in Model A with a fire load index of 100.
Based on above procedure a Fire Danger Rating System has already been developed under Modern Forest Fire Control Project In India. This is, however, not being used presently. It needs to be modified and updated wherever required and used. An attempt was made by Mathur et al to develop a Fire Danger Rating for Dehradun. Based on the data of West Dehradun Division for the period 1968 1977 a Fire Danger Rating Was developed whch is produced below: Table 2: Fire Danger Rating for Dehradun (Mathur et. al. 1984)
Fire Danger Rating Climate Daily Temperature Mean ( C) 1 Extreme Very High 2(a) >24.0 20.1-24.0
O
Remarks Precipitationion (mm) 2(d) <25 in the preceeding week. -do(3)
R.H. (%)
Max. ( C) 2(b) >36.0 32.1-36.0 2(c) <50 <50
2(a) >24.0
2(b) >36.0 28.1-32.0 32.1-36.0 >36.0 24.1-28.0 28.1-32.0 32.1-36.0 24.0 24.1-28.0 28.1-32.0
2(c) 50-60 <50 50-60 >60 <50 50-60 >60 >50 >60 -do-
2(d)
(3)
High
18.120.0 20.1-24.0 >24.0
25-50 in the preceeding week
Moderate
16.1-18.0 18.1-20.0 20.1-24.0
Low
16.0 16.1-18.0 18.1-20.0
>50 in the preceeding week.
On the basis of work done under the Modern Forest Fire Control Project in India a Fire Danger Rating System for India can be developed.
8.2.2 Remote Sensing

Use of Remote Sensing Technology in detection of forest fires and other assessment is of considerable significance. Remote sensing and GIS based fire detection, monitoring and damage assessment in conjunction with ground data would play a greater role. Fire detection is done with the help of satellite borne sensors, which can detect fires in visible, midinfrared and thermal bands. Active fires can be detected by their thermal or mid infrared signature during day or night by the light from the fires at night. For fire monitoring high resolution thermal infrared sensors are required to accurately map small fires and active fire perimeters. NRSA has developed a comprehensive system Indian Forest Fire Response and Assessment System (INFFRAS) integrating multi-sensor satellite data and ground data through spatially and temporally explicit GIS analysis. The advances in satellite sensor technology and availability of multiple bands facilitate detecting and monitoring fires. Globally satellite data sets from MODIS/NOAA/DMSP OLS and AATSR are used on daily basis for forest fire monitoring. NRSA is following Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectoradiometer (MODIS) version 4 which is based on the original MODIS fire detection algorithms for the generation of fire products. The fire products derived from MODIS have been validated with the ground observations and multi- satellite data by N RSA. Raw MODIS Terra/Aqua satellite data is acquired at NRSA ground station which then undergo a series of processing for the generation of active fire products. Defence Meteorological Satellite Programme (DMSP) Operational Line Scam System (OLS) is a two band visible and thermal imaging system designed for global observation of cloud cover. At night the visible band is intensified with a photo multiplier tube to permit detection of clouds illuminated by moonlight. The light intensification enables the observation of sources of visible near infrared (VNIR) emissions present at night on the earths surface including cities, towns, villages, gas flares heavily lit fishing boats and fires. Fires are identified as lights detected on the land surface outside the reference set of stable lights. Fires present at the earths surface at the time of the nighttime overpass of the DMSP are readily detected in the visible band data. In contrast, fires rarely show up as hot spots in the OLS thermal band data. The OLS thermal band position is not well placed for fire detection. The visible band of DMSP OLS is used to detect active fires
during nighttime. The advantages of using DMSP OLS visible band over thermal bands of other satellites like AVHRR and MODIS is that the DMSP OLS instrument can detect flame of smaller magnitude than the smallest flame that AVHRR and MODIS could detect. Active fire locations over India using MODIS data was displayed on NRSA website on experimental basis in 2005 and during the fire season of 2006. MODIS and DMSP fire products were provided on daily basis. Based on the feedback from the Forest Department data would be assessed for accuracy. NRSA has made an assessment of fire damage in dense forests, open forest and scrub using MODIS fire locations based on the data of 2004. It has been found that fire incidence is 45% in dense forest, 51% in open forests and 4% in scrub. This assessment however, is based on data of one year (NRS 2006). Analysis of data of several years and different forest types would provide a better and more reliable scenario. NRSA has also conducted a study in Western Ghats to assess the occurrence of burnt area in different forest types using IRS-AWiFS March 2005 satellite data. Maximum damage was reported in deciduous forest, followed by shrub forest/degraded forest and grass land. Least damage was reported in evergreen/semi evergreen forest. A very good beginning on use of remote sensing data by NRSA as well as Forest Survey of India has been made and its use is expected to increase gradually.
8.3
Suppression
A fire must be controlled while it is still small. The larger the fire more difficult it is to control it. If the fire is to be controlled while it is still small, the fire must be detected early. In fact a fire must be detected as soon as it starts. Equally important is the exact location of the fire. The information should quickly be passed on to suppression team who should reach the fire site immediately after the information has been made available to them.
8.3.1 Detection
The first step in fire suppression is detection of forest fire. Various methods used for fire detection are Look outs, Ground Patrol, Aerial detection, and Remote sensing. The most common method of detecting fire in India is use of Look outs and Ground Patrol. Detection by remote sensing has just started (since 2000). Aerial detection is not yet prevalent in India, though it was experimented under UNDP / FAO project Modern Forest Fire Control during 1985-90. What kind of detection system is most suitable for the area to be protected will depend upon the objectives of fire management. No one system of detection is sufficient for a given area. It may also not be necessary to cover entire area under a detection programme. Factors like fuel hazards, value to be protected have to be kept in view. In any case detection must be well planned and systematic and it must have capability to report the detected fire to fire fighting crew.
LOOKOUTS
Lookouts are the most prevalent and efficient system of fire detection in India. It is made of concrete or pre-fabricated steel is also used. No look out system or for that matter any detection system can give a hundred percent coverage. The cost would be prohibitive. The aim of having Lookout System is to cover all those areas which are comparatively more fire prone based on past experience and record. In flat country the visibility is extensive whereas in undulating terrain some parts of the forests will
remain hidden from direct view by intervening spurs. Such hidden areas are often referred to as blind areas or unseen areas. The smoke starting from such unseen area may not be detected till it reaches above the intervening spur and in such a scenario it may be difficult to pin point the location of fire. For such situations and even for generally improved detection it is advantageous to cover the same area by two lookouts. In this case exact location of fire can be detected by triangulation. The lookouts need to be manned by fire watchers during the fire seasons. Here again, each lookout/watch tower is to be manned day and night throughout the fire season or not is to be decided by the fire manager. There are areas which are frequented by fires more often than others. Such areas keeping in view the values to be protected may have to be manned continuously. Other may be manned when fire danger rating is high. Such decisions are to be taken the fire managers keeping in view the local conditions, values to be detected and available resources at his command. While planning a detection system the question of diminishing return has to be kept in mind. But the important principle for an efficient detection system is that it should be fast and accurate. The lookouts need to be equipped with binoculars, alidades and communication system. Under the Modern Forest Fire Control Project in Haldwani (Uttaranchal) and Chandrapur (Maharastra) Lookouts were equipped with Osborne Fire Finders which is like alidade with map of the area to be protected pasted on it . After a fire is detected its exact location can be plotted on the map and the position communicated to fire fighting crew. There is also a talk about substituting television cameras for an observer. This is similar to security arrangements in shopping areas where sensitive areas are covered with cameras. It may have other advantages but so far as fire detection is concerned television can not distinguish smoke as readily as human eye. Several developed countries like United States & Europe also have Lookout System though gradually they are relying more and more on aerial detection.
GROUND PATROL
The oldest system of fire detection is ground patrolling. It is a simple arrangement of patrolling the area on foot, on horse, or by vehicle. The system has the draw back that one man can cover a limited area. The system has certain advantages if patrolling party knows the area and local people. There are certain areas which are missed by lookouts, such areas can be covered by ground patrol. Keeping in view the cost involved and limitation of area ground patrolling can be helpful in areas which are most valuable and where fire danger rating is high.
AERIAL DETECTION
Aerial detection, as the name indicates, is surveillance by aircraft. The system was first experimented in 1919 by US Forest Service in collaboration with Army Air Service. In the United States aerial detection has now become very common and in fact lookout system is being gradually replaced by aerial detection. Whereas with lookout system it is possible to keep a continuous watch, aerial detection provides intermittent coverage. The advantage of aerial detection is it can spot fires quickly, determine their location, indicate burning characteristics of the fire, and can give valuable information about fire behaviour, and guide the fire fighting crew.
The main limitation of aerial detection is prohibitive cost. In fact even in US and other developed countries where aerial detection is followed there are scheduled flight times according to fire danger rating to reduce cost. This system is also applicable more in areas with vast tract of uninhabited forests. The detection must be more or less continuous to make the system more efficient. Though State Forest Departments in India dont use aerial detection yet with the increased air traffic use can be made of commercial airlines in fire detection.
8.3.2 Communications
One of the critical inputs of fire suppression is that an incidence of forest fire should be communicated to fire fighting crew as soon as it is detected. Most State Forest Departments are equipped with radio communication system. MoEF, GOI is providing central assistance to States for strengthening radio communication system which includes hand held radio, portable radio, mobile radios and fixed stations. Radio communication is used by foresters for variety of purpose related with forest management including fire control.
8.3.4 Fire Control

The concept of fire suppression has been changing depending upon the change in technology and availability of resources. However, some fundamentals of fire control have remained constant. They are, first, all fires are most easily controlled while they are still small. Second, everything to control fires must be done quickly and with a sense of urgency. All actions regarding fire control are based on this principle. Suppression consists of following activities dispatching the fire fighting crew, initial attack, Backup or Reinforcement (in case of large fires) Mop up and post suppression. There are three main methods of suppressing fires which can be used singly or in combination. They are use of (a) light soils, sand, water (b) clear fire line, and (c) backfiring or counter firing. Various types of hand tools, mechanized equipment, aircraft are used to suppress fires.
HAND TOOLS
Hand tools used in fire control are basically implements for cutting, digging scraping and raking. Hand tools used in India are Shovel, axes, Pulaski, Mc Leod, Rake, Brush hook etc. Originally procured for United States they are now manufactured locally and some of them have been standardized by ISI. The hand tools are used to make fire lines to stop march of fire. Some other hand tools are used to dig and throw the soil on fire in a swinging motion so as to scatter it in a thin layer at the base of the flames along the fire edge. Back pack pump is a small water pump which can be carried at the back. Recently there is a tendency to develop tools which combine more than one function. Some of them are also motorized for easy functioning and quick results
MECHANIZED EQUIPMENT
When a fire is large hand tools may not meet the requirements. Hand tools are generally used in the initial attack when the fire is small. In case of large fires the need is to make a clear fire line to cut or reduce the fuel load. Mechanised equipment like buldozars and tractors plough are generally used to make such fire lines.
WATER HANDLING EQUIPMENT

Different terms are used for water handling equipment like ground tanker, Engine, fire tenders, slip on units. They all are water tankers. Water is most effective and fastest tool to stop fire. Water, however, is seldom available in plenty to extinguish fire. Therefore, wherever water is available it has to be used efficiently. Water is generally sprayed parallel to the fire edge. Fire tenders, though, can generally be used only in plain terrain yet with long hoze pipe it can be used even in undulating area where roads or fire lines can be provide reasonable communication facilities.
FIRE RETARDANT
Fire retardants are not used in India. There is, however, a need to use it on experimental basis. A retardant is any substance which reduces the flammability of combustibles. The rates of spread of the flame is thereby slowed or retarded. Generally, a retardant is applied to the unburnt fuel ahead of the fire, but some retardants serve also as a suppressant when applied directly to the fire. Retardants fall into two natural classes Short term retardent and Long term retardent. Short-term retardant uses moistureholding capacity for its retardant action. Thus, it is effective only when wet. Long-term retardant has a flame inhibiting property that is independent of any moisture holding capacity. Thus it is effective after all moisture has evaporated and the effect may last until it rains and is washed away. The most obvious example of a short-term retardant is water itself. Some chemical will thicken water to the consistency of light motor oil. This is referred to as viscous water. Other chemicals cause the water to become a gel. These gels or thickened water, can built up on forest fuels into a film as much as twenty times the thickness of film of plain water. Evaporation loss is thus greatly reduced and the period of effectiveness lengthened. Chemicals used to thicken or gel water are organic algae and inorganic polymers. Certain clays, are used to make gel of water. Water is also thinned by adding of surfactants or detergents. These add to the waters ability to penetrate and give rise to descriptive expression of wet water. Wet water will penetrate eight times greater than plain water into wood and six times greater in charcoal. In fire situations where penetration is a factor, efficiency of water can be greatly increased in this manner. This has no application in the aerial tanker program, however, because of the thinned water would tend to be dissipated and lost more rapidly. Several very effective long-term retardants are now commercially available. These are salt solutions involving some form of phosphate or sulphate in combination with a ammonium. Even though the solutions use water as a vehicle, the effectiveness of the chemical is not dependent upon the presence of water. Long term retardants are effective until sufficient rain has fallen to wash them from the fuel. In general long term retardants are several times more expensive than short term retardant.
AERIAL SUPPRESSION
The concept of fire control is changing. Fire control is necessary not because of loss of timber but to stop environmental degradation. In recent years there has been the increasing use of aircraft in fire suppression in the world in general. In India aircrafts including a fixed wing aircraft and a helicopter have been used in fire control under the
UNDP/FAO Project Modern Forest Fire Control between 1985 and 1990 on an experimental basis. In the past Ministry of Agriculture, Got. Of India has used small aircrafts for spreading insecticides. In case of fire suppression initial attack is what matters. In hilly areas like Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, North Eastern States time taken to reach the fire site after a fire has been detected is long and quite often by the time fire fighting team reaches there the fire becomes too large to control. It would, therefore, be necessary to use the aerial operation in such areas. It may initially appear expensive as well as administratively difficult in India to have an independent aerial fire suppression unit. To start with it would be worthwhile to try to have an agreement with Ministry of Defence, GOI or private operators with regard to use of aircraft/helicopter for fire fighting.
9.
FIRE SAFETY
Safety of fire fighting crew is extremely important. Working on fire can lead to heat stress, dehydration, carbon monoxide poisoning besides direct fire attack. Fatigue and smoke effect are common. The most important fire protective measure is clothing for fire fighters. Fire shelters are also required. First aid, snake bite medicines are a must. Medical facilities should be readily available to suppression team.
10.
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
An effective forest fire management system requires considerable knowledge more than the practical know how. If fire protection in the country was to succeed, it had to create a sound base of information. In India no authentic data is available with regard to fire and climate, rate of spread, fuels, topographic influences, and the prediction of dangerous fire conditions. There is need to work out and implement national programme of forest fire research. Forest fire management needs to be institutionalized with strategic inputs of research and development. To develop and maintain such a system, there is a felt need for a central institution devoted to fire science. The research and development work would involve innovative approaches to fire management and would develop fire management knowledge, expertise and techniques relevant to countrys conditions including knowledge of fire behaviour, ecological and economical effects of fire, fire weather, tools and technology and also provide necessary inputs for decision makers and resource managers. Developing institutional framework at the national and regional levels to acquire and utilize the science and technology of forest fire management both from within the country and abroad would contribute to our capability at the national and regional levels to protect forest resources from fire. The center will be a technology leader and act as a focal point for forest fire management issues and for exchange of information and know-how within and outside the country.
NON-WOOD FOREST PRODUCTS (NWFP) INCLUDING AROMATIC AND MEDICINAL PLANTS FOR POVERTY ALLEVIATION AND SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT
D.N. Tiwari
Environmental sustainability is not an option but an imperative. Clean air, pure water, conservation of forest and creation of greenery are essentials for a healthy environment. Prevention of degradation of land, controlling floods & droughts, preventing desertification, conservation of fragile eco-system, increasing greenery, employment generation and livelihood to the poor are present challenges for planners and policy makers. Population growth and poverty, increase the environmental load irrespective of the rate of economic growth. Rapid economic growth can intensify environmental degradation. The solution does not lie in slowing growth since slow growth also leads to its own form of environmental deterioration. With rapid growth, we can have the resources to prevent and deal with environment problems but we must also ensure that rapid growth is environmentally benign. This can be achieved through greater awareness, training development of natural resources such as NWFP and appropriate policies and management. We must integrate development planning and environmental concerns, providing the use of economic instruments based on the polluter pays principle supplemented by command and control of policies where these are more appropriate. Non Wood Forest Produce (NWFP) has emerged as a potentially significant source of income of the tribal people and forest dwellers. NWFPs are the products from various forest species such as roots, barks, leaves, flowers, fruits, seeds, gums and grasses etc. including entire plants of medicinal herbs/shrubs. India's forest eco-systems are very rich in NWFP having potential for poverty alleviation and sustainable development. NWFP are used by rural communities for food, fodder, fibre, bio-fuels and medicine. They make the industrial raw material for processing, marketing and export. We have to optimize the production of NWFP with adequate investments in regeneration/plantation, collection, processing and marketing. The Eleventh Finance Commission has also supported this cause through grant-in-aid for forest maintenance and increasing the production of timber and NWFP. In the 73rd amendment of the Constitution, NWFP has been allocated to the PRIs. Sustainable management of these resources, with the development of value addition chains will improve the income of the PRIs as well as that of primary collectors and processors. Medicinal and aromatic plants constitute an important component to NWFP. Use of medicinal plants improves the rural health and caters global herbal product requirements. India has created the National Medicinal Plant Board and number of State Medicinal Plant Board for promoting cultivation, collection, processing, marketing and export of herbal drugs. NWFP can be broadly categorized as nationalized and non-nationalized items. For the nationalized items, State Governments have monopoly for collection, marketing & trade. Non-nationalized items do not have monopolistic control. For sustainable development of NWFP following activities are necessary: Management Information System to be properly developed.
Non-destructive harvesting through training and skill development of tribal and forest dwellers. Livelihood activities through collection, processing, value addition and marketing. Development of packaging facilities. Development of brand promotion for products. Information systems on market prices and demand assessment in national and global markets. Research and development for: Identification of super clones (pheno, geno and chemo types), in situ and ex-situ conservation and development of NWFP species. Germination and plantation techniques. Good collection practices and non-destructive harvesting. Improved processing techniques. Better Packaging Technology.
Certification Promoting domestic, national and global trade through exim/tariff regulations. For giving a boost to this sector following missions have been started:
(i)
National Mission Development
on
Bamboo
Technology
and
Trade
Recognizing the potential of bamboo and the fact that it has been subjected to neglect, thus remained disorganized with poor market linkage and sub-optimal level technology. Application of technology is urgently required for manufacture of value added products in the industrial and artisanal sector. The mission has been launched to upgrade the bamboo economy and technology for bamboo based handicraft and industrial developments. This will generate gainful employment to 8.6 million people and enable 5.01 million families to escape poverty on sustainable basis. The bamboo economy will reach to the level of earning Rs. 26,000 crores per year by 2015 as against the present level of Rs. 2,000 crores only.
(ii)
National Mission on Biodiesel
An estimated area of 55.3 million hectares is reported to be wastelands in the country. The country needs edible and non-edible oil urgently. It is proposed to grow jatropha curcas on degraded lands for producing non-edible oil and biodiesel to meet the diesel demand of the country. The mission will ensure Energy Independence by 2030 and will enable majority of the poor to cross the poverty line. This will also green the degraded areas posing environmental problems.
(iii) The Mission on Aromatic and Medicinal Plants

Through Joint Forest Management (JFM) and contract forming, it is proposed to bring 5 million hectares of area under aromatic and medicinal plant cultivation. With the development of herbal industry, it will be possible to meet the rural health care demand and export herbal products to a magnitude of Rs. 6 billion by 2015.
Conclusion
For developing NWFP, organizational structures are to be strengthened by creating a national institute, federation/corporation at the state level and strong input of research and development at various levels.
STRATEGY FOR SUSTAINABLE NTFP MANAGEMENT IN INDIA

Dr. Ram Prasad Principal National Consultant, ITTO Diagnostic/Technical Mission to India SUMMARY
Non-timber Forest Products (NTFP) play increasingly greater role in the social and traditional lifestyle of millions of forest dependent population particularly the tribal, land less, women and other rural poor. In view of increasing realisation for ecological, sociocultural and economic dimensions of forests, the Sustainable Forest Management has come to be reckoned as most important management innovation for ensuring sustainable development. Similarly, participatory forest management, popularly known as Joint Forest Management in India, is an important forest management intervention to attain the goal of unsustainable forest management. And, to ensure successful implementation of Joint Forest Management, flow of benefits through production of Nontimber forest products {NTFPs), offers the best incentives to the participating communities on sustained basis. In order to sustain the interest of the participating communities in forest conservation, sustainable NTFP management, therefore assumes key role, however, the current NTFP management practices are ecologically and socially unsustainable. In this paper an attempt has been made to highlight the current management practices and present strategy for sustainable management of NTFP in India. Although, NTFP's have been providing subsistence to the forest dependent communities since time immemorial, it came into great prominence in the last two decade due to preference for natural product based medicines, cosmetics, dyes and chemicals, pesticides, food, fibre etc. Importance of NTFPs as a source of revenue to forest department also increased due to restrictions on limber harvesting for environmental- reasons imposed by Supreme Court of India. Joint Forest Management (JFM} arrangements, that is the management of forest resources by govt forest department and local communities with the explicit understanding for sharing of products (timber and non-timber}, responsibilities, control and management decision making. Due to uncertainty in getting benefits from timber harvesting being a long-term proposition, NTFPs for their capacity to yield year round benefits proved to be an important incentive to the participating communities. There is thus a need to strengthen this useful link between NTFP management and Joint Forest Management so that the synergy of their linkage can be profitably channelled for the well being of the forests and the dependent communities. Although no precise estimate of the total amount of NTFP extracted from the natural forests is available according to a guestimate, it could vary between 10,000 to 50,000 tons annually providing earnings that runs into billions of Indian rupees each year. About 60 percent of NTFPs go unrecorded and are consumed or bartered by about 15 million people living in and around forest. Large revenue flowing to the state exchequer from NTFPs have given the state the vested interest in marketing the produce with huge costs both to the poor who rely on gathering them for their subsistence needs and to the users of NTFPs. Most of the products are sold in raw form and therefore is not remunerative to gatherers. After walking long distances and spending several hours the gatherer is able to get less than minimum government prescribed wages. Thus, they try to collect as much as possible to maximise their earnings from days collection. the process, they resort to destructive harvesting. As a result of this many important NTFP species are getting depleted in the natural forests. In several studies it has been shown that processing and value addition at primary collectors level increase the earnings from NTFP by 4-5 times. Simple value addition measures such as cleaning, washing, air drying, grading, packing etc., which can be carried out at household and community level, without any investment can also result
into remunerative returns to gatherers by 2-3 times. Institutional support for awareness and training for intensive value addition process and marketing can motivate collector's to adopt sustainable harvesting practices. The NTFP gatherers have traditionally been conservationists and in normal case would not resort to destroying the natural resource base. The middlemen and contractors operating in and around forest areas have been exploiting the gatherers taking the advantage of absence of local level institutions, credit facilities and value addition options. Organizing the communities through joint forest management (JFM) offers best option to reduce the exploitation of middlemen and ensure better returns from collection of NTFP. This may also ensure sustainable forest management. Key words: NTFP, NWFP (non-wood forest products), Joint Forest Management (JFM), Sustainable Forest Management (SFM), unsustainable and destructive harvesting, value addition options.
INTRODUCTION
Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) which are also referred to Non-Wood Forest Products (NWFPs) by FAO have been in use since the beginning of human civilization. Earlier these were called minor forest products, due to being of insignificant economic values. However, in the recent past there has been spurt in demands due to common acceptance of natural products for medicines, cosmetics, dyes and chemicals, biopesticides, food, etc. Over 75% of total forest export revenue from India is accounted for by NTFP (Gupta and Guleria 1982; Prasad and Bhatnagar 1991. For local people, however, such products were always important has they provided year-round source of livelihood. Social scientists and forest managers are now unequivocal about the Important of NTFP to the life and economy of rural poor. NTFP are of myriad forms and varieties. The report of National Commission on Agriculture (NCA, 1976) stated that minor forest products (now NTFP) includes all products obtainable from forests other than wood. The NCA (1976) classified as (i) fiber and flosses, (ii) fiber and grasses (bamboo, reeds and canes), (iii) essential oils, (iv) Oil seeds, (v) tans and dyes, (vi) gums, resins and oleoresins, (vii) drugs and spices (viii) leaves (ix) edible products, (x) Lac and its products and (xi) other-products, with time the terms NWFP and NTFP have gained acceptable. FAO (1999) defined NWFP as all goods of biological origin, other than wood, that are derived from forests and associated land uses. Several studies on NTFP and its role in socio-economic sustenance of local communities are available (Gupta and Guleria 1982; 1986, Prasad and Bhatnagar, 1991; Chopra, 1994; Chandrasekharan, 1997, FAO, 1994; 1998; Prasad and Bhatnagar, 1998. A large numbers of rural families in particular those of agricultural labourers, rural artisans, and marginal and small farmers, are NTFP gatherers. Reporting a study from Raipur district in central India, Chopra (1994) observed that 98 per cent of those interviewed mentioned collection of NTFP as a secondary source of livelihood. In Sheopur district of Madhya Pradesh, a primitive tribe Saharias in 60 villages are totally dependant on NTFP collection for their livelihood support (Bhattacharya, 2000). Quantity traded as a percentage of that collected varies from 35 to 100 per cent. One or more NTFPs are available for collection and consumption throughout the year. Nearly 400 million people living in and around forests in India depend on NWFPs for sustenance and supplemental income. NWFPs contribute significantly to the income of about 30 per cent of rural people. More than 80 per cent of forest dwellers depend on NWFPs for basic necessities. Collection of NWFPs comprises the main source of wage labour for 17 per cent of land less labour, and 39 per cent are involved in NWFP collection as a subsidiary occupation. In some other studies (Chopra, 1994; Tewari and Campbell, 1995; Prasad and Bhatnagar, 1998) household income from NTFP collection of average 40%, the range varying from 11 per cent to 53 per cent.
From above accounts it is clear that NTFPs play increasingly greater role in the social, economic and traditional lifestyle of millions of forest dependent population particularly the tribal, land less, women and other rural poor. In view of increasing realization for ecological, socio-cultural and economic dimensions of forests the sustainable forest management (SFM) has come to be reckoned as most important intervention for sustainable development. Similarly, community participation in forest management which is popularly known as Joint Forest. Management (JFM) in India has come to be regarded as an important forest management intervention to ensure sustainable forest management. Sustained flow of benefits through production of forest goods and services enthuse community to participate. Due to uncertainty in getting benefits from timber harvesting being a longterm proposition, NTFPs for their capacity to yield year round benefit prove to be an important incentives to the participating communities. There is thus a need to strengthen this useful links between NTFP management and Joint Forest Management so that the synergy of their linkage can be profitably channeled for the well being of the forests and the dependent communities. However, the current NTFP management practices appear to be ecologically and socially unsustainable. This paper attempts to highlight the current (mis) management practices and presents strategy for sustainable management of NTFP in India.
2.0
PREVALENT NTFP MANAGEMENT PRACTICES: SOME ISSUES
Among a wide range of products and services forests provide, NTFPs happen to be of great economic, socio-cultural and ecological importance. A range of NTFP products in tropical forest ecosystem provides year-round sustenance to millions of poor and disadvantage groups. However, despite these values prevalent management practices are not conducive to sustainable management of NTFP. Collectively, NTFP species have high commercial values but in terms of volume they are negligible. Foresters often view them as of minor revenue potentials. This perception has partly contributed to the lack of development of NTFP in India. National Forest Policy, 1988 although addresses the ecological, socio-cultural and economic dimensions of forests, it has not given focussed attention to NTFP. Lack of financial support and development assistance from national and international bodies have also created impediment for sustainable NTFP management. The subject as such has been recognized of great socio-economic importance but without commensurate support from Government, donor agencies, and forest department and other stakeholders. The present policy constraints and management impediments shall have to be effectively addressed to ensure sustainable development of NTFP. Some. of the issues requiring attention have been given in the following sections
2.1
Terminology and Definitions
A number of terminology and definitions are in vogue and this creates difficulty in communication and understanding. National Commission on Agriculture (NCA, 1976) used the term Minor Forest Produce (MFP) and defined it to include all products obtainable from forests other than wood. FAO on the other hand has termed it as non-wood forest (NWF P) and defined as "Products consisting of goods of biological origin other than wood, derived from forests, other wooded lands and trees outside forests" (FAO 1999). Other terms currently in use are non-timber forest products, (which includes fuel wood in India), non-wood goods and benefits, non-wood forest products and services, forest bye-products, secondary forest products etc. In order to have similar perceptions about the social, cultural economic and ecological importance of NTFP, it becomes imperative to have a harmonized definition and terminology for
universal use.
2.2
Lack of Inventory Information
Forest Management in India has been focussing on sustainable wood production (timber and fuel wood) for which a detailed inventory is carried out. Non-timber forest products (NTFP) are still considered as a bye product of forests and therefore, there is complete absence of inventory information pertaining to the list of species yielding NTFP. Their occurrence density and frequency, regeneration status, yield estimates and periodicity are not recorded while preparing the management plan of a forest area. Only few commercially important species are routinely recorded without further details about them.
2.3
Lack of Information on Value of NTFP
Contribution of NTFPs to the forestry sector is significant and studies are showing they have been under valued in the past. A recent valuation undertaken by the Ministry of Environment & Forest in India estimates that 220 million tons fuel wood, 250 million tons of grass and green fodder and 12 million m3 of timber are removed from India's forests annually-for in excess of sustainable production. These products have been estimated (Mukherjee, 1994) to be worth US $ 10 billion. NTFP provide about 40% of total official forest revenues and 55% of forest based employment. Nearly 400-500 million people living in and around forest of India depend on NTFP's for their sustenance and supplementing their meager income (WRI, 1990., FAO,1998). In Madhya Pradesh NTFP which are primarily collected by tribal women are worth more than US $ 700 million (Rs.30 billion) annually (World Watch, 1991). In another study from Raipur district of Madhya Pradesh, Chopra (1994) assessed the household income from collection of NTFP items (Aonla, Chironjee, Harra, Honey, Kusum, Lac, Mahua, Sal seed, Tendu leaf) worth INR.29,001.54 per year. This does not account for many other NTFP items, which are collected in small quantities and are either consumed locally or sold for cash income. Based on the study of 10 Forest Protection Committees under Joint Forest Management (JFM) Programme it was found that the income from NTFP ranges from Rs.234 to Rs.5569 ($ 8 to $ 186) per ha with a mean of Rs.2299 ($79) (Malhotra et al., 1991). Further more, the growth of revenues from NTFP have been faster than from timber in the past (Gupta and Guleria, 1982). These studies indicated that export earnings from NTFP on the average accounted for about 60 to 70% of the total export earnings from forest products and that there is a large scope for increasing exports furt1ler by appropriate management interventions to take advantage of untapped resources. The above values are generally not reflected in the forestry statistics of India and as a result foresters are unable to plead their case for more allocation to forestry sector.
2.4
Silvicultural Systems in Forest Management Practices
Silvicultural practices are designed for timber species without any consideration for the development of NTFP resources. Natural regeneration of principal timber species is accorded highest priority even by sacrificing the growth and development of NTFP species. There has been no effort to reconcile the silvicultural requirements of timber and non-timber species. This has been a major constraint in sustainable development of NTFP species.
2.5
Cultivation of NTFP
Excepting few important NTFP species (eg. Aonla-Emblica officinalis) which are being cultivated thus reducing the pressure on harvesting from natural forests, most of
the species continue to be collected from forests. The collected material from forests is cheaper than the cultivated ones because in former case only the collection cost is involved. This has resulted into unsustainable extraction of NTFP items from natural forests. There is thus a need to promote the cultivation of commercially important NTFP items.
2.6
Economic Weakness of NTFP Dependant Communities
Land less labourers, women and children, and other marginalised populations are engaged in collection of NTFP from natural forests. The NTFPs provide subsistence and income, especially during slack seasons, as these are the source of a major portion of their fuel, food, fodder, fruits and medicines. Most of the NTFP collected by people are sold in raw forms and as a distress sale because the poor collectors have little bargaining and holding power. This problem has been further accentuated by state monopolies, which are loaded in favour of traders.
2.7
Unsustainable and Destructive Harvesting
With the increasing attention on returns from NTFP unsustainable and destructive harvesting started. Intensive resource harvesting without commensurate efforts to regenerate has lead to the extinction of some of the species. In many cases the unsustainable extraction has drastically reduced the population to the below critical level. In Bastar district of Chhatishgarh state, which is a predominantly tribal area rich in forests and biodiversity, Rauwolfia serpentina, source of an important alkaloid 'reserpine' used in moderating blood pressure used to be removed by truckloads in 1960's. Today this important medicinal plant has disappeared altogether (Prasad and Bhatngar, 1991). Ecological status of selected 40 NTFP in Madhya Pradesh was assessed through a CAMP (Conservation Assessment and Management Plan) workshop held on 16-18 June, 1998 at the Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal. This assessment was based on IUCN categories of 1994. This exercise was done involving field foresters, academicians and other stakeholders. Out of 40 assessed species from the state of Madhya Pradesh which accounts for 60% of total recorded NTFP wealth of the Country, 02 species (Curcuma caesia, Rauwolfia serpentina) were found in the category of critically endangered; 09 species were found to be endangered; 14 species vulnerable; 9 species with lower risk least concern and one (Jatropha curcus} could not be evaluated (Prasad and Patnaik, 1998). Peeling of barks of a understorey tree species (Litsea chinensis) and premature harvesting of bamboo in dry deciduous forests of central India for making scented sticks (Agarbatti) resulted into large scale death of the tree species and degradation of bamboo stock (Prasad and Bhatnagar, 1991). Similarly, debarking of Machilus macarantha trees in tropical wet evergreen forests of Coorg and Maland district in Karnataka state was reported to have caused deat1l of a large number of trees (Parmeshwarappa, 1992). The two other most exploited tree species in these forests were Boswellia serrata and Ailanthus malabarica. Similarly, collection of NTFP by felling another tree species Garcenia cambogia also caused extensive damage to the species. Lopping of beedi leaves (Diospyros melanoxylon), burning of forest floor to facilitate collection of cream coloured edible flowers of Mahua (Madhuca fatifolia) during summer months, extraction of wild honey by felling whole trees etc: are several examples of prevailing destructive harvesting practices (Prasad and Bhatnagar, 1998). Destructive tapping (making blazes on tree trunk repeatedly every year) killed or damaged a large number of Sterculia urens -gum karaya trees in Madhya Pradesh forcing the Forest Department to suspend its tapping for about 2 decades (Prasad and
Bhatnagar, 1991). In another study (Tiwari, 1995) carried out to assess the health of Emblica officinalis (edible fruit) due to destructive harvesting in 20 forest compartments in Bilaspur district of Madhya Pradesh, 60% trees were damaged due to pollarding, lopping. In addition, 9.55 trees out of 65 trees per ha were felled to effect maximum collection of Aonla fruits. In a recent study on Emblica officinalis, Buchanania lanzan and Chlorophytum spp. conducted in the central part of Madhya Pradesh revealed that due to destructive and premature harvesting the regeneration of these species has been adversely impacted and productivity is declining (Prasad et al., 2000). These unsustainable practices are adversely impacting the biodiversity. There are very few studies available on impact of unsustainable harvesting of NTFP. Murali and Hegde (1996) and Prasad et al., (1999) studied harvest and regeneration status of Aonla (Emblica officinalis) and found that the number of seedlings was less or nil under the trees which are over harvested for fruits. They have suggested that up to 50% of fruits should be left on the trees, which will provide food to the dwelling animals and birds 'and also support adequate regeneration of tree species. General notion that the extraction of NTFP is compatible with sustained use and conservation of forest resources appeared to be untenable (Godoy and Bawa, 1993). Information on other types of impacts (social and economic) is also lacking. These need to be studied for convincing tile communities as well as the forest managers.
2.8
Lack of Processing, Value-Addition and Storage Facilities
NTFPs are being collected by individual households most of, which is being sold in raw, form depriving the collectors from getting remunerative prices. Collectors do not have bargaining power, as they are required to sell the NTFP under distress. They are often paid less on the pretext of poor quality of material. Many times arbitrary reduction in weight is done on the pretext of material having excessive moisture and other foreign materials. Thus the non- remunerative returns force the collectors to extract ripe and unripe material through pollarding, lopping and even by felling of trees. These unsustainable and destructive practices are impacting the forest ecosystem and its productivity. Since most of the products are collected and sold at household level and that the quantity is not adequate for industrial or even cottage level operations, as infrastructure for processing, value addition and storage does not exist. As a result the present system of unsustainable extraction of NTFP and its sale in raw form depriving the gatherers of remunerative price continuing, the resource depletion has been increasing.
2.9 Lack of Investment in Research and Development

Investment in research on sustainable harvesting regime, propagation techniques, cost effective value addition options etc. which can be carried out at household level have been lacking. These aspects wherever have been addressed the communities have come forward for conservation and sustainable use of resources. This has also resulted into remunerative prices.
2.10 Lack of Local Level Institutions

As discussed earlier the individuals and household level gatherers of NTFP have little bargaining power. Once the communities are empowered through institutional development and other support many issues of sustainability can be effectively addressed. Village Forest Committees (VFCs) formed under joint forest management arrangements in many cases has been registered without allowing the full process before registration. Further, the forest departments still do not appreciate the importance of NTFP in sustaining JFM. As a result, forest protection as well as the
sustainable management of NTFP and the interest of dependent population are suffering (Prasad, 1999). Absence of active village level institutions has seen the advent of exploitative private traders and middlemen. In such situations, even the state monopolies have also affected the earning of poor resulting into their indulgence in unsustainable harvesting. Apart from the absence of local institutions, absence of NGOs from the scene has also contributed to non-remunerative prices to gatherers. Average of 50 households. Other estimates suggest that some 35% of the income of the tribal households in India come from collection of unprocessed NTFP. Also, since NTFPs involve a large variety of products available on year-round basis, returns are more frequent and relatively continuous, when compared to long gestation timber crops. Local processing of NTFP can increase rural employment opportunities. Small-scale forest based enterprises, many of them based on NTFP provide up to 50% of income for 2030% of the rural labour force in India (Campbell, 1988).
2.11 State Monopoly over NTFPs

Traditionally, the collection of NTFPs has been of low intensity and generally sustainable. However, as the economic potential has become apparent, the intensity of collection has increased and more significant infrastructures for trade and processing have developed. This has raised concerns for the sustainability of the resources and the distribution of benefits derived from them. In reaction to these concerns, a number of state governments have taken over the control of a number of NTFPs. Some of the explicit objectives for state monopoly of NTFP trade are: to prevent unscrupulous intermediaries and their agents from exploiting NTFP collectors to ensure fair wages to collectors to enhance revenue for the state to ensure quality to maximize the collection of produce (Prasad et al., 1996).
In most cases, trading is controlled through state-controI1ed institutions such as state forest development corporations, federations, cooperatives and tribal societies. In Orissa, however, where the Forest Produce (Control and Trade) Act of 1981 provides the scope for a state monopoly on certain selected forest products, the state also has the option to give monopoly leases for collection and trade of forest products. In fact, the state has granted monopoly rights for 29 NTFP items to a private company, Utkal Forest Products Ltd (Prasad and Saxena, 1996; Agragamee, 1997; MoEF, 1998). Under this agreement, the local people who collect NTFP are required to sell their collected materials to the company's agents at present prices tliat are lower than those they could have obtained by selling directly to processors. It is noteworthy tl1at some of the 29 items yield very insignificant amounts of revenue yet have nevertheless been taken under the state monopoly. The Government of Kerala has created monopoly for 120 notified items of nontimber forest products. The scheduled tribes and forest dwellers have no right to make any direct sale to outside party. They have to sell it to cooperative societies, which auction the products gathered by the tribal people. A study calculated that the open market price was more than double of the price being offered by government. Thus, in Kerala government monopoly was not only inefficient but also exploiting the tribal people (Kerala World Bank PAD, 1998). State monopoly in Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra has also included a large number of NTFP causing undue hardships to the gatherers. In Madl1ya Pradesh, statetrading is selective in accepting only quality leaves of tendu (country smoke wrapper)
and other NTFP. As a result the collection averaged over the period 1989-96 was 43% less than the period 1981-88 (Prasad, 1998). While the objectives of creating state monopolies are laudable, the declared objectives and the actual situations suggest that on the whole the results are not favourable. Although state forest revenues have increased the forest dependant communities do not appear to be reaping benefits in terms of wages, socio-economic conditions or gender equity, and the cost to end users has continued to increase. Intermediaries have not been eliminated, but have been replaced by agents of the monopoly leaseholders (Prasad, 1999). In view of above facts, now the state monopolies in NTFP collection and trade instead of helping communities in many cases, is in fact alienating them from sustainable management. However, under the pressure from civil society as well as the pro people initiatives in adjoining states (Madhya Pradesh and Chhatishgarh for e.g.) things are changing in above sighted cases as well.
Strategy for Sustainable NTFP Management

There is a growing realization that management and development of NTFP resources is more desirable than focusing forest management for sustainable yield of timber. There are various for this approach. First, in many cases where timber harvesting has been stopped due to the environmental damage logging causes, non-timber forest products assume an important ecological option. Presence of bamboo (e.g. Dendrocalamus strictus) as understorey in tropical dry deciduous forests plays an important ecological role by protecting the site from desiccation and erosion when tree species are leafless. Many understorey herbs, shrubs, climbers and other trees have symbiotic relationship with each other. Unsustainable and destructive harvesting of NTFP may result into extinction of species. Ecological status of 40 species in Madhya Pradesh has brought out the grim situation about the potential danger of unsustainable harvest on biodiversity. Some important medicinal plants (Rauwolfia serpentina and Curcuma caesia) have already disappeared from many forest areas of Madhya Pradesh and 09 more species were categorised as endangered (Prasad and Patnaik, 1998). Second, NTFP management is socio-culturally desirable as it offers incentives to communities to participate in Joint Forest Management by providing year-round source of livelihood. Women and children constitute the majority of NTFP gatherers. In the event of forest degradation the gatherers are required to walk longer and spend more time on their collection but still they do not get remunerative price since their difficulties have become aggravated because of forest degradation leading to the depletion of many NTFP species. It creates drudgery to women and children who are unable to receive commensurate returns. The bulk of the profit is shared between middlemen and contractors and the collector continues to be exploited. Empowerment of local communities through Joint Forest Management focussing on sustainable NTFP management not only eliminates undue hardships to forest dependent communities but also helps them to get remunerative price through sale of value added products. Economically, backward Saharia tribe in 60 villages of Sheopur district depend on collection of a dozen NTFP items from the dry deciduous forests in their areas (Bhattacharya, 2000). Third, NTFP offers food security to millions of people who have no access to cereals and other agricultural products. About 19% of world population (950 million people) in lower income countries are not getting enough food (World Development Report, 1992). Expansion of cropland projected at 25% and irrigated land by 50% would be at the cost of environment. In the Indian context also the current population growth of about 2% would require more food. The forest food plants offer best option to
supplement nutritious food. The potential of NTFP items such as chironji, (Buchanania lanzan) mahua flower (Madhuca species) aonla (Emblica officinalis), honey, safed mushli (Chlorophytum species) and several other edible items is immense, particularly during droughts or famines (Tiwari, 1986; FAO, 1989; Dobhal, 1994). In families living below poverty line, women are able to support the household if forests are rich in biodiversity because women often manage NTFP activities more than men. Fourth, NTFP itcms now provide substantial revenue to the state, in many cases more than timber revenue. In the state of Madhya Pradesh for example, revenue from collection the sale of tendu leaves (used as wrapper to country-smoke -Beedi) alone fetches the state government a revenue INR .4,500 Million. If revenue from other nonnationalised NTFP items is also added, it may reach a mark of INR .10,000 Million (Sharma, 1999 -personal comm.). The total forest revenue from timber is less than INR.5,000 Million. In some state governments, NTFPs are diverted to industries for maximising revenues and in some states, it is being supplied to industries on long-term agreement basis. In a village called Soliya in south Gujarat, villagers collect NTFP worth INR.1.2 million per year. This was the only cash income to villagers (Tewari, 1994). Chopra (1994) reports average annual income of a household of Rs.45,065.29 from collection and sale of 9 items of NTFP in Raipur district of Chhatisgarh (based on Average of 50 households). Other estimates suggest that some 35% of the income of the tribal households in India come from collection of unprocessed NTFP. Also, since NTFPs involve a large variety of products available on year-round basis, returns are more frequent and relatively continuous, when compared to long gestation timber crops. Local processing of NTFP can increase rural employment opportunities. Small-scale forest based enterprises, many of them based on NTFP provide up to 50% of income for 2030% of the rural labour force in India (Campbell, 1988). Some of the major steps required to ensure sustainable development of NTFP resources are discussed hereunder:
3.1 Resource Assessment

So far NTFPs are concerned, there is complete resource illiteracy. There are 3000 to 5000 plant species yielding various useful products. However, the information about them is very scanty. As a first step, it is desirable to have inventory of the available NTFP resource in all 16-forest types of India. It may appear to be a difficult task, but a beginning .has to be made by inventorying the NTFP rich sites and hot spots. Local communities have been traditionally collecting and using a number of NTFPs from their surrounding forests. It is therefore, desirable to take their help in enumerating the available resource. Participatory forest resource assessment (PFRA) is an important tool in increasing people's awareness of the benefits of conserving biodiversity. Use of indigenous knowledge including prevalent ethno-medicinal practices of various products available from forests and other wooded lands should as far as possible, be taken for inventorying the resource.
3.2 Resource Valuation

The economic valuation of NTFP is difficult for several reasons. Communities collect a number of NTFP items for their self-consumption as well as for sale. According to an estimate, about 45% of collected material are locally consumed and remaining 55% is sold for cash income. The use value and the market value need to be taken care of in valuing the forest products. A large number of NTFP still do not enter the market and are locally consumed by producers/collectors and therefore, has no market price. Whatever may be tl1e limitation of valuation, it is desirable to consider all tl1e collected material whetl1er for self-use or for sale. It has to be remembered tl1at every produce collected has some market value and these values should be taken into consideration for calculating the economic value from NTFP collection. Chopra (1993) estimates that tl1e total present value of NTFP goods and services varies from a minimum of US $ 4034 to a
maximum of US $ 6662 per ha. if use option and existence values are all taken into account. Similarly, Mukherjee (1994) estimated the value of fuel wood, grass and green fodder and many other NTFP items estimated to be worth US $ 10 billion. In any case, tl1e value of NTFP is quite substantial. This should help in projecting tl1e demand for higher allocation to forestry development particularly for sustainable development of NTFP.
3.3 Sustainable Harvesting

Sustainable harvesting implies that annual extraction does not exceed the annual accretion. Sustainable extraction of non-timber forest products has recently gained considerable attention to conserve tropical forests and as a measure to enhance the income of rural and tribal people. Over harvesting of NTFP has negative impact on conservation of biodiversity in many forest ecosystems of India. A number of NTFP species are destructively harvested by pre-mature plucking of fruits, seeds, roots, rhizomes, leaves etc. or by lopping of branches and felling of trees. In a study on harvesting practices of Aonla (Emblica officinalis), Chironji (Buchanania lanzan), Safed Mushli (Chlorophytum spp.) carried out in Madhya Pradesh (Prasad et al., 1999), it has been reported that due to unsustainable and destructive harvesting, the plant population ofthese species are declining. The natural regeneration has been adversely impacted. In the adjoining protected areas where harvesting is generally restricted and only adjoining villagers have access to some collection, the status of natural regeneration is comparatively much better. In these cases not only pre-mature harvesting is carried out, but the trees are also damaged. In order to ensure sustainable production of these NTFP items, the researchers of IIFM, Bhopal submitted to the state forest department of Madhya Pradesh, the following recommendations: a) b) c) d) Date of maturity of fruits/roots should be notified. In the absence of information on sustainable harvesting regime, 50% of available fruits of Aonla chironji and 50% of roots of Safed Mushli should not be harvested. Village communities should be involved in regulating the collection time and regime. Institutional intervention to ensure value addition and proper sale rate.
These were accepted by the state forest department and as a first step, it notified the maturity date and brought into force the other research recommendations. It has two-way effects viz., (i) on regulating the harvesting season to prevent premature harvesting and (ii) by enhancing the returns to NTFP gatherers. As against Rs.O.60 per kg of Aonla fruit, villagers were getting before this intervention, in first year itself the return increased by five times (Rs.3.00 per kg.).
3.4
Processing and Value Addition
Collectors in villages adjoining the forests gather NTFPs. These are sold in raw form to small traders and middlemen who usually visit the villagers and buy the produce from the collectors. The collectors sometimes carry the produce to the nearby market places for sale and barter with the other household goods such as rice, kerosene, salt, cloth, etc. The middlemen at the village level sell the produce to larger intermediaries who in turn supply the raw material requirements of the manufacturers and large industries. The final links in the marketing chain are consumers in bigger towns, and cities. NTFP markets are by and large imperfect, and the collectors do not get a fair return for their labour. Middlemen have a dominant position in the marketing of NTFPs
at village level: The present marketing system can be altered through simple interventions that promise to substantially increase the returns to the people. Organizing community groups and facilitating the value addition and marketing of NTFPs through these can eliminate several links in the marketing chain. Studies indicate that value additions at primary collector's level could significantly enhance the return from the sale of the same amount of NTFP. Better incomes -from NTFP collection, processing and marketing hold the key to the economic development of forest dependent populations, particularly the women and children (Prasad et al., 1999). The simplest value-adding step is the grading of the produce. Equally important is storage capacity. Many NTFPs deteriorate fast in the absence of proper storage facilities, and tile bargaining power of the collectors can be increased and their returns improved if proper storage is provided. Arranging such facilities is an important issue for management at the village level. Another option for adding value at the local level is through the establishment of small enterprises. For enterprises based on NTFPs, the technology should be simple, usable at the household level, safe, lead to reduced drudgery, yield quick returns and be gender sensitive in its design. It must use local raw materials and require little capital. Processing ensures quality and makes the product ready for sale at other times than during the peak production season. This point is illustrated from a case study in Nepal (FAO, 1997). There, villagers harvested various medicinal plants in summer when they took their animals to graze at high altitudes. As this occurred in the rainy season, even plants exposed to smoke over the fireplace were not easily dried. This resulted into wastage of material and poor prices. However, with investment in solar dryers and renovation of storage facilities, the villagers received remunerative prices for the better quality material, which was then sold at a time when the market was favourable. Community storage facilities coupled with the provisions for micro-credit may also be an important organizational intervention to prevent the chances of distress selling. In a case study involving four important NTFPs, Buchanania lanzan (chironjee), Madhuca /atifolia (mahua flowers and seeds), Semecarpus anacardium (bhilma) and Emblica officinalis (aonla) simple value addition options resulted into a gain of over 40% to gatherers (Prasad et al., 1989). The extent of value addition for each NTFP items is summarized in Table 2. Table 2: Likely value addition in rupees per kilogram
Species Yalue adding option Value addition Rs. per kg Chironjee Mahua (flower) Mahua (seed) Bhilma Disposal of kernal after extraction Sale of guthly shell (chiti) Sale of off season product during Diwali Sale of mahua oil after expeller extraction Sale of oil cake left over after oil extraction from the seeds Disposal of Bhilma Nut Shell Liquid (BNSL) after ex-traction Extraction and sale of kernal (gudumbi) from the nut Source: Prasad et al., 1999, 'Value adding options for NTFP in India, International Forestry Review. I (1): 17-21. 3.00 2.0 4.50 13.0
Estimates of the increased returns for 25 households in 4 villages of Chhindwara
district in Madhya Pradesh were reported to be Rs.6483 per year to Rs. 9317, a sub5tantial 43.7% increase. W11crc t11ese value adding options are practiced, it is hoped that this major increase in returns may ensure sustainable harvest of the produce (Prasad et al., 1999). Simple value addition options, which can be easily carried out at primary collector's level, can substantially, enhance remuneration to the collectors. These options include washing, cleaning, drying, proper storage and grading. By and large the forest dependent communities are not greedy and through simple value adding options they can achieve higher returns and thus may not be tempted to resort to destructive harvests. Adoption of these value adding options could also reduce the labour of collection and ultimately prove to be an effective tool to eliminate drudgery to women and children engaged in collection and sale of NTFP.
3.5
Developing Local Level Institutions
Institutional interventions have been found to have favourable impact on returns to NTFP gatherers. Gatherer's information and awareness about buyers, the prevailing market price, and government rules may be inadequate. In a competitive and efficient market, information should circulate freely. In Andhra Pradesh, for eg., (Saxena, 1999) although price differentials exists for quality, NTFP collectors tend to be unresponsive to this for lack of knowledge. or lack of confidence. Gatherer's contact is generally limited to the village buyer alone, where as in a competitive and efficient system there should be a large number of buyers and sellers. Gatherers seldom bring their produce to the town. They are uncertain about the price they would get in the town for their produce in relation to the cost and risk of transporting NTFPs. Thus, although these products ultimately reach a very large market, the market is geographically limited as far as gatherers are concerned. Here comes the role of facilitators such as local forest department, NGO or even the village forest protection committee. These organizations can educate the gatherers about the market value and also help them to organize and have bargaining power. In a case study in Sheopur forest division in Gwalior forest conservancy, the local forest departments organized the Saharia tribes who traditionally collect NTFP for their livelihood. The result of this intervention was substantial increase in returns to the villagers (Table 3) Table 3: Impact of organizational intervention on earnings of the people for seven important NTFPs in Northern Madhya Pradesh. Forest Division Sheopur
S. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 NTFP Collection Qtl. 630 375 265 1 25 125 6 Old Rate Rs. 2.75 2.50 0.40 4.75 1.25 3.25 13.50 Rate after Intervention Rs. 5.00 6.60 1.00 7.00 2.50 6.00 30.00
Distt. Sheopur
Difference Rs. 2.25 6.42 0.55 1.25 1.25 2.75 16.50 Net Gains Rs. 141750.00 240750.00 34375.00 125.00 3125.00 48125.00 9000.00 458475.00
Aonla (Dry) (Emblic officinalis) Aol11a (Green) Baheda (Dry) (T'erminalia bellerica) Satavar (Asparagus spp.) Bilora Belguda (Aegle marmelose) Honey Total
Source: Prasad Ram and Rajendra Dobhal, (1995). J.trop f'orestry 11 (Ill): 169-176.
3.6
Review of State Monopolies
Where government alone does marketing, it is inefficient; and where it is left to private trade, it may be worse and equally exploitative (Saxena, 1999). In many cases, forest development corporations, tribal development corporations and other such state undertakings entered into the collection and trade of NTFP with an objective to eliminate middlemen and help poor gatherers to get remunerative price. However, in practice, the middlemen were not eliminated but instead replaced by agents appointed by government who were as exploitative as the earlier middlemen were. With state monopolies, expanding to cover a large number of NTFPs the problem of gatherers in respect of their access to resources, freedom to sell to buyer who pays more have been greatly restricted. As would be there from Table 1, the state trading in NTFPs have not helped the poor gatherers. In order to maximize their margins, government agencies buy only better quality NTFP, thus reducing official collection and also reducing the earning of gatherers. In Madhya Pradesh for example, collection of Tendu leaves averaged over the period 1989-96 was 43% less than the period 1981-88 (Prasad, 1998). In case of Orissa, one private company has, been given monopoly collection rights for 29 NTFPs for 10 years. Thus, a private trader has been given exclusive rights of collection and marketing" there is no check on the price paid by him to the tribal, although on the paper the price is supposed to be fixed by district authorities. The Rajasthan Scheduled Tribe Area Development Cooperative Corporation" Ltd., Udaipur has a monopoly over designated NTFPs. It buys tholi musli, a medicinal herb at Rs.250400 per kg although tribal could easily get from Rs.500-1000 in the open market. Similarly, the Corporation pays only Rs.18 per kg for honey as against the market price of Rs.50 per kg. Thus, nationalization has not been of any help to the gatherers. These examples that government is incapable of effectively administering complete control and do buying and selling of NTFP itself. It is better for government to facilitate private trade, and to act as a watchdog rather than try to eliminate it. Monopoly purchase by government requires sustained political support and excellent bureaucratic machinery. It is difficult to ensure these over a long period and hence nationalization has often increased exploitation of the poor. It is therefore desirable that government should have a selective monopoly in produce which have specialised market (eg.,tendu leaves trade). For other produce, the government should in fact act as facilitator. Certain regulations on movement of NTFPs may be desirable but instead of government, it should be by local institutions such as Village Forest Protection Committees (VFCs). Facility of micro-credit available to VFCs could empower them to hold the produce for sale when the market rate is high. Role of gender should also be appreciated and they are involved in the entire decision making process -from collection to disposal. The challenge for forest department is to devise policies that strike correct balance between livelihoods of collectors and sustainability of NTFP harvesting. The role of government should be to ensure fair returns to collectors and sustainable development of forests. This could be summarized as: Government should improve t11e bargaining position of NTFP collectors by developing the capacity of the local VFC committee through increasing their knowledge and awareness on prices, quality differentials, purchase preferences, and possible marketing channels. Government should sponsor research to identify potential reform affecting competition and analyze the environmental and economic sustainability of NTFP supplies and harvesting levels.
3.7
Inventory Information
In view of very rich biodiversity in the tropical forests, total inventory of all available NTFP species is although a Herculean task requiring sophisticated method of
data collection, a beginning could be made by sampling the NTFP rich sites. Data on density distribution and growth rates of different NTFPs in different forest ecosystems is difficult to collect with required accuracy. However, sample data on NTFP rich sites could be used for the purpose. Prasad and Bhatnagar (1991) reported the data on annual collection of several NTFP species in the state of Madhya Pradesh. Although this data does not take into account the unrecorded extraction, this gives an impression about the potential of NTFP collection in different areas. Some of these products are very rich in a particular area, while in other, there are other species. Prioritization of NTFP species could be made for inventorying. Prasad and Pandey (1987); and Prasad and Pandey (1992); reported status of NTFP species in sal (Shorea robusta) and teak (Tectona grandis) forests of central India. Such inventory could also be collected for different hot spots as well as in different forest types. Many of these information are scattered and not properly documented, An effort should be made to compile the available information to develop NTFP based. Sustainable forest management plans. Studies carried out under the All India Coordinated Research Project on Ethnobiology (AICRPE-MoEF 1999) has estimated that 12,725 plants are listed for various purposes (Table 4). Table 4: No. of Plant species used for various purposes
Purposes Medicinal Edible Cultural and material use Fibres Fodder Pesticides Gums, resins and dyes Incense and perfumes Total No. of plant species 7,500 3,900 700 525 400 300 300 100 12,750
3.8 Participatory Silviculture

Tropical Forest Management particularly in the dry forests is basically aimed at light management because the principal timber species are generally light demander. Classical silvicultural systems therefore treat the crop so as to allow maximum light penetration on the forest floor to help the natural regeneration establish rather quickly. Any other plant species interfering with the growth of timber species by intercepting the light, no matter how important the species may be to local people, are removed. Many NTFP species which grow as an understorey are thus sacrificed to allow more growing space to preferred timber species. This type of silvicultural bias has tended to convert tropical mixed stand into pure crops of sal (Shorea robusta), teak, conifers and several tropical dry deciduous and evergreen species. Although this has not been without violent reaction from nature in terms of outbreak of pests and diseases of epidemic proportion, it has also been detrimental to the growth and development of many NTFP species. The time has now come to have participatory silvicultural system, which aims at providing a variety of NTFP products without unduly altering the ecosystem characteristics.
In Sheopur Forest Division of Madhya Pradesh, Saharia tribal population in about 60 villages has shown the way. A understorey species in tropical dry deciduous forests, Nyctanthes arbotristis which is considered as weed by forest department has been sustainably used by people to make basket for collection and storage of chir gum (Boswellia serrata). This gum-yielding tree was earlier harvested as packing case material for transporting oranges. However, once the season was off, the timber disposal was posing a problem. Local villagers found out the method for sustainable tapping of gum and thus found more profitable and non-destructive method of harvesting. Each tree on an average gave annual yield of 1- 2 kg of gum fetching Rs.40 per kg per tree (Bhattacharya, 2000). These types of practices evolved through people's participation should therefore be preferred over classical silvicultural systems.
CONCLUSION
Non-Timber Forest Products contribute significantly to the forestry sector's revenue and provide incomes and subsistence to large population of indigenous tribal and other forest dependent population. The use and significance of NTFP is highly dependent upon local economic, ecological and socio-cultural traditions. NTFP offers incentives to local communities in jointly protecting and managing forests. Unfortunately, the present management practices are not conducive to sustainable development of NTFP resulting into unsustainable and destructive harvesting. While the NTFP gatherer is made to suffer on account of non-remunerative returns to his hard works, the biodiversity is impacted due to unsustainable resource use. Sustainable NTFP management is an important intervention to sustain community interest in forest protection which in turn, may help in achieving the long term goal of sustainable forest management. In other words, the NTFP management has to ensure social sustainability by ensuring people's participation in decision making and benefit sharing, which may ultimately result into their economic well being and ultimately leading to sustainable forest management (ecological sustainability).
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STATUS OF BAMBOO IN INDIA

Dr. Bipin Behari Introduction
Bamboo, the poormans bonanza is natures wonderful gift to mankind since time immemorial. The quality and availability of this renewable resource have both causes and effects in the larger socio-cultural and economic dimensions of a community. The plethora of its uses in the human economy has led to the coinage of a variety of names for this superb species. The Vietnamese call it My brother, the Chinese Friend of the people and in India it is widely known as Green gold or Poormans timber. Bamboo is a glittering paradigm in the Indian panorama which forms the single most important item of forest produce used by the rural communities in every walk of their lives. It is like a lovely oasis in vast desert of weary life of poor farmers in India. Bamboo diversity in the natural habitat is dwindling due to over-exploitation, shifting cultivation and extensive forest fire. With free access to the forest and the ubiquity of bamboo, people tend to indiscriminately harvest it. Bamboos have been treated as free goods and so have been over-exploited. As a result, the bamboo which was an abundant resource and considered inexhaustible, has become a scarce commodity. Raising bamboo plantations to increase the output to bridge the yawning gap between demand and supply has not received adequate attention. Truly, the present crisis of the availability of bamboos is testament to its remarkable utility. A sustained availability can be assured only by elaborate cultivation of bamboo as a crop.
Distribution
Bamboo, a tall arborescent grass belonging to Bambusae, a tribe of Poaceae (Gramineae) is indigenously found in all the continents except Europe. It is reported that over 75 genera and 1250 species of bamboos occur in the world (FAO, 1978) whereas 43 species belonging to 14 genera are found in Africa (Kigomo, 1988). The distribution of bamboos extends from 51 degree N latitude in Japan (Island of Sakhalin) to 47 degree S latitude in South Argentina. The altitudinal range extends from just above the sea level upto 4000 m. About 14 million hectares of the earth surface is covered by bamboos with 80 percent in Asia (Tewari, 1992). The tropical climate of the region is congenial to bamboos and also the limiting factors for their distribution (Biswas, 1988). From the information provided at the 1980 workshop on Bamboo Research in Asia (Lessard and Chouinard, 1980) and in other publications (Austin et al., 1983), it is obvious that in Asia, bamboo is ecologically, socially and commercially an important plant. Bamboo occurs in semi-evergreen, evergreen as well as temperate forests, though mostly are seen to occur in the tropical moist deciduous and tropical dry deciduous forests in India. India is the second richest country in bamboo genetic resources after China. According to a conservative estimate, the forest area over which bamboo occurs in India is 9.57 million hectares. This is about 12.8 percent of the total forest area of the country (Bahadur and Verma, 1980; Sharma, 1980). Bahadur and Jain (1983) have reported 113 species of bamboo belonging to 200 genera distributed in India. Sharma (1980) reports nearly 136 species. Almost 50 percent of the species diversity finds its ecological niche in North-Eastern India. The main species found in India are Bambusa bambos, Bambusa nutans, Dendrocalamus strictus, Bambusa
Deputy Inspector General of Forests, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India
balcooa, Bambusa tulda, Bambusa pallida, Dendrocalamus baccifera, Melcoanna bambusoides etc.
hamiltonii, Melcoanna
The geographical distribution of bamboo is greatly influenced by human actions (Holttum, 1958). Boontawee (1988) asserted a step further that the natural distribution of bamboo in forests has been greatly altered by human intervention. Gamble (1896) reported that the distribution of bamboo in India is related to the rainfall. High temperature acts as a growth-promoting factor for bamboos. The mean annual rainfall needed is 1000 mm and above. However, in tropics, a season of at least three months duration with a monthly rainfall of 200 mm or more is needed for good growth of bamboos (Uchimura, 1981). Varmah and Bahadur (1980) correlated the preferential distribution of different bamboo species with the climatic zones of India. The distribution of various genera and species of bamboo is different from one region to another, that is to say, with the exception of few overlaps, certain species are more or less characteristics of forest types and ecological situation. The alpine region has Arundinaria and Thamnocalamus, the temperate region has these two genera and also Phyllostachys, the sub-tropical region has Arundinaria, Bambusa and Dendrocalamus, the tropical moist region has Bambusa, Dendrocalamus, Melocanna, Ochlandra and Oxytenanthera and, the dry tropical region has Dendrocalamus and Bambusa (Ahmed, 1996).
Bamboo Resources in the Country

The total assessed growing stack (green weight) is estimated to be 97.886 million tones (Table 1). The North Eastern states have 66% of the total growing stock while the rest of the country has 34%. The main States that contribute to the growing stock are Assam (13.7%), Manipur (11.72%), Arunachal Pradesh (19%), Madhya Pradesh (4.62%), Orissa (5.4%), Meghalaya (4.5%), and Maharashtra (8%). Table1: Bamboo Growing Stock in India
States
Bamboo Area (Sq. Km.)
Total No. of culms in (000) NA 2078846.3 2379118.3 NA 1158617.1 NA 543047.0 NA NA NA 379671.4 148700.0 628338.0 2470404.0 2593207.0 610727.0
Growing stock (000 tonnes) Green Weight 3179.9 18765.5 13405.0 750.0 5881.7 NA 2539.9 NA 9.1 NA 2302.1 1195.0 4522.5 7816.9 11470.5 4407.1 Dry Weight 1908.0 10407.7 8043.0 450.0 3439.9 NA 1524.0 NA 5.4 NA 1385.2 717.0 2713.5 4690.1 717.0 2644.3
Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar & Jharkhand Chhattisgarh Goa Gujarat Haryana Himachal Pradesh J&K Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya
6598.0 5714.2 8213.5 795.0 11521.0 30.8 2805.7 42.0 60.3 15.0 5976.3 745.0 9507.5 14427.6 3691.8 3102.7
States
Bamboo Area (Sq. Km.)
Total No. of culms in (000) 6130434.1 488156.1 1231616.9 NA 71452.0 22319.3 720260.1 74444.2 113364.0 NA NA 21842722.8
Growing stock (000 tonnes) Green Weight 10890.4 3656.7 5318.5 NA 164.2 64.9 870.5 206.1 220.1 250.0 NA 97886.6 Dry Weight 6534.2 2194.0 1259.7 NA 98.5 37.1 522.3 123.7 132.0 150.0 NA 49696.6
Mizoram Nagaland Orissa Punjab Rajasthan Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttaranchal West Bengal Andaman & Nicobar Total
9210.3 758.0 6353.4 50.0 529.4 419.8 938.6 1152.6 877.4 1751.0 784.0 96070.9
Source: Rai and Chauhan, 1998
Potential and Uses

Bamboos are used in a myriad ways in the rural sector and are interwoven with the life style of the people of the Asia Pacific region. Bamboo is very popular due to its multiple uses, fast growth, easy propagation, soil binding properties, short rotation and it can reduce pressure of fuel, fodder and small timber from the forest areas. With the availability of such a wonderful renewable resource as bamboo, it is possible to develop and strengthen the prevalent craft traditions and ensure some economic benefit to the people, and at the same time maintain a cultural continuity in the rural tribal way of life. Bamboos form an essential component in cottage and rural industry in Asia and the Pacific region. The quality of fast regeneration, strong, straight, smooth, light and hard wood, easy to split and cut and easy transportability has led to their multifarious uses in rural areas. The diverse ethnic uses of bamboo in the rural areas make it useful to the villagers in almost every need of life. Bamboo is used for making anchors, bows and arrows, back scratchers, baskets, beds, boats, bridges, bottles, brooms, brushes, caps, cart yokes, ceilings, chairs, chicks, chopsticks, coffers, combs, containers, cooking utensils, doors and windows, dustpans, decorative articles, fans, fences, fish - traps, fishing nets, fishing-rods, flag poles, flutes, flower pots, food baskets, fuel, furniture, handicrafts, hedges, hooka - pipes, kites, ladders, lamps, loading vessels, match sticks, mats, milk vessels, musical instruments , nails, ornaments , pulp & paper, purlin, pens , parquet, rafts, rayon pulp, roofing, ropes, sails, scaffoldings, scoops, seed-drills, shuttles, spears, sport goods, sprayers, stools, sticks, tables, trusses, trays, toys, tool - handles, traps, tubs, thatching, umbrella - handles, walking sticks, wall plates, water vessels and wrappers etc. It is an excellent material for house construction in earthquake prone areas. It is widely used as food material and for many medicinal uses. Though bamboo is not a tree in strict sense of the word, looking to the multiple uses and utility of its parts and potential, it can be easily stated that bamboo has the status to be called as Multi-purpose tree species (Badoni et al., 1997). Bamboos are utilized for a variety of purposes as they possess enormous bending and tensile strength properties (Shukla et al., 1988). According to Liese (1985), the
specific gravity of bamboo varies from about 0.5 to 0.8 (0.9) g/cm3. The mechanical properties are correlated with specific gravity. Bamboo possesses excellent mechanical properties. As a result, it is an indispensable material for construction and is used in round or split form for construction of foundations, frames, floors, walls, interior paneling, partitions, ceilings, doors, windows, shingles and pipes. The uses of bamboo for trusses have been elaborated by Janssen (1981). He compared it with steel, concrete and timber in terms of energy needed for production, safety, strength and stiffness as well as simpleness of production as a construction material. The outcome of the comparison places bamboo well ahead for construction purposes (Janssen, 1985). Bamboo is indeed one of natures miracles and its strength and structure enable it to be put to diverse uses. Tewari (1992) summarized the characteristics of bamboo which render it suitable as reinforcement in cement concrete constructions: a) b) c) d) It can easily be cut into required sizes with simple tools. Its natural surface is clean, hard and smooth. It has no bark and therefore less wastage. Its structure at nodes adds to its strength. Bamboos do not bend or break easily at nodes. It possesses high tensile strength. It is elastic and seldom breaks. It has the length and thickness suited for easy storage. Skilled labour is not required for handling of bamboos.
e) f)
Tewari (1992) further specified the following reasons for attributing special significance to bamboos in recent times: a) b) Bamboo is a fast growing amongst the woody species, attaining harvestable maturity in less than five years. Plantation technology for large-scale cultivation of bamboo is known while, standard practices have been developed with calm cuttings, tissue culture is gaining acceptance. As material, matured bamboo ranks potentially higher than juvenile wood, having less variability in structure and properties, favourable for making reconstituted panel products. Despite its vigorous and invasive growth habit, it is environment friendly in comparison to Eucalyptus species, in countries such as India.
c)
d)
Ecological Importance of Bamboo

Bamboo has over 1500 uses and has tremendous versatility. It is a valuable plant for wind- breaks. It is particularly useful for soil stabilization on slopes and for preventing erosion because of its interlaced root system (Liese, 1985). Bamboos are one community that colonize disturbed lands in the tropics (Drew, 1974; Soderstrom and Vidal, 1975). The ecological benefits of bamboo are tremendous which make it a suitable afforestation species in degraded areas. Bamboo with its unique ability to stitch and repair damaged soils is ideal for use in rehabilitating degraded lands. Bamboo can increase the value of marginal land. Poor farmers can be divided into the landless or land-poor, and the landed poor. While the former have little or no land, the latter may have quite large areas of land but this land is of such poor quality that it does not support the farmers choice of crops. However, there are bamboos that can grow in poor soils, can increase the value of the land as well as the income from
agriculture. For instance, in the low rainfall zone of Kerala where poor farmers cannot irrigate, bamboo has been introduced into heitherto barren areas (Blowfield, 1955). The ecological benefits of bamboo make it suitable for reforestation of degraded areas. Researches have shown that bamboo has the fastest growing canopy for the regreening of degraded areas. It generates plenty of oxygen, lowers light intensity, protects against ultraviolet rays, and is an atmospheric and soil purifier. Furthermore, it conserves water and greatly reduces soil erosion (Anneth, 1996). The increased permeability of the soil reduces water run-off, with the result that more water penetrates the soil. The impact of bamboo on water resources is highly positive. Thus, bamboo plantations prevent evaporation, allow better water penetration into the soil and increase the drainage capacity of the soil (Anon., 1994). Poor people and poor areas (degraded) have simply become locked into a vicious cycle of synergistic mutual destruction. Bamboo is again ideal for use in rehabilitating degraded lands because of its interlaced root system and unique ability to stitch and repair degraded soils. Soil and water conservation efforts also find in bamboo a useful ally. Moreover, the degraded agricultural lands are easily and readily available with the farmers in India to cover larger areas under bamboo plantations. Bamboos have been planted in many parts of the country but they are mainly confined to the fringes or boundaries of the farm fields and that too in very limited numbers. The farmers in India are by and large very poor to afford to heavy investment for raising plantations especially on degraded lands. To overcome this situation, the phytosociological aspects of the highly degraded basaltic tract of Madhya Pradesh were studied to assess the impact of agroforestry models of bamboo cultivation with the short term agricultural crops, namely soyabean, Niger, Moong, Mustarad, Wheat, Urad and Arhar, on the restoration of ecology and the socio-economic amelioration of the farmers. The economic analysis through Benefit-Cost ratio, Net Present Value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) revealed that all the six Bamboo based agro forestry models developed are economically viable whereas bamboo-soyabean model and bamboo-urad model are best followed by bamboo-mustard and bamboo-wheat models. The ecological parameters studied further revealed that the degraded agricultural lands can be ecologically restored and improved fast through the development of bamboo based Agroforestry models/systems. The improvement of soil conditions promotes plant succession and vice versa. Eco-system development of drastically disturbed lands starts with reinvasion of species from the surrounding plant communities. After initial colonization wide variety of changes occur as succession proceeds and ultimately the development of self-sustaining eco-system is possible (Behari et al., 2000).
Socio-Economic Status of Bamboo

Economics are out growing ecosystems. Once the sustained yield threshold has been crossed, further growth cuts into the resource base, be it forests, fisheries, or demand for water. As the gap between supply and demand widens, deforestation accelerates (Anon., 1998). Shrinkage of the forest area, coupled with increasing demand and over-exploitation is depleting the bamboo resources in the country. This is a matter of serious concern, particularly for the poorer folk who depend solely on bamboo for their livelihood and cannot compete with large organized industries for their raw material. The sale of bamboo is one of very few opportunities to generate cash income in otherwise subsistence economies; it is the money that is needed to pay for school fees and supplies, agricultural inputs, medicines and goods from the cash economy. With the rapid socio - economic change and increasing industrial development, the importance of bamboo as a raw material has crossed the boundary of industrial sector of paper and pulp, by making headway in various cottage industries in India for the overall welfare of
the rural people at large. Table 2 below depicts the consumption pattern of bamboos in India. Table 2: Consumption pattern of bamboos in India
S. NO 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Pulp Housing Rural uses Fuel Non-residential Packing, including basket Transport Furniture Other wood - working industries Others, including ladders, mats, etc. T O T AL Source: Tewari, D.N. (1992). A monograph on Bamboo: pp 231. Uses Percentage Consumption 35 20 20 8.5 5 5 1.5 1 1 3 100.0
The worlds annual production of bamboo has been estimated to be more than 20 million tonnes, with wide annual fluctuations because of large-scale periodic death of bamboo clumps from gregarious flowering. The total annual production of bamboo in India has been estimated to be around 5 million tonnes of which about 3.5 million tonnes are required by the pulp and paper industry (Sharma, 1980). Its production is influenced by three major factors viz. temperature, precipitation and soil. The annual production and productivity of bamboo in China, Japan and India is as under (Pathak, 1989). China Japan India 5.0 m tonnes / year or 1.25 tonnes / ha. / Year 0.3 m tonnes/ year or 2.41 tonnes / ha. / Year 3.2 m tonnes / year or 0.33 tonnes / ha. / Year
China and India have the worlds largest bamboo resources. China is the worlds largest producer of commercial bamboo, with unprocessed bamboo valued at US$1.5 billion in 1999 (Ruiz-Perez et at., 2001). Processing is estimated to have added another US$1.3 billion this total. The sector provides part-or full-time employment for more than 5 million people in China. Indias annual harvest totals approximately 4 million tones, with slightly more than half used in rural construction and scaffolding (Ganapathy, 2000). Most of the remainder is for making pulp and paper. Bamboo is also used extensively to make paper in Bangladesh, China, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam. The bulk of Indian bamboo production goes to the paper industry at subsidized prices and has effectively been taken out of the control of traditional artisans. Therefore, the most bitter pain in the neck of bamboo artisans is not the shortage of money but the shortage of bamboos. To meet up the demands of paper mills and the bamboo artisans for their overall socio-economic amelioration, it is the need of the hour to reduce pressure on natural forests and popularize bamboo plantations by farmers on their field bunds, backyards, village and farmlands, community lands and wastelands. Bamboo can be a good component of farm forestry and can supplement the income of poor farmers; and help various industries of bamboo handicrafts to flourish which are starving at present for raw material. The cultivation
and post-harvest uses of bamboo are labour intensive activities and therefore can give productive employment to millions of people and create thousands of entrepreneurs and is thus most appropriate as an employment generation activity in rural India. Compared to tree crops, bamboo can produce economic return in a relatively short period of time. Furthermore, while trees grown for timber can only be harvested once, a bamboo clump can be harvested many times over (Blow field et al., 1996). Bamboo is a multipurpose species and its processing is labour intensive providing opportunities for types of diverse employment and may be converted to value added products. It is thus, much useful than any other multipurpose woody species. There is clear advantage in bamboo harvesting in terms of rotational cycle which is just 1/3rd to 1/4th of the common plantation woods like Poplar, Eucalyptus, rubber wood etc. The increased biomass production per unit time and reduced harvesting periods are thus expected to yield twin benefits in comparison to plantation woods. Further the shorter span (5 years) rotation cycle of bamboo harvest also ensures freedom of introduction of new varieties of bamboo in the pattern of agriculture harvesting (Badoni et al., 1997). Bamboo is thus, a versatile multipurpose forest produce which plays a vital role in our domestic economy. It grows fast, producing useful timber. Once planted a bamboo stand can be cut repeatedly for a long period. Therefore, developing bamboo cultivation is of great significance not only to promote economical gains but also to help rural community, economy and increasing farmers income. Bamboo is a means of subsistence for thousands of bansods (bamboo craftsmen), medars (traditional basket makers) and artisans who eke out their living by selling bamboo articles. Despite the vital role it plays in the socio-economic amelioration of the poor and the bamboo artisans and in many a forest and rural ecosystems, it has far long been escaping the prying eyes of the plant breeders. Bamboo thus, deserves an improved status in the forestry parlour. In an increasingly market-oriented, cash-based world, people need access to cash income. Bamboo is an important commodity in the cash economy. Growing demands translate into jobs within the processing sub-sector, and increase the demand and cash income in the raw material production sub - sector (Belcher, 1996). With the rapid socio-economic transformation and industrialization of the country, bamboo gained importance as a raw material not only for cottage industry but also for large industries like pulp and paper (Rai et al., 1996). Rao (1996) pointed out that the excellence in the craft was limited by the low status given to bamboo as a material as well as to the craftsman in the society. Bamboo products were seen as cheap products made by lower castes. The aesthetics of simplicity in the folk craft was seldom valued by the rich in the society. While on the other hand, the number of Indians who earn their livelihood, however, unenviable, from their skills in splicing and weaving bamboos, by far exceeds, the population of many minor nations of the size of New Zealand. These twenty lakh artisans plus, for thousand of years, carried on their role in the rural economic mosaic by harvesting their bamboos from the nearby forests (Kale, 1996). But due to the rapid dwindling of forests and bamboo resources, the artisans today are in shortage of bamboos. They in fact, do not need charity, they need BAMBOOS. Forestry based employment is an iceberg. There is a hidden part to it that is far bigger than the visible one. This is true in a dual sense. As will be seen forests generate much more employment and income than is apparent from conventional statistics. Research in industrialized and developing countries suggests that forestry can have a positive effect on agriculture when it provides supplementary income from land that is
suitable only for marginal agricultural production (Poschen, 1997). Bamboo industry is mostly small scale. Its employment generation has been significant and particularly beneficial for the socio-economic development of the rural poor. Research has shown that small and medium scale forest based enterprises are very significant providers of employment and income, and within that sector bamboo industry is a major component. One of the major advantages of bamboo as an entry point to development is the fact that so many products can be produced from it and most of them can be produced by small and medium scale enterprises. Such enterprises can be established with modest capital investments: the economics of scale are not nearly as high as in some other manufacturing industries. They are labour intensive industries, and result in large-scale employment generation (Belcher, 1996). Besides the employment and socio economic benefits, the bamboos have also medicinal values. In India, the leaves of Bambusa bambos are used in the ayurvedic system of medicines for blood purification, leucoderma and for the treatment of inflammatory conditions. An infusion of leaves is used as an eye wash and internally it is given for bronchitis, gonorrhoea and fever (Dransfield and Widjaja, 1995). It is also used in the ayurvedic drugs to treat cough and asthma. Its burnt root is used as a medicine in the treatment of ringworm, bleeding gums, painful joints and wounds. Moreover, Tabasheer or banslochan is a siliceous secretion found in the culms of various species of bamboos. It has enjoyed considerable reputation in medicine as a cooling tonic, aphrodisiac cure to asthma, cough, female disorders, paralytic complaints and other debilitating diseases. It has rightly been said that the importance of bamboo to the rural people in the developing countries has neither been adequately realized nor have the multifarious usages of bamboos been visualized. It is thus, the time that these eco-friendly woody grasses (bamboos), which have annual incremental harvests, are made use of by planners to increase rural employment, generate raw materials, reduce imports and ensure the socio-economic improvement of rural communities and creation of better economic and environmental conditions in the country.
Flowering of Management
Muli
Bamboo
(Melocanna
baccifera)
and
Its
Most of the bamboo species flower at the end of a long number of years of vegetative growth. The flowering is synchronous over vast tracts of varying extent and this phenomenon is called gregarious flowering. The gregarious flowering has been observed to occur at regular time intervals. Such a peculiar behaviour of bamboos often creates ecological, economic and social problems, particularly in the North-East India because of its poor infrastructure development. Gregarious flowering of muli bamboos (Melocanna baccifera) is expected during the year 2005-2007 in the North-East. The states, expected to be affected by the gregarious flowering to varying extents include Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. Sporadic flowering in a few products has already been reported by the states. Although no scientific detailed study is available, there are reports that document the historical occurrence of bamboo flowering and famine in North-East India particularly in Mizoram. The recorded bamboo flowering in Mizoram suggests that the two earlier events of gregarious flowering has occurred in a time block of 1911-1912 and 19591960 respectively. The last gregarious flowering of muli bamboo in Mizoram, Tripura, Manipur and Barak Valley of Assam has been reported in 1958-59, which was followed by famine in those areas. Based on this, the projections have been made that the next flowering cycle is expected to occur during 2004-2007.
Table 3: Record of gregarious flowering of bamboos in Mizoram

S. No. I 1. 2. Muli Bamboo (Melocanna Baccifera) Pecca Bamboo (Bambusa tulda) 1785 1833 1881 1929 1815 II 1863 III 1911 IV 1958-59 V Expected in 20042007 1977/ next expected in 2025 48 48 Species Recorded Year of Flowering Cycle year
Immediate Effects of Gregarious Flowering

Sudden availability of huge stockpile of dry bamboos a big fire hazard Explosion in population of rodents due to availability of excess food in the shape of bamboo seeds Sudden shortage of seeds due to germination and the rodents feeding on agricultural food crops Shortage of food for the people The people dependent on bamboo for livelihood purposes deprived of the source materials Fear of outbreak of an epidemic
Mitigation Strategy of Ministry of Environment & Forests

(i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii) (viii) (ix) (x) (xi) (xii) Resource survey and mapping Resource extraction and management Resource utilization Regeneration plan Development of necessary infrastructure Rodent control and precautionary measures to control spread of epidemic Control of fire hazard Famine control Dealing with felling and transit restrictions Royalty rates and entry tax Research projects Awareness campaign
The total requirement of funds projected by the State Governments is Rs.36650.40 lakhs. The Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India would be able to provide funds to the rune of Rs.85 crores over a period of four years. Additional financial resources will have to be found out by the states, from their own budget and other sources such as Additional Central Assistance from the Planning Commission, 12th Finance Commission and, if necessary, also from the Calamity Relief Fund under the Ministry of Home Affairs. The state governments will have to make requests to these bodies/organizations with full justification. The states governments may also approach NABARD for regeneration activities. The proposed allocation of funds by Ministry of Environment & Forests is given below:
Table 4:
Year-wise allocation of funds by Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India

(Rs. in Crores)
Year 200506 200607 200708 200809 Total
Arunachal 0.25 0.50 0.50 0.25 1.50
Mizoram 08.60 05.00 05.00 05.00 23.60
Assam 09.30 01.50 01.00 01.20 13.00
Tripura 15.00 02.00 02.00 02.20 21.20
Manipur 06.90 01.00 01.00 01.00 09.90
Nagaland 06.00 01.00 00.50 00.50 08.00
Meghalaya 04.90 00.90 00.60 00.40 06.80
ICFRE 0.50 0.20 0.20 0.10 01.00
Total 51.45 12.10 10.80 10.65 85.00
As per the initiation of the Ministry of Environment & Forests, the muli bamboo has been declared `free for export till 31.3.2008 for which necessary notification has been issued by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
Conclusion
Considering the potential of bamboo for socio-economic development, especially in rural areas, there is an immediate need to carry out their massive plantations in forests, farms and vacant community lands. It is also necessary to boost research and development activities for genetic improvement in bamboo, development of efficient methods for mass production of superior quality planting stock, and conservation of the genetic resources. Both from the ecological and socio-economic point of view, cultivation of bamboo as a crop is highly inevitable. Besides being the standing bank account for the farmers, it can cover large areas of degraded and waste lands and convert them into potential economic use. The initial financial support to the farmers for raising bamboo plantations can do miracle in this respect. The value aided items of bamboo being prepared by bamboo craftsmen are also not fetching adequate economic returns to them. There is need to create awareness and the market for these value aided items of bamboo. Even an exhibition can be arranged at the National level and in the countries of South-East Asia and Europe to publicize, demonstrate and exhibit the potential and high class value aided items of bamboo being prepared by rural bamboo craftsmen/artisans in India. To promote the development of bamboo based industries, the necessary relaxation under the policy may also be envisaged both at the Central level and State levels as the Order of Honble Supreme Court dated 12.12.1996 regarding the ban of green trees is not applicable in respect of minor forest produce including bamboo. This is with regard to the transportation whereas felling of bamboo is permitted as per the prescriptions of the working plan approved by the Central Government under the provisions of Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980. The State Governments may relax these rules especially in non- forestry areas so far as the movement and harvesting of bamboo is concerned. Above all, improved silvicultural practices and methods for harvesting, storage and processing need to be devised and marketing forces to be activated and organized.
Creation of an effecting national network for faster exchange of technical information and establishment of linkages between producers and marketing agencies will go a long way in boosting bamboo production and trade in India.
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Drew. W.B. (1974). The ecological role of bamboos in relation to the military use of herbicides on forests in South Vietnam. National Academy of Science; Nat. Res. Council, Washington, D.C., pp 14. FAO (1978). Bamboo Forest News for Asia and the Pacific: II (4) Gamble, J.S. (1896). The Bambuseae of British India. Annals of Royal Botanical Garden, Calcutta, 7: 1-133. Ganpathy, P.M. (2000). Sources of non-wood fibre for paper, board and panel production status, trends and prospects for India. Asia Pacific Forestry Sector Outlook Study Working Paper No. APFSOS/WP/10. Rome, FAO Holttum. R.E. (1958). The bamboos of the Malay Peninsula. The Gardens Bulletin, Singapore, 16: 1-135. Janssen, J.J.A. (1981). Bamboo in building structures. Eindhoven: Technical University, pp 253. Janssen, J.J.A. (1985). The mechanical properties of bamboo. In: Recent Research on bamboo: proceedings of the International Bamboo Workshop, 6-14 October, Hangzhou, China; (Eds.) - A.N. Rao, G. Dhanarajan and C.B. Shastry, pp 250-256. Kale (1996). The artisans unappreciated their problems un-understood. In: proceedings of National Seminar on Bamboo, Bangalore, 28 - 29, November, pp 147 - 148. Kigomo, B.N. (1988). Bamboo Resource in East African region. In: proceedings of the International Bamboo Workshop, Cochin, India, 14-18, November. Publisher Kerala Forest Research Institute and International Development Research Centre, Ottawa, Canada, pp.22-28.
Lessard, G.L. and Chouinard, A. (1980). Bamboo Research in Asia. International Development Research Centre, Ottawa, Canada.
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Liese, W. (Ed.) (1985). In: Bamboo - biology, Silvics, properties utilization. Schriftenreihe der GTZ. 180: 1 108. Pathak, P.S. (1989). Bamboo resources in the world. In: proceedings of seminar on silviculture and management of bamboos. Institute of Deciduous forests, Jabalpur (M.P.), pp 78 - 87. Poschen, Peter (1997). Forests and employment - much more than meets the eye. In: proceedings of the XIth World Forestry Congress, 13 -22 October, Antalya, Turkey, 4: 61 -79. Rai, S.N. and Chauhan, K.V.S. (1996). Distribution and growing stock of Bamboos in India. In: proceedings of National Seminar on Bamboo, Bangalore, India, 28 - 29 November, pp 83 - 87. Rai, S.N. Chauhan, K.V.S. (1998). Distribution and Growing Stock of Bamboos in India, Indian Forester, 89-96. Rao, A.G. (1996). Search for new Aesthetics in Bamboo craft. In: proceedings of National Seminar on bamboo, Bangalore, 28-29, November, pp. 102 -104. Ruiz-Perez, M., Fu, M. yang, X. and Belcher, B. (2001). Bamboo forestry in China: toward environmentally friendly expansion. Journal of Forestry, 99 (7): 14-20. Sharma, Y.M.L. (1980). Bamboos in the Asia Pacific Region. In: proceedings Workshop on Bamboo Research in Asia, Singapore, 28 - 30 May, 1980 (Eds.). G. Lessard and A. Chorinard, International Development Research Centre, Ottawa, Canada, pp 99-120. Shukla, N.K.; Singh, R.S. and Sanyal, S.N. (1988). Strength properties of eleven bamboo species and study of some factors affecting strength. J. Indian Academy of Wood Science, 19 (2): 63-80. Soderstrom, T.R. and Vidal, J.E. (1975). An Ecological Study of the vegetation of the Nam Nagum reservoir (Laos) - A report. Mekong committee. Sinithso nian office of ecology, pp. 46. Tewari, D.N. (1992). A monograph on Bamboo. International Book Distributors, Dehradun (U.P.), India. Uchimura, E. (1981). Site condition of growth and methods of multiplication of bamboo. In: Bamboo production and utilization: proceedings of the congress group 5 - 3 A. Production and utilization of Bamboo and related species (ed. T. Higuchi). XVII IUFRO World Congress, Kyoto, Japan, September 6 -17, pp 23 - 26. Varmah, J.C. and Bahadur, K.N. (1980). In: Country report: India, Bamboo research in Asia (eds.) (G. Lessard and A. Choulnard): proceedings of a workshop in Singapore, 28-30 May, 1980: 19 - 46.
STATUS OF RATTANS IN INDIA

A.K. Joshi1 Introduction:
Rattans or canes are climbing palms of the family Arecaceae. Mostly Rattans are trailing or climbing spiny-palms with characteristic scaly fruits, classified under the major Lepidocaryoid group of the palm family Arecaceae (Palmae). Sometimes they might be confused with bamboo, but can be distinguished easily as they are solid, whereas bamboos are mostly hollow. The true rattans are restricted to the Old World tropics and subtropics. They are particularly abundant in South Asia, South-East Asia and the Malay Archipelago. There are 14 genera of rattans comprising about 600 species that have been recognized throughout the world (Dransfield, 1981). Their major habitat is in the tropical rain forests, and in much of South-East Asia they represent the most important forest product after timber. They are considered one of the most important forest products after timber and constitute an integral part in the rural and tribal areas in many of the tropical countries. Not only are they the raw material for industries, but they also hold a great social significance as a source of livelihood for the people residing in the vicinity of the forest areas. Generally, raw rattan is processed into several products to be used as material in furniture making. Apart from providing bulk of the raw material for cane-furniture industry, rattans are also used variously for making ropes, furniture frames, walking sticks, polo sticks, umbrella handles, baskets, sports goods, mat making, wicker work, for stuffing and packing etc. Rattans are therefore an important source of livelihood for the economically and socially weaker sections of the community. Rattans constitute an integral part of the tropical forest ecosystem. The network of pinnate leaves play a major role in intercepting rain water and thus improve the water-holding capacity of the soil. Rattans have characteristically long and flexible stems that need support. In favorable conditions some species will grow to very great lengths. The longest cane ever recorded was over 175 m long. Some species of rattans are single-stemmed while others are multi-stemmed, single-stemmed species providing a single harvest while the multi-stemmed species can be harvested on a sustainable basis. The stem is surrounded by sheathing leaf bases which contain sharp spines. These sharp spines sometimes interlock to form passageways, which may be used by ants for nesting, thus providing extra protection to the plant. Rattans also have whips, either on the leaf sheaths or at the end of the leaves, which are also armed with spines. These whips or spines provide support to the rattan plant. It is the presence of these whips and spines that make the collection of rattans difficult and are in part responsible for making rattans a relatively less studied group of plants. Rattans have remained a neglected and relatively less studied natural resource till recent times. Although their economic potential was known earlier, there was little attempt to document their status etc. There has been a renewed interest in them recently, especially with the increasing degradation of forest lands and the consequent loss of their natural habitat. The unregulated over exploitation from the forest areas has compounded this problem and as a result various organizations and institutions round the world are now undertaking scientific studies to conserve and cultivate them. During the last two decades there have been renewed research activities, which have led to an appreciation of the importance of rattan and the need for its conservation. The trade in
1
A. K. Joshi, Assistant Inspector General of Forests, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India.
rattans and canes is thought to be worth about US $ 5.0 billion annually. The trade has labor intensive, and as involves some of the poorest people in the community great social significance.
Rattans in India:
In India there are about 60 species of rattans under four genera, Calamus, Daemonorops, Korthalsia and Plectocomia. They are mainly distributed in three major geographic regions, the Western Ghats of Peninsular India, Sub-Himalayan hills and valleys of eastern and northeastern India and Andaman & Nicobar Islands. The rattans comprise more than fifty percent of the total palm taxa found in India. (Basu, 1992) One genus and 21 species have been so far reported from Western Ghats; 3 genera and 18 species from Andaman & Nicobar Islands and 3 genera and 17 species and two varieties from North Eastern States (Lakshmana, 1993; Renuka, 1992, 1995, 1999). The species distribution of rattans for each region is unique to that particular region and does not overlap with other regions. In the Indian context only 25 per cent of the total reported species of rattans are economically important. Peninsular India: An ideal habitat of rattans is the Western Ghats of Peninsular India, with its tropical evergreen rain forests. Rattans are also found in the Nilgiris and in the Ghat forests of Andhra Pradesh. Depending on the species they are distributed in the evergreen, semi-evergreen and moist deciduous forests. Rattans generally occur in the hills at an altitude below 1000m, the exception being C. rotang, which is a cane of the plains. There are four species seen in the higher hills and up to an altitude of 2000m. Northeast India: In the North-East, rattans are found in the evergreen and the sub Himalayan mixed forests. Rattans are also distributed in the moist deciduous forests of Orissa and Bihar and in the coastal swamp forests of W. Bengal and Orissa. They have their range of distribution from alluvial plains to the moist hill forests up to 2000m altitude. Andaman & Nicobar Islands: Though the uninhabited islands are much richer in Rattan distribution, several taxa of rattans are also found naturally in the inhabited islands of the ANI. C. andamanicus and Korthalsia laciniosa occur both in the Andaman and Nicobar group of islands, whereas other rattans have restricted distribution in specific areas only. A total of eleven species are confined to the Andaman group and five to the Nicobar group. (Renuka C., 1996) Present status: Over the years the degradation of natural forests in the above three major areas has lead to major variations in the distribution of Rattans. In the Northeastern states a large area is now bereft of rattans because of shifting cultivation a major reason for the loss of natural vegetation in the forest areas. Many of the species reported earlier from certain specific localities are absent now (Renuka, 2000). The growing popularity of cane furniture has also resulted in the overexploitation of this important forest resource. In many regions commercial species have been seriously depleted as the rapid exploitation continues unabated. The situation, if left unresolved, may bring about severe economic and social repercussions. Species such as Calamus travancoricus, C. rotang, C. dransfieldii and C. nambariensis have become extremely rare in their original localities.
Taxonomical Data on Rattans:

A total of 53 species belonging to the 4 genera viz. Calamus, Daemonorops, Korthalsia and Plectocomia occur in the country (Renuka, 1996). Their taxonomy and distribution in India is given in Table 1.
Table 1: Taxonomy and distribution of rattans

S. No. 1. Name of Rattan Description Distribution
Calamus Griff.
acanthospathus
A large climber.
North East India, Sikkim, India. Andaman Nicobar India. and Islands,
2.
Calamus andamanicus Kurz
Solitary, large diameter cane. Stem 24 m long or more, 8 cm in diameter. Clustering medium diameter cane. Stem 25 m long or more, 2 cm in diameter. Clustering medium sized cane. Stem 20 m long, 3 cm in diameter. ex A slender, scandent, clustering shrub. Stem upto 10 m tall; girth with sheath 4-5 cm. Moderate size, clustering cane. Thick clustering cane,. Stem 20 m long, 4 cm in diameter. Moderate size cane. Stem solitary or clustering, 7-10 cm in girth. A densely tufted rattan.
3.
Calamus Renuka
baratangensis
Baratang Island Andamans, India.
4.
Calamus basui Renuka
Andamans India.
Island,
5.
Calamus brandisii Becc. & Hk.f.
Becc.
Tamil Nadu Kerala.
and
6. 7.
Calamus delessertianus Becc. Calamus dilaceratus Becc.
South India. Great Nicobar Island, India. Karnataka, and Tamil India. Kerala Nadu,
8.
Calamus dransfieldii Renuka
9.
Calamus erectus Roxb.
North-east India, Sikkim. Bangladesh. North-east India, Sikkim. Bangladesh. North east Bangladesh. Karnataka, and Tamil India. India.
10.
Calamus flagellum Griff.
A large scandent rattan.
11.
Calamus floribundus Griff.
Large scandent ratten. ex
or
climbing
12.
Calamus gamblei Becc. & Hk.f.
Becc.
Moderate to big sized cane, climbing high into canopy. Stem 30 m long, 5-7 cm in diameter. Differs from spherical fruits. typical by
Kerala Nadu,
13.
Calamus gamblei sphaerocarpa Becc. Calamus gracilis Roxb.
var.
Endemic to Kerala., India. North-east Bangladesh. North-east Bangladesh. Andaman India. India.
14.
A slender climbing cane.
15.
Calamus guruba Ham.
Tall slender climbing cane.
India.
16.
Calamus helferianus Kurz
Armed climbing cane.
Island,
S. No. 17.
Name of Rattan
Description
Distribution
Calamus hookerianus Becc.
Moderate sized cane, climbing high into the canopy. Stems more than 10 m long, 8 cm in girth. Moderate sized cane. Stems clustering, 20-30 m long, 7 cm in girth. High climbing cane. Stems clustering, 8-20 m tall, 1.5-3 cm across. High climbing cane. Stems clustering, more than 15 m long, 5 cm in girth. High climbing cane. Stems clustering, 20 m tall, 4 cm in girth. A large climber.
Kerala and Nadu, India.
Tamil
18.
Calamus huegelianus Mart.
Karnataka, and Tamil India.
Kerala Nadu,
19.
Calamus karnatakensis Renuka & Lakshmana.
Karnataka, India.
20.
Calamus lacciferus Lakshmana
Karnataka, India.
21.
Calamus lakshmanae Renuka
Karnataka, India.
22.
Calamus latifolius Roxb.
North-east India, Sikkim. Bangladesh. Cultivated at Forest Research Institute, Dehradun. North-east India, Sikkim, India. South India. Andamans,
23.
Calamus leptospadix Griff.
Stem climbing or scrambling, stout. Moderate sized cane. Stem 20 m long, 4.5 cm in diameter. High climbing cane. Stem upto 15 m long, clustering, 3 cm in girth. High climbing cane with clustering stem, 10-12 cm in girth. Small thin clustering cane. Stem yellowish green, 7-14 mm in diameter. High climbing cane. Stem solitary, more than 20 m long, 2.5 cm in diameter. High climbing cane. solitary 9 cm in girth. Stem
24.
Calamus longisetus Griff.
25.
Calamus metzianus Schult.
Karnataka, and Tamil India.
Kerala Nadu,
26.
Calamus nagbettai Fernandez & Dey
Karnataka, India.
27.
Calamus nicobaricus Becc.
Endemic to Great Nicobar Island, India.
28.
Calamus palustris Griff.
Andamans India.
Islands,
29.
Calamus prasinus Lakshmana & Renuka Calamus pseudorivalis Becc.
Karnataka, India.
30.
Large climbing cane. Stem clustering, 30 m long, 1-1.25 cm in diameter.
Great Nicobar Island, India.
S. No. 31.
Name of Rattan
Description
Distribution
Calamus pseudotenuis Becc. Ex Becc. & Hk.f. Calamus rheedei Griff.
Slender or medium sized cane. Stems clustering. Slender, medium sized cane. Stems clustering. Slender, climbing cane. Stem custering, 10 cm long, 1.5 cm in girth. Moderate sized cane. Stem solitary, 15 m long, 5 cm in diameter. Stoloniferous, high climbing cane. Stem clustering, 9 m tall, 3 cm in girth. A climbing cane, thin.
Karnataka, India.
32.
Kerala, India.
33.
Calamus rotang Linn.
Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, India. Car Nicobar Island, India.
34.
Calamus semierectus Renuka & Vijayakumaran
35.
Calamus stoloniferus Renuka
Karnataka, India.
36.
Calamus tenuis Roxb.
North-west India, Assam, India. Cultivated at Forest Research Institute, Dehradun. Western Ghats i.e. Karnataka, Goa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, India. Kerala, India.
37.
Calamus thwaitesii Becc. & Hk.f.
High climbing and robust cane. Stem clustering, 20 m tall, 1012 cm in girth.
38.
Calamus travancoricus Bedd. Ex Becc. & Hk.f.
Graceful, slender climber. Stem upto 10 m long, 2 cm in girth. High climbing cane. Stem solitary, 20 m long, 3.5 cm in diameter. Solitary, high climbing cane. Stems 15 m long, 3 cm in girth. Moderate size cane. Stem clustering, 20 m long, 1.8 cm in diameter. High climbing cane. Stem clustering, more than 20 m long, 3-5 cm in diameter. High scandent cane. Stem large, upto 2.5 cm in diameter.
39.
Calamus unifarius Wendl. Var. pentong Becc.
Great Nicobar Island, India.
40.
Calamus vattayila Renuka
Kerala, India.
41.
Calamus viminalis Willd.
Andaman India.
Islands,
42.
Daemonorops aureus Renuka & Vijayakumaran
South Andamans Island, India.
43.
Daemonorops (Griff.) Mart.
jenkinsianus
North east India. Sikkim, Bangladesh and Myanmar. Cultivated at Forest Research Institute, Dehradun.
S. No. 44.
Name of Rattan
Description
Distribution
Daemonorops kurzianus Becc.
Large climbing cane. Stem more than 20 m long, 5 cm in diameter. Large climbing cane. Stem clustering, more than 20 m long, 3 cm in diameter. High climbing cane. Stem clustering, more than 20 m long, 2.5 cm in diameter. Large climbing cane. Stem clustering, more than 20 m long, 3 cm in diameter. High scandent cane. Stem thin, upto 20 mm in diameter. Large climbing cane. Stem clustering, branched, more than 20 m long, 2 cm in diameter. High climbing cane. Stem thin, clustering, more than 20 m long, 0.7 cm in diameter. Climbing cane. Large scandent cane. Stem 1.5 cm in diameter. Large climbing cane. Stem upto 4.5 cm in diameter.
Andamans India.
Island,
45.
Daemonorops mannii Becc.
Andamans India.
Island,
46.
Daemonorops rarispinosus Renuka & Vijayakumaran
Andamans India.
Island,
47.
Daemonorops wrightmyoensis Vijayakumaran
Renuka
&
South Andamans Island, India.
48.
Korthalsia echinometra Becc.
North east India and Malay Peninsula. South Andamans and Nicobar Island, India.
49.
Korthalsia Mart.
laciniosa
(Griff.)
50.
Korthalsia rogersii Becc.
Andamans India.
Island,
51. 52.
Plectocomia assamica Griff. Plectocomia himalayana Griff.
Assam, India. Sikkim, India.
53.
Plectocomia khasiana Griff.
Meghalaya, India.
(Source: Rawat and Khanduri, 1999)
Resource Management In situ Conservation

Till now there has been no serious effort to conserve rattans in situ in the country. Even though the species of rattans growing inside the Protected area network are accorded protection and these areas are helpful in promoting in situ conservation, the problems of illicit harvesting inside and outside such areas cannot be controlled efficiently. For conserving the natural populations and to use them on a sustainable basis, some of the State Forest Departments have introduced extraction rules. Generally the extraction of rattans is carried out on a 4-year rotation. The export of rattans is, however, prohibited as per the Foreign Trade Policy of the country. In certain parts of South India rattans are also planted and protected in sacred groves. There are about 80 rattan bearing sacred groves in Kerala (Mohanan & Muraleedharan, 1988).
Ex situ Conservation
In recent years the state forest departments of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal have started plantations of rattans. The National Afforestation and Eco-development Board (NAEB) is also providing financial assistance as a component under the FDA projects of the National Afforestation Programme Scheme in the 10th Plan to the aforementioned states for rattan plantations. The details of the assistance rendered for rattan plantations during 2002-03 to 2005-06 are given below (Table 2). Table 2: Physical and Financial Target/Outlay for Rattan Plantations under FDA projects of National Afforestation Programme Scheme for 10th Plan during 2002-03 to 2005-06.
(Area in Hectares; Rs. In Lakhs) State Rattan Plantation Target Arunachal Pradesh Assam Karnataka Kerala Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Nagaland Sikkim Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttaranchal (Source: NAEB, MoEF) 750 300 3350 1760 50 300 280 164 350 100 460 235 Outlay 29.51 19.82 324.17 308.96 4.25 18.43 21.49 9.89 29.06 6.35 32.89 14.75 Total NTFP Components Target 6280 8450 18700 7050 12405 3200 1915 2278 5800 8510 7305 10154 Outlay 405.21 648.87 2248.08 1443.55 1065.85 245.75 189.45 205.46 768.26 696.31 765.38 827.21
Identification Keys:
Since rattans are extracted before they start flowering and fruiting, the identification of rattans based on floral characters becomes difficult. Hence identification keys have been prepared based on vegetative characters and easily distinguishable field characters (Renuka, 2000). Identification keys based on anatomical characters have also been prepared (Bhat et al., 1992).
Rattan Utilization: Extraction and Harvesting

Traditionally the method of harvesting rattans has been through manual labor. The mature rattans are pulled out from their support and cleaned. The soft uppermost part, about 2 m from the top is discarded, while the remaining portion is cut into suitable lengths to stack in the form of bundles to be transported to the depot. After drying, the canes are scraped to remove the leaf sheath remnants and then stored. The best season
for harvesting is October/November. In some states the extraction of rattan is done through the departmental agencies, such as Forest Corporations or Tribal Cooperative Societies. In most other States, the Forest departments lease out the right of collection of rattans to private parties. In Kerala the right of collection is vested with the Kerala State Federation of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Development Co-operative Ltd. The major policy objectives of the Co-operative are: (i) to eliminate intermediaries in collection, and (ii) to increase the income and employment opportunities of the tribal people. Even though the right of collection and marketing of rattans has been assigned to the co-operative societies, illegal harvesting continues. In other parts of the country rattans are harvested by contractors under permits issued by the Forest Department. They are to pay the royalty to the Government (Haridasan, 1997. In Manipur the collection of rattans and other NTFPs is done through the Mahal system. Mahal is a well-defined area from where certain types of forest products are collected and sold. Rattans are extracted from the Mahals, which are mostly auctioned off to the local contractors. The royalty generated goes to the State Government. However, besides this the local villagers also unofficially harvest a large quantity of rattans from the surrounding forests. At present no grading of the collected rattans is being done. Furniture and handicraft items are the main products of rattans and the private manufacturers or co-operative societies are carrying out such production. The present status of harvesting of rattans is therefore not conservation oriented. Proper methods of extraction and subsequent treatment have to play a crucial role in the sustainable utilization of rattans. The new working plans have suggested the following prescriptions for rattan harvesting: (i) Rotation period of 5 years; (ii) Extraction of canes to be limited to two-thirds of the total clump; (iii) Only mature canes of not less than 2 m height should be extracted; and (iv) Cutting to be done at least 30 cm above the ground. (Rawat and Khanduri, 1999)
Processing and Preservation Techniques:

In India air-drying is the most common method used for reducing the moisture content of rattans. Recently oil curing methods have been introduced (Bhat & Dhamodaran, 1992). The standardized curing method uses diesel-coconut mixture (9:1 ratio) (Yekanthappa et al., 1990). Although rattan curing has a desired effect in controlling fungal infection and discoloration, it may not be economically feasible always to cure rattan at the felling site. Air-drying of rattans before use is the most prevalent practice in India. Rattan poles are spread in the yard under the sun for 2-3 weeks so that the moisture content is brought down to 20%. Regional Design and Technical Development Centre, Bangalore has prescribed the standard tools for splitting and rounding the rattan cane and accordingly these are used. The rattans are bent with the help of metallic or wooden supporters after heating with a blow torch followed by scraping to remove the marks of the blow torch. The finished parts are sanded again before applying lacquer varnish. Rattans are mostly used for making baskets, mats and furniture. Rattan after proper drying and cleaning accepts paints and stains, just like wood and therefore is a cheap and durable raw material for furniture making. Rattans also provide wicker, which is the inner core of the plant after separation. Rattans can variously be used for making ropes, furniture frames, walking sticks, polo sticks, umbrella handles, baskets, sports goods, mat making, wicker work, for stuffing and packing etc. Apart from canes, the young shoots are also used as food items especially in the North-Eastern part of the country. Rattan shoot are popularly consumed and sold in the local areas. These young shoots can be harvested within the second year of growth, instead of waiting 6 - 7 years
to obtain the cane for utilization, some uses of the more important rattans in the country are given in Table-3. Table 3: Some Uses of Important rattans
No. 1. Species Calamus acanthospathus Uses Used for tops, wicker work, baskets and containers, furniture frames, walking and polo-sticks and umbrella handles. Ropes and as a cables of suspension bridges. Employed for almost the same purposes as C. acanthospathus. Suitable for ballast baskets and for rattaning chair backs and seats. It is put to various uses and is one of the good canes for making ballast baskets. Highly favoured for walking sticks, umbrella handle, and for rattaning chairs. Used for high class walking sticks and furniture frames. Used for furniture, sieves and mats. Used for high class walking sticks, furniture frames and sports goods. Used for furniture, basket work, mats etc. Fruits are edible. It is an all purpose cane. Used for rattaning chairs and for making fancy articles. It is excellent for walking sticks and also used for furniture frames, polo sticks and umbrella handles. Used for basket work, furniture frames and walking sticks, crooks of umbrella handles. Used for basket work and umbrella handles. Called "East Indian Dragons blood", used in preparation of varnish, dye and medicians. Used for rafting logs, furniture frames, construction of tribal huts; leaves as fodder. Used for making crooks of umbrella handles and rough basket work.
2. 3. 4
C. andamanicus C. gracilis C. guruba
C. latifolius
6 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.
C. palustris C. pseudo-tenuis C. rheedei C. rotang C. tenuis C. travancoricus C. viminalis
13.
Daemonorops jenkinsianus D. kurzianus
14.
15.
Korthalsia lacimiosa Plectocomia himalayana
16.
(Source: Rawat & Khanduri, 1999)
Socio-Economics:
Case studies on socio-economics of rattans have been conducted in Kerala. In Kerala the harvesting of rattans is mainly being done by the Kerala State Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Development Federation. However, the absence of a permanent setup for collection of rattans in the Federation has resulted in middlemen dominating the harvesting process. A major portion of the income generated is taken away by these middlemen, thus reducing the share of the actual persons employed in
the harvesting of rattans. In addition the rattan based industry in the State depends heavily on the imports of rattan from the Northeastern Region. This has also caused an adverse income and cost relationship in the industry, which provides fewer incentives to carry out rattan production, resulting in a decline of rattan based units in the State. Most of the units in the industry have no marketing set up of their own. They depend on private traders for marketing their products. Due to lack of proper marketing set up and inefficiency in marketing, rattan-processing units in the State receive only a very low marketing margin (Muraleedharan et al, 1996; Muraleedharan & Anitha, 1999).
Marketing of Rattans:
By and large, the marketing of rattans in the country is confined to the unorganized sector. Since the utilization of rattans is by the small-scale industries including cottage industries engaged in furniture making etc., the marketing remains unregulated and market data is hard to come by. At a rough estimate there are about 2,000 small to medium sized rattan based units in the country employing about 200,000 people (Rawat and Khanduri, 1999). The presence of middle men at all stages of the rattan industry is a major deterrence to the traditional population, engaged in rattan extraction, processing, and conversion from getting their adequate remuneration. The main suppliers of unprocessed rattans in India are Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Karnataka and Kerala (Bhatt, 1992). Rawat and Khanduri (1999) have reported that the Indian cane-furniture industry produces goods worth Rs. 50 million, while the total annual export of the industry has been estimated at Rs.5 million. The export is mainly to Middle East, Europe, Africa and North America. Mostly these furniture manufacturing industries are situated in Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, Jalandhar, Chennai and Ratnagiri. India is also importing some of the better species of rattans from Malaysia and Indonesia. However, the trade of rattan world-wide is a multi-million dollar business. Trade in raw material from rattans throughout the world is to the tune of US $50 million. After processing, cleaning and converting to the finished products the global trade is worth US $5 billion.
Conclusion:
Rattans constitute an important non-timber forest produce in India. Although the potential for the commercial use of rattan is very high, this potential has never been actually realized. The primary reason for this can be said to be the un-scientific and unregulated harvesting techniques, which have also lead to an alarming decline in the areas under rattan cover. In addition, the lack of proper post-harvest techniques like processing and treatment of the raw material also hamper the growth of this sector. Of late, the Ministry of Environment and Forests has been aware of this potential, and therefore has included a programme component for plantations of rattan as a component under the FDA project of the National Afforestation Programme Scheme for the X Plan Period. In addition there is very little validated data on the production and consumption patterns of rattans in the country. No assessment has so far been attempted on the demand and supply of this important and crucial natural resource. Similarly there have been few attempts to carry out market analysis of the raw material and the finished products made out of rattans. There is no doubt that rattans can play a crucial and important role in the socioeconomic development of the rural population especially in the tribal areas. It is therefore imperative that the rural population is involved and engaged in large scale
rattan plantations of suitable and commercially useful species in community lands as well as in private lands. At the same time there is also a need for establishment of proper networks between the actual collectors of rattans from the wild, private growers, small scale units involved in producing rattan articles, the various marketing agencies involved, etc. this will not only regularize the entire rattan trade but also ensure adequate remuneration to the people actually involved in the rattan industry at the grass-root level. There is also a need to undertake research studies on the commercially viable and useful species of Rattans. Similarly studies are required on developing better silvicultural practices and improved harvesting techniques for such species of rattans. There is also a need to preserve the genetic diversity occurring in the rattan for which equal emphasis will have to be given for the protection and conservation of all naturally occurring rattan species Summing up, there is an urgent need to focus on the following issues for the effective and sustainable use of rattans in the country. It is only then that rattans will be able to command a place as one of the most important non-timber forest produces in India. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Promoting the protection and conservation of all rattan species, especially those on the critically endangered list. Studying and analyzing the status and potential of the commercially useful species. Promoting sustainable rattan harvesting by focusing on proper harvesting and post-harvesting techniques. Studying the demand and supply patterns of rattans over a period of time. Carrying out market analysis and to study rattan marketing trends. Establishing a network to identify the needs of the various stakeholders (Collectors, Processors and Consumers) and to ensure that their interests are well protected. Encouraging large scale plantations of rattans of suitable species in community lands and private lands and to include rattan in agro-forestry schemes. Encouraging research studies on improved technology in rattan harvesting, processing and conversion into finished products.
7. 8.
References:
Basu, S.K. (1992). Rattans (Canes) in India: a monographic revision. FRI, Kepong, Malaysia, Rattan Information Centre. Bhatt, K.M. (1992). Changing Scenario of Rattan Trade in India. In: S. Chand Basha and K.M. Bhatt (Eds.): Rattan Management and Utilization Proceedings of the seminar held on 29-31, Jan. 1992 in Trichur, Kerala. Bhatt, K. M. & Dhamodharan, T.K. (1992). Rattan Harvesting and Processing Technology in India. Present and Future. In: S. Chand Basha and K.M. Bhatt (Eds.): Rattan Management and Utilization Proceedings of the seminar held on 29-31, Jan. 1992 in Trichur, Kerala. Dransfield, J. (1981). The Biology of Asiatic Rattans in Relation to the Rattan Trade and Conservation. In: H. Synge (Ed.). The Biological Aspects of Rare Plant Conservation. John Wiley & Sons Ltd., London. Lakshmana, A. C. (1993). Rattans of South India. Evergreen Publishers, Bangalore. Mohanan, C. & Muraleedharan, P.K. Bulletin Vol.7 (4). (1988). Rattan resources in the sacred grooves of Kerala, India. RIC
Muraleedharan P.K; Jayasankar, B. and Rugmini, P., (1996). Some economic aspects of cane harvesting in Kerala .J. Non-Timber For. Prod. Vol. 3 (3&4). Muraleedharan, P.K. & Anitha, V. (1999). Some economic aspects of Harvesting, Processing and Marketing of cane products in Kerala, KFRI Scientific Paper 870. Proceedings on National Workshop on Rattans (Canes) held on 4th and 5th February 1999 in Bangalore. National Afforestation and Eco-Development Board: Data regarding financial assistance to States for Rattan plantations. Rawat J.K. and Khanduri D.C. (1999). National report on the State Of Bamboo And Rattans in India. Unpublished report. INBAR. 31 pp. Renuka, C. (1992). Rattans of the Western Ghats: A Taxonomic Manual. Kerala Forest Research Institute, India. Renuka, C. (1995). A manual of the rattans of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Kerala Forest Research Institute, India. Renuka, C. (1996). Indian Rattans-Their Diversity and Conservation. In: K. S. Manilal and A. K. Pandey (Eds.): Taxonomy and Plant Conservation. CBS Publishers and Distributors, New Delhi. Renuka, C. (1999). Indian Rattan distribution - An update. The Indian Forests 125 (6). Renuka, C. (2000). A field key for the rattans of Kerala. Kerala Forest Institute, Peechi. Yekantappa, K; Bhat, K.M and Dhamodaran, T.K. (1990). Rattan Processing techniques in India: A case study of oil curing. RIC Bull. Vol. 9 (2).
ESTABLISHING MEDICINAL AND AROMATIC (MAP) PLANTS SUPPLY CHAINS: A CASE OF SANJEEVANI
Manmohan Yadav 2 Introduction
The increasing consumer awareness and preference for herb-based natural products including herbal medicines, has resulted into unexpected surge in the demand for medicinal plants and thus need for an organized supply chain to meet the customer needs on one hand and to ensure remunerative prices to those at the bottom of the value chain. The global market for herbal products, including medicines, health supplements, herbal beauty and toiletry products, is estimated at $62 billion and is growing at a rate of 7 percent annually. WHOs forecast is that the global market for herbal products would be of the order of $5 trillion by year 2050. The world market for herbal remedies in 1999 was estimated to be worth US$ 19.4 billion, with Europe in the lead (US$ 6.7 billion), followed by Asia (US$ 5.1 billion), North America (US$ 4.0 billion), Japan (US$ 2.2 billion), and then the rest of the world (US$ 1.4 billion) (Liard & Pierce, 2002). However Indias share in the global export market of medicinal plants related trade is just 0.5%. This is against Indias rich biodiversity of 45000 plant species spread across 16 Agro climatic zones. The domestic market of Indian Systems of Medicine & Homoeopathy is of the order of Rs.4000 crore (2000) of which, the Ayurvedic drug market alone is of the order of Rs.3, 500 crore [NMPB, 2003]. The Indian Systems of Medicine have identified 1500 medicinal plants, of which 500 species are mostly used in the preparation of drugs. The medicinal plants contribute to cater 80% of the raw materials used in the preparation of drugs. But 90% of these raw materials are currently sourced from the wild and 70% of such extractions involve destructive collection practices because the parts used are wood, roots, stem, bark, and even the whole plant. Only less than 20 species out of 660 wild botanicals that are in use in all India trade are under active commercial cultivation [CEE, 2003J reflecting tremendous pressures on the wild resources and the dangers of increasing threat perception levels to many a species. This unexpected surge in the demand for medicinal plants has led to a demandsupply gap between the manufacturing companies and the suppliers. This has lead to mushrooming growth of large number of manufacturers /traders of medicinal plants formulations mostly sold as OTC (over-the-counter) remedies. Except a few established branded products, such as Himalaya drugs, Dabur, Vaidyanath etc. the majority medicinal plants formulations are sold under numerous local brands. Such local brands face the challenge of customer acceptance as reliable and quality products. Also as the raw material (medicinal plants) is sourced from the wild, results into over-exploitation of the medicinal wealth present in the forests and inequitable pricing. The consequences of such unbalanced extraction and trade of medicinal plants in a country adversely affect the whole supply chain in terms of their price and future availability. While the supply chains (production and marketing) for timber sourced from the forests are relatively structured and developed, the markets for most non-timber forest products including medicinal & aromatic plants are highly unorganized and secretive as the market information is blocked from the user side. Such fragmented and unorganized
Faculty of Marketing management, Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal
market structures are disadvantageous to the collectors and cultivators and also lead to over harvesting of the natural resource in the absence of reliable and accurate information about market demand and the price. These markets suffer from various market imperfections mainly because of, the lack of information about the demand and supply of the products being traded; inadequate knowledge about the herbs being collected, cultivated or traded; negation of quality in collection of medicinal herbs and the processing of final products; lack of awareness about IPR issues related to the medicinal plant products among various stakeholders; marginal cost pricing of the medicinal herbs i.e. absence of a mechanism for determining the share of the primary collectors in the final revenue obtained from the finished product (Manmohan, 2005). The situation thus calls for the need for an organized supply chain to meet the customer needs on one hand and to ensure remunerative prices to those at the bottom of the value chain. In order to maximize their revenue and bottom lines, the established herbal product marketers charge good price for what can be termed as value addition through R & D, processing, packaging, promotion. However the same companies have not done enough to organize and improve the supply side of the supply chain but have left it to the exploitative traders to the detriment of the collectors & cultivators, quality and sustainable availability of raw materials. Without a well-organized supply source of raw material the companies face challenge of sourcing of standardized and genuine raw material (presence of active ingredient and absence of extraneous material such as heavy metals). The problem is already at the doorstep of the Indian Ayurvedic companies as evident from the recent ban on Ayurvedic products by Canada and the United Kingdom on account of higher levels of heavy metals. The only solution to this problem is in establishing a credible supply chain with each chain member working in a coordinated manner towards achieving common supply chain goals of maximizing whole supply chain profitability and proportionate profit distribution among the supply chain chambers. It may look like a dream given the existing structure of MAP trade but this is the ultimate solution to the nuances of MAP trade as it is today. As majority of the market supply being based on the forest produce, it is equally important for the supply chain to monitor the status of the forest resources to cater to the needs of the market in the long run. This brings in the issue of sustainable harvesting, constant monitoring of resources, and presentation of resource usage information to the policy and decision makers so that timely action can be taken to ensure sustainable availability of MAPs to the market.
Multiple Supply Chain of MAP and Complexity of the MAP Market Structure
The medicinal and aromatic plant market is highly complex with large number of players at the producer, trader and the manufacturer levels. The complexity of MAP market is further accentuated because of different forms of the herbs traded, lack of proper herb identification and final product classification, lack of governmental control and monitoring of the markets, absence of assessment of MAP inventory present in the forests. Supply of medicinal plants comes primarily from the wild collections and to a lesser extent through cultivation of a limited number of species. The local villagers either consume part of the produce or sell it to local traditional health practitioners, local traders, local markets or buyers' agents. The middlemen/traders at various levels collect
and sell the produce to the next level in a random manner with the sole objective of profit maximization particularly in the lean seasons. The retailers located in big cities buy the medicinal plants from the wholesalers at high prices even if the same medicinal plant is available locally with the collectors at a much lower price. This reflects the gross lack of knowledge about the source, supply and price of medicinal plants at all levels of the supply chain. Also, since the trade is highly unorganized and secretive, such information is not available with the government agencies and the institutions at local, state as well as at the national level. The MAPs produce is traded in various forms such as raw, semi processed or processed, and also through various channels and thus make the demand assessment at the local level almost unfeasible. While in most cases the processing is done by the traders/processors, some primary processing is also done by the collectors or cultivators level. The intermediate processing is mostly carried out by local traders and/or processors or the manufacturers themselves. Thus the presence of multiple levels of processors & users, traders, manufacturers and exporters put together makes the MAPs market structure complex and the reliability of data at stake. The sale of the wild medicinal herbs is done in raw form without any significant processing or value addition. The producers/collectors access to consumers is limited to the sales made in local villages or in the weekly haats /markets. A major portion of their collection is sold to intermediaries like contractors and commission agents who operate in the area. Thus, although the medicinal plant materials reach a much larger market, the market is geographically very limited, as far as producers or collectors are concerned. The limitation in access to market is more pronounced in the case of perishable items or items containing active principles, which change or deteriorate with time. Small amount of collection further aggravates the problem forcing the tribal population into a vicious circle of a small market, low production and (leading to) small marketable surplus. This limited marketable surplus makes them more vulnerable and makes their exploitation possible because it continuously erodes their bargaining capacity as their need for conversion of small production into cash becomes more acute. Wide variation in active principle contents of the wild varieties of medicinal herb constitutes yet another supply side imperfection. Such variations complicate the process of manufacturing herbal medicines that affects the efficacy rates and quality control. Scientific cultivation of medicinal plants through bioengineering and modern farming techniques could overcome this problem. But that might give birth to another type of imperfect competition, having the tribal subsistence economy on the one hand, and the capitalistic return maximization through scientific farming on the other.
The Sanjeevani Supply Chain A Step in Right Direction

The MP Minor Forest Produce has been mandated to help market the minor forest produce (NTFP) including MAPs, set up more than 20 years ago. However the federation has over focused on Tendu leaves trade, the single largest revenue earner among all NTFPs during initial years of operations. Off late, the federation has recognized the importance of other NTFPs including Medicinal & Aromatic Plants (MAPs) and has been made the nodal agency for trade and promotion of non-nationalized produce as well since 1999. The federation ahs been collecting and trading many MAPs including Harra, Mahua, Lac, Aonla, Salai & other gums, Ashwagandha, Isabgol, Safed Musli, Gudmar, Bael, Kalmegh, Satawar, Neem, Chironji, Mahul, Baheda among others. The MP MFP federation is one of the pioneer state which has set up State Medicinal Plants Board. In fact the state had set up a Task Force on Medicinal Plants in 1996 much before the National Medicinal Plants Board into existence. 51 MAP species
have been identified as priority species for focused actions. More than 50,000 hectares area is under in-situ conservation while 2500 hectares is under ex-situ conservation of important MAPs. A Strategy (Business Plan) for promotion of MAP sector has been prepared for the period 2004-09 covering following strategic aspects: Increase in area under cultivation from 10000 to 20000 ha Increase in production from 20000 to 40000 tonnnes Generate additional employment of 20 lakh mandays Attracting large MAP based Industries to the state
The Strategy is to be implemented through coordinated efforts between various departments of the state government with monitoring at the highest level (Principal Chief Conservator Forests & Chief Secretary). The financial allocation for the first years has been provided at Rs. 68 crores. The finer aspects the MAP strategy focus on sustainable cultivation, collection, good harvesting practices, processing and value addition, packaging, promoting and branding of the Medicinal plant products under the common family branding strategyVindhya Herbal. This has been done with a view to focus on the whole supply chain of the MAP trade. The various initiatives of the MFP federation for promotion of MAPs in the state are as under: Processing related initiatives: FPO License for Aonla Murabba & Aonla Sherbut Nagarmotha distillation plants set up in Dewas, Seoni 80 Aromatic Oils distillation plants in Seoni, Hoshangabad, Katni, Harda, Betul, Sehore, Balaghat. 9 Honey processing plant in Gwalior, Chhindwara, Mandla, Satna, Katni Sheopur, Sehore, Dewas, Seoni,
Guidelines for post harvesting, primary processing & pre- storage treatment prepared for all prioritized species Processing cum Training Centre set up at Barkhera in Bhopal; along with Testing lab Packaging Training by IPI, New Delhi Rs. 1.98 crore soft loan provided to societies for processing & marketing activities
Marketing related initiatives: Jadi Booti Parishad or Federation of Growers & Processors of Medicinal & Aromatic plants, set up in Bhopal Selected food products like Honey, Aonla Murabba & Sherbat launched under Vindhya Valley Brand Brand Vindhya Herbal launched for MAP products Drug license obtained by societies for 36 items; 30 more in pipeline
Sale Counters opened in Bhopal, Chhindwara, Balaghat Katni, Gwalior, Indore, Jabalpur and more in offing. Quarterly Buyers-Sellers meets to facilitate marketing; during 2003 and 2004.
The Structural difference in a Commercial Entity Supply Chain and the Vindhya Herbal Supply Chain
Commercial products are those which are produced and distributed in large quantities for use by industry/consumers with profit as a primary objective and are strongly promoted by the marketer viz. Tata Steel, Amul, Coke, Surf Excel, Cadbury Dairy Milk, Dabur etc. The supply chain of a commercial product starts from procurement of raw materials and goes through manufacturing, promotion and finally distribution to reach to the final consumers. Promotion plays an important role as it communicates the products positioning in the market and also spreads awareness about the product. A successful strategy for positioning of a product can lead to greater market share & revenues and a place is occupied in the consumers mind. The branding then helps product to create a place in the heart of the consumer. MFP federation promoted products can be termed as the peoples product that are produced and distributed in large quantities by govt. organizations or NGOs from the raw materials collected by the rural poor with the prime objective of providing livelihoods to the rural poor and not for profit making. In fact the organizations working for these kinds of products act for social cause. The Supply Chain of Sanjeevani Model for peoples product looks similar to commercial products starting from raw material procurement; processing and distribution. However the processing/value addition component of the value chain is also handled by the rural people. The raw material is collected by the local community (collectors) at the village level and is aggregated at the Village Cooperative society. At the VCS level primary processing/value addition is done under the supervision of Traditional Healers (Vaidyas) with capacity building support from the federation. The primary role of the Federation is to provide assistance in terms of financial, technical, infrastructural, capacity building & to some extent promotions and distribution through Sanjeevani outlets.
The MFP Processing cum Training centre helps in capacity building of the processing centers at the village level and also in promoting standardized and quality product manufacturing practices through training and demonstration visits at its site. The centre is setting up state-of-art facilities for testing of both the raw material as well
FIG: A SIMPLE VIEW OF SUPPLY CHAIN OF COMMERCIAL PRODUCT
Collectors / Cultivators
Agent/ Middlemen
Plantation
M A N U F A C T U R I N G
Marketing Promotion Advertising
D I S T R I B U T I O N
Wholesaler C U S T O M E R
Retailer
Direct Sale
COMPANY USING NTFP AS RM
Fig: 2 - A SIMPLE VIEW OF SUPPLY CHAIN OF SANJEEVANI (PEOPLES' PRODUCT)
Growers (Rural People)
Assistance Retailer Technical Financial Organisational Promotional Capacity Building C U S T O M E R
Value Addition/ Primary Processing & Packaging
Sanjeevani Outlet
MFP FEDERATION
as the finished products in order to meet the legal and voluntary quality standards. The Sanjeevani Outlets, synonymous with a life saving herbal plant named Sanjeevani in the Traditional Medicine system, are the last point of the this strategic supply chain interfacing with the customers. The single herbal formulations processed at the Primary Cooperative Society Level and packaged under the umbrella brand name Vindhya Herbal are sold through the Sanjeevani outlets set up at prime locations in major cities of the state like Bhopal, Chhindwara, Balaghat Katni, Gwalior, Indore, Jabalpur. The Sanjeevani outlets are in fact a complete solution centre for a patient. These outlets offer consulting to the patients by a cross-section of experienced and credible experts having both formal qualifications in Ayurvedic Medicine (BAMS) and also the traditional healers at a very nominal fee. At a given point-in time there will be 4-5 such experts from a panel of about 100 experts registered who are available for consultation. The patients after such consultation can then purchase the Herbal medicines from the same place but only Vindhya-Herbal branded formulations. The Sanjeevani outlets offer 74 such formulations all under the Vindhya-Herbal brand marketed by the MFP federation and manufactured by different Primary Cooperative Societys. As of October 2005 the daily sales from the Sanjeevani outlet at Bhopal is approximately Rs 5500/-, totaling to Rs 137,500/- per month and Rs 16,50,000/- per annum. After deducting 5% as commission for meeting various expenses of MFP federation, the remaining amount is paid back to the Primary Cooperative Societys from where it reaches to the member collectors. This revenue is not used (and also not sufficient) to meet the fixed cost of the Sanjeevani outlet including the staff salary and thus can not be termed as financially viable. Nonetheless it provides huge social benefit in terms of providing livelihoods to the rural poor on the one extreme of the supply chain and quality health services at affordable price to the consumers on the other extreme. While the Sanjeevani Model lacks in sufficient promotion and professional marketing activities to realize higher revenues through increased sales it does provide social benefit in terms of Livelihoods to the rural poor, quality herbal preparations (single formulations) for the consumers and emphasis on sustainable raw material procurement. The pharmaceutical industry spends twice as much on public relations and marketing than it does on drug research and development. During the year 2000 more than $13.2 billion was spent on pharmaceutical marketing in the U.S. Drug companies such as Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, and Astra Zeneca hire specialist "healthcare" PR
companies to help create profits. Advertising and promotional expenses for Dabur India Limited is around 14% of sales as on June 2004. Hindustan Lever Ltd. has been the largest advertiser in India almost every year for decades, and personal products are the biggest category in advertising. It is beyond doubt that promotions and for that matter advertising plays an important role in achieving higher sales revenues and market shares, the efforts of MFP Federation have not been adequate on this account and thus not being able to realize true potential of its initiatives like Sanjeevani outlets and the single formulation products under the brand name Vindhya Herbal. Therefore there is strong and urgent need for scaling up this supply chain (business) model on one side and initiating a big promotional campaign on the other side in order to expand the market and the revenue streams. Simultaneously there is also need for standardizing the product and exercising better quality control through good harvesting & collection practices, good manufacturing practices and regular testing of each batch of the product from each manufacturing unit. For the later, the processing centre at Barkheda Pathani can play significant role.
References
Laird, S.A & AR. Pierce (2002): 'Promoting sustainable and ethical botanicals: Strategies to improve commercial raw material sourcing', Results from the sustainable botanicals pilot project, Industry surveys, case studies and standards collection, New York, Rainforest Alliance, www.rainforestaIliance.orginews/archives/news/news44.html, site last visited on 20--Feb-04. National Medicinal Plant Board (NMPB) (2003), Introduction page, http://www.nmpb.nic.in/introduction.htm, viewed on 12-Feb-04. The Centre for Environment Education (CEE) (2003), 'Does Government need to prepare a Negative List of Medicinal Plants?', message posted Dec 2003 in the Electronic Forum hosted by the CEE site, http://www.envirodebate.net/forums/forum.asp?forumid=10 Manmohan Yadav, Developing a MIS for removing Market imperfections in the trade of MAP in India The Indian Forester, Vol. 131, No. 3, March 2005, p379-396
Somali de, Brand Management & Measurement of Brand-Equity, CIS Report IV Term 2005 batch of PGDFM
(http://www.dabur.com/EN/Investors/Investors/communication/Dabur_InComm270704_Transcript_D IL.pdf (1/08/04))
NEGLECT OF THE FORESTRY AND WILD LIFE SECTOR IN INDIAS DEVELOPMENT PLANNING UNDER THE FIVE-YEAR PLANS
A.K. Mukerji
Sustainable forest management is an essential component of the environmental and social stability of any country. Degradation of forests will have an adverse impact on other life support systems like water resource, agriculture, climate and human health, degradation of forests affect livelihood of the forest dependent communities and tribals on direct benefits to the nation in form of timber, pulp wood and various products like medicinal plants, bamboo, fuel, fodder, food, spices, gums, resins etc. The ecological biodiversity functions of forests, soil and water conservation are vital for the welfare of the present and future generations of mankind. India with 16% of the worlds human and 18% of the domestic animal population has less than 2% of its forest area. Forest Survey of India report of 2001 indicates that out of Indias land area of 328.7 million [m] hectors [he] 67.92 m he are under forest cover in Government land [20.55% of land area] and 7.9 m he under tree cover in private and community land i.e. a total of 75.5 m he [23% of land area]. Only 41.60 m he [12.67%] in under good forest cover [40% & up crown density] while 25.78 m he are degraded forests taken over by the Forest department [under the 1952 forest policy, which aimed at having 33% of land area under forest/tree cover] from princely states, under the zamindar abolition & land ceiling Acts. The per capita forest area in India is only 0.06 he i.e. 1/10th the world average. Moreover, India is one of the 17-megabiodiverse countries in the world having 8% of its endemic species. Indias forests/tree lands in addition to timber also provide 70% of all rural and 20 % of urban fuel energy, 40% of the green fodder [grazing, lopping etc.], 80% of all rural medicine and large volumes of non-wood products which serves as a major support for rural livelihood. The direct benefits, mostly free of royalty, are valued at around Rs.35,000 to 40,000 crores per annum. Moreover, forests also harvest rain water, regulate stream flow and ground water, help in soil conservation, CO2 fixation as well as various other environmental benefits. However, conservation and development of the forestry sector [including wild life] never received its due share of political and financial support in the national development plans as is indicated in the data given as under:
Plan 6
th
Year 1980-85 1985-90 1992-97 1997-02 2002-07
Allocations in Crores 6,92.5 1,859 4,910 7,336 14, 344
% of the National Plan 0.07 1.03 1.13* 0.84** 0 94***
7th 8th 9th 10

th
Analysis and Options:

* ** Dr. Swaminathan committee appointed by the Planning Commission [PC] recommended allocation of Rs.9950 crores for 8th plan. A.K. Mukerji committee of PC recommended allocation of Rs.26,752 crores for the 9th plan for ensuring covering 33% area in 20 years.
***
The National Forestry Action Plan [NFAP] aiming at having 33% of land area under forest/tree cover in 20 years [adopted by MOEF in 1999] proposed the next plan i.e. 10th plan at Rs 27,256 crores [1997 cost base] for bringing in 3 million he per annum under good forest/tree cover. However, the fund allocation remained much lower than suggested in the NFAP and only one million he per annum target could be achieved.
In 10th plan the central sector allocation for Forests [Rs.2100 crores] and wild life [Rs.800] is Rs.2,900 crores, which is only 0.27 % of the total central sector. The balance of Rs.11,444 crores is to come from the state plans for reaching the proposed target of Rs.14334 cr [$ 3.3 Billion.] Unfortunately under the state plans the forestry sector is showing a down ward drift in allocations. During 7th plan 4 states had more than 5% and 5 more than 3% allocations, but under the 8th plan it slipped with only 2 states with more than 5% and 3 with more than 3% allocations. More worrying is the fact that most states [except 8 with marginal increases] allocated a lower %for forestry sector than in the 7th plan. Similar trend must have continued under the 9th & 10th plans when it has touched a level of 1.95% of the state plans It is clear that after crossing the 1% barrier in 7th & 8th plan the forestry sector again slipped to below this level in the 9th and 10th plans in spite of the well reasoned & need based recommendations of the expert committees and NFAP. Moreover, since the 8th plan the forestry development did not get any committed allocation under the large rural development, employment generation or tribal development schemes though under the 7th plan 25% of allocations under these schemes was earmarked for forestry. This helped in the launching of a large social forestry programme in the private and community lands all over the countryside. However, strangely the Planning commission while allocating [by a thumb rule of doubling 9th plan] only 50% of NFAP proposal for 10th plan is still sticking to the unrealistic target of achieving 25% forest cover by 2007 and 33% in 2012 i.e. 8 years before period in NFAP proposal. It will require raising forest/tree cover on at least 4 million he per annum against hardly 1.1 million he achieved in 2004-2005. The 10th plan allocation, spread over the 75.5 m he of existing forests/tree lands [including 15.9 m he of wild life protected areas], works out to an average of Rs 380 per he per year. This is not even sufficient for proper maintenance while the task at hand, as per planning commission approach paper of the 10th plan, of 25 m he of degraded forests to be treated for assisted regeneration and 6 m he to be afforested as well as optimizing the productivity of the NWFP and Bamboo areas and protection and development of wild life areas. Moreover, 1.7 lakh forest fringe villages are to be brought under Join Forest Management for implementation of micro plans by the village level empowered committees. These are very desirable and essential objectives for enhancing the ecological health and productivity of our land, conservation of biodiversity, improving economic and livelihood options of the stakeholders. However, for attaining these goals the forestry sector needs a lot of high level political commitment and need based funds for field works, raising and training of cutting edge man power, infrastructure development, enhanced administrative and financial powers, mostly central [NFAP] proposals financial allocations if the objectives and goals fixed by planning Commission are to be achieved even by 2020. It may be mentioned here that China has launched in 1999 the worlds biggest forestation programme with a $ 40 Billon budget for covering of 14.67 m ha of degraded and fragile cropland. At the end of 2004 they have covered around 7 million he by involving 15 million farmers. The project is to be to be completed by 2010 and will enhance Chinas forest cover by almost 10%.
As such the time for blame game and scapegoating the foresters for all perceived ills and mismanagement of the forest and wild life sector is over. There is now an immediate need for the central & state governments and the Planning Commission of revisiting our current policies and programmes of forestry and wild life conservation and development .New and bold initiatives and policy decisions [on the Chinese pattern] are needed for ensuring that this sector, essential and vital for ensuring sustainable development of the country, gets its due top priority in the planning process specially in the development of the rural and tribal areas of our country. This can be done through a people centric planning and implementation of eco-friendly programmes with a blending of the fruits of traditional knowledge, local skills, equity and latest technical innovations in the field of forestry and wild life management.
STUDY REPORT ON TROPICAL TIMBER TRADE AND PROSPECTS IN INDIA

Ashwani Kumar Bhat INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY
International Timber Trade Organization, ITTO is established by the International Timber Trade Agreement ITTA in 1985. 57 countries including EU are members of the ITTO. ITTO plays a key role in collecting, analyzing and disseminating information on World timber situation. Member countries are assisted through projects for strengthening their statistics and data collection and reporting function. Statistics regarding tropical timber, production, trade, market trends, and prices is maintained by ITTO. ITTO believes that inadequacy in trade related information is a major block to developing and sustaining valuable market for tropical Timber products. Correct and reliable information on forest and trade is necessary so that the government and industry can evaluate their goals and take appropriate action to grow the trade and capture more of its value and discourage illegal activities.
ITTO MISSION STATEMENT

The ITTO facilitates discussion, consultation and international cooperation on issues relating to the international trade and utilization of tropical timber and the sustainable management of its resource base. The International timber trade and forestry still face many hurdles in sustainable development and conservation of forests. There is a need for more information on trade, greater development of the processing sector and greater access to consumer market. ITTO further recognizes that increasing market access opportunities will assist countries to generate required financial resources and to implement national policies that promote sustainable forest management. Through this the market access can be improved and non-discriminatory timber trade practice can be promoted. These are the important aspects of ITTO. In 1990, ITTO members agreed to strive for an international trade of Tropical Timber from sustainable managed forest by the centurys end. This became known as the year 2000 Objective and large part of the ITTO program of the projects and activities was devoted to this achievement. It was observed that the tropical countries has made significant progress in the formulation and adoption of policies compatible with the objectives, but there was hardly any progress found in implementation of these policies. Due to this fact ITTO members re- stated their commitment towards achieving the exports of Tropical Timber and Timber products from sustainable managed sources and hence renamed this commitment as ITTO objective 2000.
ITTOs Objectives
(As expressed in Article 1 of the ITTA, 1994) Recognizing the sovereignty of members over their natural resources, as defined in Principle 1 (a) of the Non-Legally Binding Authoritative Statement of Principles for a Global Consensus on the Management, Conservation and Sustainable Development of all Types of Forests.
The objectives of the International Tropical Timber Agreement, 1994 are: a) To provide an effective framework for consultation, international cooperation and policy development among all members with regard to all relevant aspects of the world timber economy; To provide a forum for consultation to promote non-discriminatory timber trade practices; To contribute to the process of sustainable development; To enhance the capacity of members to implement a strategy for achieving exports of tropical timber and timber products from sustainable managed sources by the year 2000; To promote the expansion and diversification of international trade in tropical timber from sustainable sources by improving the structural conditions in international markets, by taking into account, on the one hand, a long-term increase in consumption and continuity of supplies, and, on the other, prices which reflect the costs of sustainable forest management and which are remunerative and equitable for members, and the improvement of market access; To promote and support research and development with a view to improving forest management and efficiency of wood utilization as well as increasing the capacity to conserve and enhance other forest values in timber producing tropical forests; To develop and contribute towards mechanisms for the provision of new and additional financial resources and expertise needed to enhance the capacity of producing members to attain the objectives of this Agreement; To improve market intelligence with a view to ensuring greater transparency in the international timber market, including the gathering, compilation, and dissemination of trade related data, including data related to species being traded; To promote increased and further processing of tropical timber from sustainable sources in producing member countries with a view to promoting their industrialization and thereby increasing their employment opportunities and export earnings; To encourage members to support and develop industrial tropical timber reforestation and forest management activities as well as rehabilitation of degraded forest land, with due regard for the interests of local communities dependent on forest resources; To improve marketing and distribution of tropical timber exports from sustainably managed sources; To encourage members to develop national policies aimed at sustainable utilization and conservation of timber producing forests and their genetic resources and at maintaining the ecological balance in the regions concerned, in the context of tropical timber trade; To promote the access to, and transfer of, technologies and technical cooperation to implement the objectives of this Agreement, including on concessional and preferential terms and conditions, as mutually agreed; and To encourage information sharing on the international timber market.
b) c) d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
k) l)
m)
n)
It remains a central goal of the organization supported by renewed efforts to raise the capacity of Govt., industry and communities to manage their forests and add value to their forest products and to maintain and increase the transparency of the trade and access to international markets. As a part of recommendation of the assessment made in 2000, it was to send ITTO mission to tropical member countries to identify the obstacles for rapid progress and to formulate action plan to overcome the same. This Study is a part of the National Status Report on Forest and Forestry to be submitted regarding Indian scenario of Tropical Timber trade and prospects and envisaging constrains being faced by India towards achieving the ITTO objectives 2000.
OBJECTIVIES:
The main objective of the study is to collect and analyze the information regarding Tropical Timber Trade and prospects in India, value addition of timber and suggest improvements in the rules and regulations so that India can proceed fast in the achievement of the ITTO objectives 2000. The study report covers following four forestry issues.
Part A: Forest products trade and marketing Part B: Rules and regulations to enhance access to and ensure import (and export) of sustainable produced tropical timber; Utilization and quality experience. Part C: Value addition of timber & Utilization Part D: Case studies in Maharashtra and Gujarat about current timber use and trends. ****
PART- A FOREST PRODUCTS TRADE AND MARKETING

1. INTRODUCTION:
India, among the tropical countries has a total forest cover of over 67 million hectares which represents about 20% of the land area of the country. As per the National forest policy; 33% of the land area shall be covered under forest. India accounts for 2.47 per cent of worlds geographical area, but has only 1 per cent of worlds forests. A huge human population, of more than a Billion coupled with more than 500 million of livestock, exerts immense pressure on its natural resources, including the forests. Improving standards of living have furthered the demand for timber and timber products. The natural forests cannot meet the increasing demand for timber and is being fulfilled partly by timber obtained from the Tree outside Forests (TOF) and imported timber. Around 95% of the Indian forest is classified as tropical, with relatively low productivity, partly due to degradation over large areas. With an estimated growing stock of 2.7 billion m3, the predominant product is fuel wood, in which the country is maintaining self-sufficiency. The forest-derived fuel wood is augmented by supplies from trees outside the forest (TOF), which cover nearly 2% of the land area and are playing an increasing role in the provision of fast grown raw material for the panel, pulp and paper industries. Efforts are under way to raise plantations and to restore degraded forests, which comprises about half of the forest area. The impact, if any, of these efforts on the net availability of timber to meet the increasing demand has been limited to date. The main constraining factors are: Limited budget for reforestation and aforestation, Emphasis on the environmental and social services provided by forests is increasing but at the expense of timber production Indias huge population of over a billion, demands more land which reduces total availability of land for redevelopment of forest. Large population also demands deforestation. more consumption which adds to faster
Awareness regarding effects of deforestation is less among the people Government is not so enthusiastic about green issues.
Due to these constrains the gap between deforestation and reforestation is becoming wide. It is seen that India has one of the lowest per capita forest areas of the ITTO producer member countries. At the same time round wood production in India ranks 4th in ITTO producer countries. The overall annual production of logs from forests and TOF is estimated at around 14 million m3, where as consumption is to the tune of 17 million M3 which does not meet the national need; hence timber imports, mostly of tropical hardwoods, currently exceed 3 million m3 a year. Sawn wood production and consumption are in balance at about 6 million m3, with relatively low imports, partly due to higher tariffs, production of sawn wood is sufficient to meet the demand and almost no value-added secondary wood processed product exports is happening, for which there could be a significant scope.
Main emphasis of ITTO objective-2000 is given on conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests. Forest product in the contest of the assignment is Tropical Timber and this report covers the tropical timber market in India in terms of trends in production, consumption, imports and exports of main timber products. This study indicates the overall trends and prospects of the countrys timber markets, with special reference to the tropical timber trade. Source of the data for the review and study is from FAO statistical data and Review of Indian Timber Market a survey undertaken by Dr. M K Muthoo. The data collected in this survey is secondary on the basis of end-use consumption. The timber products covered in this chapter are Round wood/logs, Sawn wood, Veneer and Plywood. The analysis includes the timber trade scenario with focus on the ITTO objective and review regarding tropical timber imports/export, drawing upon the secondary data for the same as authentic as possible. Regarding Indian Timber trade sufficient authentic data/statistic is not available to be considered as Primary input, so the figures related to Indian Tropical Timber production, consumption, Import and Export are mainly based on secondary data. Even figures mentioned in the ITTO Annual Review and Assessment of World Timber situation 2005 are also the estimates based on the other sources like trade levels, reported export/imports of other concerned countries, and assumed domestic consumption. Proper sufficient statistical data is not being made available to various forums, dealing the International Timber trade from India.
2. TROPICAL TIMBER TRADE AND PROSPECTS

Despite industrial and technological advances in the development of new generation materials and products, wood continues to be an indispensable material for several economically important end uses. A sustainable supply of wood can be maintained with much less effort than that is required for producing the wood substitutes, such as steel and plastics that are non-renewable and high energy consuming. This is particularly important in view of the chronic deficiency of power in the country and huge outgoes on fossil fuel imports. Undoubtedly, in total life cycle analysis, wood is the most environment friendly of all its modern alternates and the best substitute of itself. Growing more trees and producing and procuring increased volume of wood is probably the most rational option in view of its highly favorable impact on environmental stability and socio-economic security vis--vis energy usage and conservation. India is one of the major users of wood in the Asia-Pacific region. The country had, till recently, the privilege of having fairly abundant quantity of wood from several tropical hardwood species including teak and rosewood. Utilization of these species for different end-uses was, by and large, based on practical experience rather than scientifically developed product development and application technologies. Moreover, these species with excellent desirable inherent characteristics are generally a ready-touse natural raw material that requires little processing effort. Material Energy for Production per unit of stress in normal use (MJ/m2/N/mm2) for Steel is 1,500 where as that for Timber is 80.
2.1
Review of Production and Consumption of Timber Products
Timber products in India mainly comprises of Round wood/logs, Sawn wood, Veneer and Plywood. From the available data regarding production of these products, the trend of production of various timber products over the year from 2001 -2005 is as under:
Table 2.1: Production of Timber Products ('000 Cu.m)

Item/Year Round wood/logs Sawn wood Veneer Plywood 2001 13500 6800 55 1300 2002 13500 6000 235 1600 2003 13500 6000 246 1760 2004 13500 6000 258 1936 2005 13500 6000 258 1936
Table 2.2: Consumption of Timber Products ('000 Cu.m)

Item/Year Round wood/logs Sawn wood Veneer Plywood 2001 15914 6806 56 1253 2002 15051 6007 238 1551 2003 16293 6010 249 1704 2004* 16535 5984 257 1911 2005* 16535 5984 259 1911
* Figures are rounded off. Source: FAO Yearbook, ITTO Annual Review and Assessment of World Timber situation-2005.
2.2. Timber Import Trends

Table 2.3: Import of Timber Products ('000 Cu.m)
Item/Year Round wood/logs Sawn wood Veneer Plywood * Figures are rounded off. Source: FAO Yearbook 2003. ITTO Annual Review and Assessment of World Timber situation 2005. 2001 2421 7 2 17 2002 1561 7 4 10 2003 2798 10 4 4 2004 3036 11 6 9 2005 3036 11 6 9
In the absence of correct figures, discrepancies in the information can not be avoided. Efforts are taken to analyze the timber trade aspects from the published documents and secondary survey data. Based on historic trends established from customs data recorded according to international Harmonized System (HS) codes, predictions are made in various studies regarding production, consumption and trade volumes of all timber for the year 2005. Such predictions are, of course, subject to uncertainty, since the past doesnt necessarily provide an accurate guide to the future. Nevertheless, in the view of the consultants these predictions are likely to reflect average trends in the next few years; the table below shows estimates for the financial year 200506.
Table 2.4: Estimated production, consumption and trade, 2005-06.

Volume Production Consumption Round wood/Logs Sawn wood Veneer Plywood 52.041 32.961 2.340 0.499 56.69 33.18 2.38 0.50 Imports 4.689 0.221 0.068 0.003 Exports 0.0040 0.0020 0.0280 0.0019 Value (Million US$) Imports 937.8 55.0 7.5 1.8 Exports 0.80 0.70 6.22 5.20
In view of the vast discrepancies in secondary data regarding domestic production, the consumption estimates shown above have been computed on the basis of data collected in surveys and appraisals conducted for various study, less the trend of officially recorded annual imports, while also taking note of limited export volumes. Most (more than 95%) of timber imports are tropical hardwoods. The import trend thus far is upwards and apparently booming for all major items except plywood. Nevertheless, this trend will not necessarily continue: the Indian timber sector is dangerously complacent in the face of threats to the timber market in the country posed by substitutes and its disorganized nature. The latter includes a lack of market intelligence and economic information about the competitiveness of tropical timber, and limited attention to tariff and non-tariff barriers in the face of existing and emerging large-scale importers of quality tropical hardwoods, especially in Asia itself. A comprehensive review of Indian consumption patterns undertaken by various studies shows that tropical hardwoods are commonly used for end products by a majority of consumers. However, convoluted procedures and high transaction costs on the one hand, and a paucity of requisite data and market diversification on the other could cause the loss of potentially high demand prospects for tropical hardwoods. Based on the studies and upward market growth of timber consumption at all levels and other primary and secondary data, it projects the likely demand in the forthcoming years for various types of timber and the potential sources of supply. The study done in 2004 reflects data obtained from twelve major urban centers/ regions. In addition, a rapid rural appraisal of consumption has been conducted in six diverse districts to validate the estimates of current consumption and the future needs of the vast rural population, which is largely dependent on domestic production from forests and TOF. The table below highlights some consumption prospects, around 85% of which comprises tropical hardwoods. Table 2.5: All Timber consumption prospects (million m3)
2005-06 Round wood/Logs Urban India Rural India India Sawn wood Urban India Rural India India 8.29 24.88 33.18 8.63 25.89 34.52 9.45 28.34 37.79 14.17 42.52 56.69 15.44 46.31 61.74 17.64 52.92 70.56 2007-08 2012-13
2005-06 Total veneers & plywood Urban India Total builders' joinery Urban India Construction end-use Urban India Rural India India 4.07 12.22 16.30 3.44 2.88
2007-08
2012-13
3.09
4.89
3.55
3.88
4.34 13.02 17.36
4.80 14.40 19.20
Overall, the review draws the following conclusions: (i) (ii) India can no longer satisfy its demand for industrial round wood from domestic resources. Imports of industrial wood volumes have grown years, comprising mainly non-coniferous logs producers. Exports from these countries to India over the recent five-year period, reaching a volume manifold during the last five from ITTO tropical timber have grown at 20% annually of well over 3 million m3.
(iii)
Tropical Timber imports amount to only about US$ 800 million in 2004 at current exchange rates, which is a small fraction of the overall annual imports into India. In principle, there is space and scope for increased tropical timber and other imports, given the latest national GDP growth rate (projected to be around 8% in 2005), unprecedented foreign exchange reserves of over US$100billion, and a pro-active policy of trade liberalization. These factors are in addition to the dynamic demand for timber products due to rapid urbanization and intensive construction activity in the country, and to the potential for re export of processed wood products, among other factors. The bulk of imports into India are in an unprocessed form, mainly as logs. Relatively small but sizeable quantities of sawn wood are also imported, while veneers and plywood are almost negligible and limited to some specific categories. This trend is likely to continue in the foreseeable future, unless there are policy changes and a mutually beneficial understanding between exporters of value-added wood products and the Indian importers. Consultations with the concerned stakeholders indicated their preference for the current trend, which is also reflected in the prevailing tariff structure. That could change. The review has revealed that the Indian timber market is dispersed and disorganized and the various distribution channels, entities and customers do not have access to any noteworthy national or regional standard-setting organization/s for ensuring specifications, quality control, innovations and complementarities in production, processing, trading and retailing. This is unlike most other major goods and services in the country. In view of the disorganized national timber market, the lack of market intelligence and the brisk promotion of substitutes, there are threats and challenges to the timber industry and to the inherent competitiveness of tropical hardwoods in the country. There is therefore a risk that the tropical timber trade will miss the opportunity to expand in India, and could become stagnant or even get reversed. The review process has helped to raise awareness about the urgent national need to improve timber trade and forest sector statistical data as a basic element of an
(iv)
(v)
(vi)
(vii)
enabling environment for investment in the forest sector and appropriate market development. Indian scenario with respect to Tropical Timber Production and Consumption, Trend and Prospects, Trade is discussed in following sections.
2.3. Tropical Timber Trends and Prospects 2.3.1 Timber Trend in India
Timber products in India mainly comprises of Round wood /logs, Sawn wood, Veneer and Plywood. From the available data regarding production of these products, the trend of production of various timber products over the year from 2001 -2005 is as under: Table 2.6 (A) Production of Timber Products ('000 Cu.m)
Item/Year Round wood/logs Sawn wood Veneer Plywood 2001 13500 6800 55 1300 2002 13500 6000 235 1600 2003 13500 6000 246 1760 2004 13500 6000 258 1936 2005 13500 6000 258 1936
Table 2.6 (B): Consumption of Timber Products ('000 Cu.m)

Item/Year Round wood/logs Sawn wood Veneer Plywood * 2001 15914 6806 56 1253 2002 15051 6007 238 1551 2003 16293 6010 249 1704 2004* 16535 5984 257 1911 2005* 16535 5984 259 1911
Figures are rounded off.
Source: FAO Yearbook, ITTO Annual Review and Assessment of World Timber situation-2005.
2.3.2 Prospects of Consumption and Production of Timber and Timber Products

Many forums/agencies like Forest Survey of India, MOEF, and National Forestry Action Program etc have studied further timber demand of India. An attempt at the harmonization of various projections has been made in a working paper brought out by FAO, which indicates the estimated demand for industrial round wood in India (other than fuel and pulp wood) as 49, 53 and 58 million Cu.m by the year 2000, 2005 and 2010 respectively (Table 2.7). Industrial wood requirement projections made in FAO 1997 are as under:
Table 2.6: Industrial Wood Requirement (million Cu.m)

Sector/Year Sawn wood (housing, furniture, implements, sports goods, packaging.) Pulp (paper, newsprint) Plywood Particleboard Fibreboard MDF Total 2000 47.00 23.60 1.45 0.34 0.22 0.40 73.01 2005 50.00 28.50 1.69 0.49 0.32 0.67 81.67 2010 54.00 35.00 1.92 0.65 0.41 0.95 92.93
Source: Asia Pacific Forestry Sector Outlook Study, Working Paper No.10, FAO by Dr. P.M. Ganapathy, 1997
The Global Forest Products study (1998) projected the consumption and production of forest products in India for the years 2000, 2005, and 2010 respectively (Table 2.7). It thereby indicates a growing gap between production and consumption of round wood. Table 2.7: Global Forest Products Model Projections to 2010 ('000 Cu.m)
Actual 1980 Consumption Round wood Industrial round wood Other industrial round wood Sawn wood Wood-based panels Vaneer sheets and plywood Particle board Fiberboard Production Round wood Industrial round wood Other industrial round wood Sawn wood Wood-based panels Vaneer sheets and plywood Particle board Fiberboard 212070 30922 3925 10976 252 204 28 20 281307 24792 5234 17460 42 364 32 46 332225 41137 6224 19206 521 431 35 55 366035 44033 7149 20697 566 467 37 62 403149 46936 8212 22208 641 521 39 7 212075 9669 3925 10991 239 194 27 18 281551 25066 5234 17458 410 335 33 42 333294 42234 6224 19198 485 398 35 51 368061 46076 7194 20693 550 453 37 60 406150 49955 8212 22207 624 515 39 70 1994 Projections 2000 2005 2010
Source: Compiled from Global Forest Products Consumption, Production, Trade and Prices: Global Forest Products Model Projections to 2010, FAO, 1998
2.3.3 Demand of Timber

Housing and furniture manufacturing are the two major sources of demand for timber. Total timber requirement by the year 2006 for all uses has been assessed as 81.8 million Cu.m. Table 2.8: Projections for Timber Consumption (million Cu.m)
Category of Use a) Housing and allied Domestic uses (i) Rural (ii) Urban b) Furniture (i) Rural (ii) Urban Total (Housing Construction & Furniture) c) Agriculture Implements d) Other Industrial timber Total for all uses 54.60 12.00 15.20 81.80 2006 43.00 34.00 09.00 11.60 07.00 04.60
Where as the sources of supply to meet the demand is projected as under: Table 2.9: Timber Production (Projections) (million Cu.m)
Production source Forest Plantations Farm Forestry Total 2006 29 13 40 82
The document also projects estimated supply of timber from forests, plantations and farm forestry at 29 million Cu.m, 13 million Cu.m and 40 million Cu.m totaling to 82 Million M3 in the year 2006. However, the potential supply from the forests is projected to be only about 52 million Cu.m per annum. That is far lower than the above noted consumption of timber logs, thereby leaving a still larger gap between demand and the supply, to be fulfilled by imports and other means. Using the data from the FSI study 1996, the average per thousand capita annual consumption of timber logs, for construction end-use and for furniture & furniture components end-use has been worked out and summarized in Table 2.10. This average is further used along with the urban consumption average as obtained from the 12 consumption centers, to project the total logs consumption and use of timber for construction end-use and for furniture & furniture components end-use for the whole population.
Table 2.10: Average annual timber consumption per 1,000 persons (Cu.m)
Category of Use Rural Housing and allied Domestic uses (all logs) Construction Furniture 39.3 29.9 15.4 2006 Urban 30.0 15.4
It is seen from the above different projections and actual facts understood from the timber dealers from the market that the consumption of timber (industrial round wood) and timber products is increasing with increasing population and urbanization, improving standards of living and rising personal disposable incomes. At the same time, there is the recognition of an increasing scarcity of domestic supply and motivation for substitution by non-timber products, especially in some joinery items, given that the timber for the market from the largely publicly owned forests has declined over the years. It has stagnated on account of the earlier overexploitation and currently heightened population pressure, local needs, and newly instituted prudent and popular policies and practices for conservation-oriented management, which are being increasingly implemented since the recent few years. The recent reports and the data for timber production in India showing declining trends may therefore seem to be logically correct, prima-facie, calling for increased imports for meeting national consumption requirements. This scenario is evident from the urban consumption sample survey undertaken for twelve major urban consumption centers in the country, which was designed so that its results can be and were extrapolated for the whole urban population and for the coming years. The results of this analysis were synthesized and are summarized in the self-explanatory Table 2.11 given below. As regards rural consumption, the first generic estimate was made on the crude assumption that the rural timber consumption was three times that of the total urban consumption. While the following table shows higher overall consumption trend and prospects, outstripping population growth rate and therefore indicative of increasing per capita consumption, it will remain very low compared with the world average, offering considerable scope for imports and enhanced domestic production. Table 2.11: Synopsis of Timber Consumption in Urban and Rural areas in India (Cu.m)
Source Population of 12 Urban Consumption centers Urban Population in India Log Consumption of 12 Urban Consumption Centers Per 1000 persons Log Consumption of 12 urban Consumption Centers 42.6 44.1 44.1 47.3 48.7 51.1 1997-98 69,793,156 1999-2000 73,670,553 2002-03 77,547,951 2005-06 81,425,349 2007-08 86,078,226 2012-13 93,833,021
256,819,459 2,976,295
271,087,206 3,250,307
285,354,954 3,418,849
299,622,702 3,851,548
316,743,999 4,194,778
345,279,494 4,793,545
Source Total Log Consumption in Urban India Total Log Consumption in Rural India Total Log Consumption in India Sawn wood Consumption of 12 Urban Consumption centres Per 1000 persons Sawn wood Consumption of 12 urban Consumption Centers Total Sawn wood Consumption in Urban India Total Sawn wood Consumption in Rural India Total Sawn wood Consumption in India Veneer & Plywood Consumption of 12 Urban Consumption Centers Per 1000 persons Veneer & Ply Consumption of12 Urban Consumption Centers Total Veneer & Plywood Consumption in Urban India Builder's Joinery Consumption of 12 Urban Consumption Centres Per 1000 persons BJ Consumption of 12 urban Consumption Centres
1997-98 10,951,940
1999-2000 11,960,228
2002-03 12,580,416
2005-06 14,172,629
2007-08 15,435,620
2012-13 17,638,916
32,855,821
35,880,685
37,741,249
42,517,886
46,306,859
52,916,749
43,807,761
47,840,914
50,321,665
56,690,514
61,742,479
70,555,665
1,983,503
2,121,285
2,152,429
2,254,232
2,345,421
2,567,263
28.4
28.8
27.8
27.7
27.2
27.4
7,298,741
7,805,741
7,920,342
8,294,949
8,630,499
9,446,816
21,896,223
23,417,222
23,761,025
24,884,846
25,891,497
28,340,448
29,194,964
31,222,962
31,681,367
33,179,794
34,521,995
37,787,264
491,757
586,255
705,585
783,165
840,743
1,329,405
7.0
8.0
9.1
9.6
9.8
14.2
1,809,529
2,157,256
2,596,357
2,881,830
3,093,701
4,891,842
832,814
877,686
911,318
934,602
965,483
1,055,308
11.9
11.9
11.8
11.5
11.2
11.2
Source Total BJ Consumption in Urban India END-USES Timber consumption in Construction in 12 Urban Consumption Centers Per 1000 persons Timber consumption for Cons in 12 urban Consumption Centers Total Timber consumption for Construction in Urban India Total Timber consumption for Construction in Rural India Total Timber consumption for Construction in India
1997-98 3,064,525
1999-2000 3,229,641
2002-03 3,353,398
2005-06 3,439,076
2007-08 3,552,710
2012-13 3,883,241
985,810
1,020,257
1,048,661
1,106,309
1,176,971
1,304,533
14.1
13.8
13.5
13.6
13.7
13.9
3,621,154
3,741,003
3,852,292
4,074,869
4,339,393
4,799,385 33.5 % growth over 97-98
10,863,463
11,223,010
11,556,876
12,224,606
13,018,178
14,398,155 32 % growth over 97-98
14,484,617
14,964,014
15,409,168
16,299,475
17,357,571
19,197,540
2.3.1. Rural Household Consumption

There is a decreasing trend in the per capita utilization of timber in the rural areas as observed by the survey, but the overall volumes involved are many times that of the urban areas. The percentage-wise population ratio in rural areas is decreasing but in absolute terms the population continues to increase steadily, albeit, slowly as compared with previous decadal growth of population. This fact together with the improvements in income, increasing agricultural productivity, economic diversification and repatriation of earnings of emigrant village workers from elsewhere -in-country and abroad, has given rise to improving the housing standards in rural areas. Yet, the perception among the villagers is that there is growing scarcity of timber and hence the trends reflect poor distribution channels and substitution by non-timber products including cement, mud and bricks, even if their preference would have been for timber. Table 2.13: Consumption trend and prospects of timber in the rural districts (Cu.m per 1000 persons)
Source Andhra Pradesh Jammu & Kashmir Maharashtra Meghalaya Orissa Rajasthan Average per 1000 persons Consumption Average per capita consumption 1997-98 144 148 142 149 142 138 144 0.144 19992000 142 147 140 148 139 137 142 0.142 200203 139 144 139 147 138 137 141 0.141 200506 136 142 136 145 135 134 138 0.138 200708 135 141 133 142 133 130 136 0.136 201213 133 139 131 138 131 125 133 0.133
It is obvious that the per capita consumption of timber for construction in the mountainous states of Jammu & Kashmir and Meghalaya is the highest, while the least per capita consumption in the State of Rajasthan, reflecting the relative low availability of trees and forests in the vicinity of the rural households. That is because most of the rural people obtain timber from forests owned by the government or community and from plantations and TOF. In most cases, based on the perception of the people in the villages surveyed, the usage of timber per household for construction purposes would diminish as they foresee that the resources available would become limited. However, there is an outlook for upgrading of houses, both in practice and in perception, say from kutcha (temporary) to semi-pucca (semi-solid) and to pucca (solid) and also in the increasing number of housing units due to breakdown of joint families and improving economic conditions. So in net, the demand for overall volume of wood and other construction materials are likely to grow and be greater.
2.4 Timber Trade-Indian scenario 2.4.1 Timber Import

As a major policy initiative, the Government of India permitted wood import by classifying wood under Open general License (OGL) in 1996 with a view to ease out the wood shortage, as also to reduce pressure on natural forests. However, the tariff structure is biased in favor of imports of logs and a conscious attempt has been made to keep out the import of processed wood and products to protect the domestic wood processing industries.
The main source of information on wood imports:

Various Reports on Indian Timber import are based on following sources: 1. The Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCIS), under the Ministry of Commerce, Government of India. The primary source of these data is the daily trade reports and custom clearance records of import and export of forest products collated by the Department of Customs and Central Excise. The DGCIS data are based on authentic official records of the Government department and are therefore supposedly most reliable. Another source of information of timber trade is the Directorate of Statistics, Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE). Federation of Indian Plywood and Panel Industries (FIPPI) and DGCIS. In addition, the data on production and trade are also taken from the Planning Commission and Ministry of Environment & Forests (MOEF), the Forest Survey of India and the Central Statistical Organization (CSO). FAO yearbook, ITTO Annual Review and assessment of World Timber Situation 2005.
2. 3. 4.
5.
Proper statistical data is not available at a single source which can be considered as authentic to draw certain conclusions. In many reports related to Import Export trade of India timber is considered under the head Other so exact quantity can not be located. As sufficient authentic data/statistic is not available to be considered as Primary input, the figures related to Indian Tropical Timber production, consumption, Import and
Export are mainly based on secondary data? Even figures mentioned in the ITTO Annual Review and Assessment of World Timber situation 2005 are also estimated based on the other sources like trade levels, reported export/imports of other concerned countries, and assumed domestic consumption. Proper statistical data is not being made available to various forums, dealing the International Timber trade.
2.4.2 Prospects of Timber Trade in India

The present timber import and future prospect of timber trade in India is presented in Table 2.14, 2.15 respectively. The projection reveals that the import of industrial round wood is poised to increase 100 per cent between 2005 and 2010. In case of other products such as sawn wood, veneer sheets and plywood, the import has been suggested to decrease over time. This is primarily due to the prevailing policy to discourage import of semi-finished and value added products into the country. Table 2.14: Import of Timber and Timber products ('000 Cu.m) Item/Year Round wood/logs Sawnwood Veneer Plywood
* Figures are rounded off.
2001 2421 7 2 17
2002 1561 7 4 10
2003 2798 10 4 4
2004* 3036 11 6 9
2005* 3036 11 6 9
Table 2.15: Projection of Import of Timber and Timber products ('000 Cu.m)
Sector/Year Round wood Industrial Round wood Sawn wood Wood-based Panels Veneer Sheets and Plywood Particle board Projection (2010) 3,021 3,021 0 1 1 0
Logs continue to form the bulk of total imports. Moreover, there was a sudden increase in wood imports from the year 97-98 onwards that coincides with the year in which wood was put under open general license with no custom duty. Although 5% custom duty was re-imposed after two year, the log imports continued to increase at an average annual growth rate of about 10% (Table 2.14). The growth rate in respect of processed timber products has declined considerably during 2000-04 in spite of the downward revision of the tariff. The reason can be due to decreased consumption of timber in construction industry due to fall of the real estate market during the period.
Table 2.16: Quantities of Import to India (000 Cu.m)

Year 1991-92 1994-95 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 Logs 853.36 667.21 2421 1561 2798 3036 3036 Sawnwood 9.14 9.80 7 7 10 11 11 Plywood 3.61 9.56 17 10 4 9 9 Veneer sheets 0.80 1.14 2 4 4 9 9
The bulk of timber and timber product import is in the form of logs (industrial roundwood) mainly of tropical hardwoods, comprising about 90% of total import of wood and wood products, excluding paper and pulp. The government is facilitating this by lower tariff rates and wood has been put in Open General License (OGL) since 1996. Imported wood is generally used for housing construction, builders joinery and furniture through conversion to sawn wood, plywood and block wood. People living in and around forests meet the entire requirement of fuel wood from domestic supply, mainly from nearby forests and trees outside forests. India being a tropical country, bulk of the domestic timber is from tropical hardwood species. Over the centuries, consumers have therefore developed a liking for tropical hardwoods. Accordingly, the consumption as well as the imports of tropical softwood and temperate hardwoods is much less than the tropical hardwoods. There is an increasing trend for import of tropical hardwoods and the current annual growth rate of 10% is likely to further increase in view of increasing demand and static domestic supply. India could consider studying the strategies and policies being followed by China of large scale imports of timber logs and sawn wood from tropical hardwood producing countries. Table 2.17: Growth rate of wood item Import
Year 1996-97 2001-02 2004-05 Annual Growth Rate 199296 Item Logs Sawnwood Plywood & Veneer sheets 246.68 7.94 10.60 Million US $ 509.78 13.01 7.37 802.19 16.70 9.60 Percent 18 26 104 Annual Growth Rate 19962002 Percent 21.33 12.78 - 6.10 Annual Growth Rate 20022005 Percent 19.12% 09.45% 10.08%
Although logs were imported from about 100 countries, six countries, namely Malaysia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Nigeria and New Zealand account for bulk of the imports; about 85% of the total imports during the year 2001-02 were from these countries. Where as during 2004-05 Malaysia, New Guinea, Gabon, Myanmar and Cote dIvoire are the major players in the import scenario having a chunk of 85 % of the total quantity.
2.4.3 Import Trend of Logs into India (major Exporting Countries)

The analysis of the import route of wood logs into the country for last five years revealed that there are six ports that account for bulk of the imports (Table 2.18), but Kandla port, in the western coast of the country situated in the State of Gujarat, alone handles about 50% of the total quantity of wood and wood products imported to the country. Table 2.18: Portwise Import of Logs (quantity)
Port Kandla Tuticorin Haldia New Mangalore Mumbai Chennai Others % of Log import 51% 12% 4% 6% 5% 5% 17% Remarks West coast East coast East coast West coast West coast East coast Major and minor ports at West and East coast
2.4.4 Timber Export

Timber products comprise a very small, almost negligible proportion, of total exports from the country. The value of export of the timber products from India since 1996-97 till 2000 is presented in Table 2.19. The table reveals that furniture and woodworks are the major export items amongst various timber products. The export of plywood in value terms has declined sharply since 1996-97. A significant decline was also observed in case of veneer sheets. The important fact to note is that the export of furniture has been showing a continuous and significant increase over time. Table 2.19: Quantities of Export from India (000 Cu.m)
Year 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2004-05 * Token figures. Logs 7 9 5 1 1 Sawnwood 1 0 0 27 27 Plywood 64 59 61 34 34 Veneer sheets 1 1 1 7 5
Table 2.20: Export of Timber Products (million US$)

Item Veneers sheets Plywood Builders joinery Wood in rough 199697 6.68 19.78 0.62 1.68 199798 5.95 13.10 0.63 0.60 199899 4.42 5.40 0.70 0.60 19992000 4.25 7.27 0.50 0.35 200001 3.53 7.44 0.96 1.39 200102 4.46 5.16 1.37 0.78
Item Particle board Fibre-board Packaging Kitchen ware Status and other ornaments of wood Wood work of rosewood Wood work of sandal Wood work of shisham Wood work of walnut Lacquered wood ware Total wood work Furniture Total timber products
199697 2.88 2.00 3.18 1.04 0.11 6.40 1.93 7.31 0.41 1.64 17.69 4.69 64.16
199798 2.06 1.77 2.16 1.26 0.57 6.38 1.97 11.92 1.69 0.39 22.35 5.91 60.23
199899 2.10 1.99 1.86 0.91 0.40 6.05 2.23 11.76 1.03 0.81 21.88 8.66 53.07
19992000 3.07 1.74 3.19 0.91 0.34 13.49 2.24 11.39 2.60 1.31 31.03 14.27 71.14
200001 2.06 3.10 4.37 1.48 2.02 16.54 1.87 8.66 2.80 0.48 30.35 25.50 88.79
200102 3.03 2.30 2.99 1.00 3.70 10.76 0.52 8.66 0.79 0.23 20.96 37.14 89.79
2.4.5 Projection of Export of Timber and Timber products

The projections on the export front suggest that it would decline substantially in case of most of the timber products over the period of 15 years. The decrease is observed in all categories. Table 2.19: Projection of Export of Timber and Timber products ('000 Cu.m)
Sector/Year 1995 Roundwood Industrial Roundwood Sawnwood Wood-based Panels Veneer Sheets and Plywood particle board 41 11 0 45 39 0 Projection 2010 21 5 0 8 7 0
It is indicated in studies that despite diminishing supplies of timber of known species from the natural forests and efforts to substitute wood with other materials including metals and plastics, the consumption of wood is showing an increasing trend. With increasing urbanization, rising standards of living and changing lifestyles, the demand for timber is likely to increase at a faster rate, given the fact that present industrial round wood consumption in India at 28 cum per 1000 persons is much below the world average of 290 cum per 1000 persons. World Industries prefer imported materials over locally available timber obtained mainly from rapid grown plantation species such as of poplar, eucalypts and rubber wood, mainly due to the fact that the locally available wood has certain inherent characteristics such as low dimensional stability and natural durability. On the other
hand, imported timber of well known species such as gurjan, keruing, teak, meranti, and sal, and some pines are generally known to have superior qualities with respect to dimensional stability and durability and are also price competitive for specific end-use categories. There is an increasing trend for import of tropical hardwoods and the current annual growth rate of 10% is likely to further increase in view of increasing demand and static domestic supply. India could consider studying the strategies and policies being followed by China of large scale imports of timber logs and sawn wood from tropical hardwood producing countries. The imported sawn wood may be converted into valueadded-timber products (such as veneer, plywood, furniture) and re-exported after valueaddition. India could consider emulating this model to become a lucrative hub for exporting value added timber products manufactured from plantation grown domestic and various imported timbers.
3. TROPICAL TIMBER MARKET-POTENTIAL AND COMPETITIVENESS 3.1 Introduction

India is one of ITTOs 4th largest log producer and consumer with requirements of 13.50 Million M3 and 17.00 Million M3 respectively. India stood 2nd in log import valuing more than 3 Million M3 in 2005. Sawn wood production and consumption of about 6 million M3 is 2nd in ITTO. Sawn wood import is very marginal. Indian veneer consumption is 0.25 Million M3 4th in rank with almost equal production values. In recent past plywood consumption and production has rapidly increased quantifying 1.90 Million M3 among the top 4 in ITTO countries. However, due to a growing wood shortage and increased timber demand in the country, domestic production was totally absorbed by the local market. In fact, India was ITTOs second largest importer of tropical logs (3 million Cu.m) in 2005. Tropical timber (mostly from Africa, Malaysia and Myanmar) holds more than 80 per cent share of the Indian log market, while softwood (mainly radiata pine from New Zealand for packaging and relatively cheap construction applications) has a dominant share of Indias other primary timber product markets. The statistics internationally available often are distant estimates, as Indias timber trade data have not been readily available to international stakeholders, e.g., ITTOs figures are derived from trade flows reported to UN COMTRADE by Indias trading partners and from estimates of domestic consumption, without a coherent reporting system. As mentioned earlier, there is a wide deficit between availability (domestic supply) and requirement (demand) of timber in India and this deficit is likely to increase in the future, especially for tropical hardwoods. Though India is the worlds seventh largest country, it hosts only 1.8 per cent of the worlds forests. Table 3.1: Demand and Supply of Wood (million Cu.m)
Item Wood requirement (for housing, furniture, Agricultural implements, industrial uses) Output from natural forests Output from plantations, social forestry schemes and other wood lots 2006* 82 12 53 17
Deficit Source: FSI, 1996; * Estimated
The above table gives an account of total wood demand and supply. The FSI has projected that supplies from natural forests and old plantations shall not increase from the above figure of 12 million cubic meters. It is likely that even this availability may decline in view of increasing restrictions on felling from forests. The deficit is estimated to increase, reaching a record 17 million cubic meters by 2006. This could even be bigger, if non-wood substitutes were not encouraged. The discussions on domestic supply constraints is substantiated by the fact that the availability of domestic timber raw materials is declining over time, making India increasingly dependent on timber imports to meet the needs of its construction, furniture and paper industries. Since 9th Five year plan period, India almost tripled the imports of logs of all types from 1.1 million Cu.m in 1997 to 3.00 million Cu.m in 2005. Although import tariffs for timber products other than logs are comparatively high, demand even for tropical sawn wood is also increasing, albeit less rapidly.
3.2 Potential for Tropical Timber Products

The macro view of the wood demand, supply and deficit gives an overall idea of the Indian timber market potential for the foreign exporters. However, it is pertinent to also look at these aspects across dis-aggregated timber products, such as round wood, sawn wood, veneer and plywood, and across the end users of each category. Table 3.2: Import of Timber Products ('000 Cu.m)
Item/Year Round wood/logs Sawnwood Veneer Plywood 2001 2798 10 4 4 2002 3036 11 6 9 2003 3036 11 6 9 2004* 3325 33 6 5 2005* 3325 33 6 5 2010 (Projected) 6000 0 1 1
FAO 1998 Global projections Roundwood:

The major end use sectors, which use round wood, are (a) sawn wood (b) plywood, (c) veneer, (d) particleboard (e) Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF), and (f) builders joinery. The estimated import of round wood (thousand Cu.m) in India is expected to be 6,000, M3 by 2010. Export of Industrial round wood is expected to be negligible at 2000 Cu.m by 2010 (FAO, 1998). From the above table it can be seen that there is likely to be a quantum jump in the imports of industrial round wood. The policy initiatives taken by the Government of India such as reduction in import duty and bringing wood into Open General License (OGL) are stimulating the imports to the country. The fact that the import of round wood is equivalent to the import of Industrial round wood illustrates that firewood requirement within the country is met internally, mainly from fringe forests, farm forestry sector and trees outside the forests.
Sawnwood
The end use sectors identified to be using sawn wood are housing, construction, packaging, furniture, automobile, handicraft, catamaran and other miscellaneous industries.
The production, imports, exports and consumption of sawnwood are presented in Table 3.3 below. Table3.3: Sawn wood Production, Imports, Exports and Consumption (000 cu.m).
Production Year Quantity 1962 2014 1992 17460 2010 20934 1962 23 Imports 1992 5 2010 22 1962 1 Exports 1992 7 2010 0 Consumption 1962 2036 1992 17458 2010 20956
Source: FAO, 1997, WPNo.APFSOS/WP/12
From the above table it may be seen that the sawn wood imports and exports are likely to be negligible. Although, India will have sizeable increases in its sawn wood consumption, it is envisaged, as of now, that India will be self sufficient in supplying its hardwood lumber market. The self-sufficiency would be achieved through import of round wood logs (with import tariff of only 5% vis--vis 35% in case of sawn wood) which would be further converted into sawn wood. The scenario could change, if sawn wood levies are also reduced. The share of different sectors using sawn wood is presented in Table 2.23 below Table 3.4: Sawn wood End-Use Categories
Year 1998 1999 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 Housing 52 53 54 54 51 50 46 Packaging 17 16 16 15 15 14 14 Furniture 9 9 9 9 11 11 12 Automobile 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Handicraft 2 2 2 2 1 1 2 Catamaran 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Others 20 20 19 19 22 21 24 Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 100
Source: Study on Forest Industries, 1999
From the above table it can be seen that the major end use sectors of Sawn wood is housing, followed by packaging and furniture. There is hardly any secondary information regarding the consumption of tropical hardwood for sawn wood. So no inference can be drawn regarding the potential of Indian tropical sawn wood market. However, the findings of the survey undertaken in the 12 urban consumption centers shed some light in this respect. It is estimated that out of the total timber consumption for sawn wood, about 84 per cent is tropical hardwood, while the remaining volumes include tropical softwood and temperate hardwood. The survey reveals that there would be an increasing trend for use of sawn wood in future, particularly the tropical hardwood type. That itself might give a motivation for increased sawn wood imports, depending upon exporter strategies and price competitiveness.
Panel wood
Plywood, veneer, particleboard and MDF are the panel industries identified using wood. The most important users of panel wood are construction, furniture and packaging. The projected demand for plywood and veneer is given in Table 3.5 below.
Table 3.5: Projected Demand for Panel Wood (million Cu.m)

Year 2005 2010 2015 2020 Plywood 2.00 17.96 22.90 29.20 Veneer 0.30 0.43 0.54 0.70 Particle board 0.18 0.22 0.28 0.35 MDF 0.17 0.21 0.24 0.28 Total 14.69 18.82 23.96 30.53
Source: Study on Forest Industries, 1999, FAO 2005 report
In order to meet the increasing requirements, wood based panels in the country is expected to increase to over 30 million Cu.m by 2020, and plywood would account for more than 90 per cent of wood based panels. However, this demand would be met mostly from domestic sources and import being negligible, unless there is policy change for liberalization, since import of plywood currently attracts a high import tariff. The survey results have indicated that the plywood and veneer consumption in India is very limited, and local species are mainly used in the manufacture of plywood and veneer on account of price competitiveness.
Builders Joinery
No secondary source provides statistics for builders joinery. In the absence of any such secondary data, the results of the survey regarding builders joinery are noteworthy. The survey results show that the share of tropical hardwood species in builders joinery is around 92.5 per cent and the remaining share is mainly temperate hardwood. The use of tropical softwood is negligible in builders joinery.
3.3 Tropical Timber Products and its Competitiveness

Competitiveness of tropical timber versus others needs to be analyzed with respect to price, marginal cost, consumer preference and choice, and market structure. This para complements some of the inferences made earlier and draws upon the insights from the consumption survey findings. The positive current economic cycle and incentives have a favorable bearing on the competitiveness of tropical timber. The demand for tropical timber has accentuated through consumer confidence and strong housing demand supported by low interest rates and unprecedented availability of loans and mortgage facilities. Another important factor, which is driving the competitiveness of tropical timber, is its low total cost due to other factors like machining, maintenance, durability and damage. Some factors that influence the choice of tropical timber products among the middle income group were identified. These factors and their extent of influence are: Price and availability are the two most important factors that influence the choice of tropical timber products. Alternates and substitutes are relatively less important, though the situation could change in view of the readily available and cheaper competing products.
Indian consumers have always attached high value to tropical hardwoods, such as Teak. The demand for teak is likely to increase -particularly in cities like Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Calcutta, Ahmedabad and Mumbai compared to North Indian cities, such as Kanpur and Delhi, as can be seen from the results of the consumption survey undertaken. The survey conducted in Mumbai indicates that the Myanmar teak is the costliest one and is preferred only by the higher income groups. The middle and lower
income groups preferred Nigerian teak because of its price. There is a greater willingness to pay for higher priced tropical timber products than cheaper substitutes. Tropical and temperate softwoods were identified to be the preferred types mainly in the field of panel products. Temperate hardwoods were hardly seen as the serious competitor, though some preference has been noticed for their use in furniture and flooring in northern parts of the country. Tropical timbers imported by private domestic traders are likely to be price competitive vis--vis domestically produced tropical timber due to the higher transaction costs of the public sector undertakings (PSUs) which sell these domestic timber through their depots. Most of these PSUs are not in a good standing and they are not in a position to compete with the timber traders who import timber. High administrative costs, lack of appropriate management, over employment, political interference, and social unrest are some of the reasons for the unsatisfactory performance of these undertakings. The findings of survey of 12 consumption centers are summarized in the table below to give a synoptic view of the tropical timber product market in India. Table 3.6: Summary Results of the Survey of 12 Consumption Centres
Type Per 000 capita consumption (Cu.m) 2002-03 Industrial Round wood Sawn wood 27.8 27.4 84 Limited imports and largely local species Negligible imports 60 70 44.1 2012-13 51.1 Share of tropical timber (%)* 80 Domestic supply vs. imports (%)* 43 End use sectors
Saw mills, construction, other processed products Plywood, construction, and components, joinery veneer, furniture furniture builders
Plywood and veneer Builders Joinery
9.1
14.2
Mainly softwood 92.5
Furniture and furniture components Construction
11.8
11.2
Source: Consumption Survey Note: * The trend is likely to continue .The above table reveals that there is substantial market for tropical timber. This trend is likely to continue in the future. Domestic tropical timber availability will most likely remain suppressed, because of the limits to production potential augmented by the much needed moves of the Government of India towards conservation and preservation of forest areas. All that into consideration, the domestic supply of tropical timber shall remain restricted and there should be an increasing trend in the import of tropical timber, which indicates high potential for ITTO exporters.
There are two basic structures of distribution channel for tropical hardwood (which has a lions share in Indian domestic production and imports) and other types of timber in India. One relates to the imported timber logs and the other for domestic timber. The distribution channel of imported logs is shown schematically in the following figure.
3.4
Distribution Channel of Timber
Import at ports
Yards/ go downs
SawMills /Panel
Timber Traders /
Ind.
Wholesaler
Builders / Furniture manufacturer
Consumers
Retailers
Figure 3.1 Channels of Distribution of Imported Timber Logs The imported timber logs are transported from the port city to the consumption city either in the form of logs or in the form of sawn wood, depending upon distances, the end-use and the links between the specialized trader and the constructor, which could be one and the same in several instances. From the importers, nevertheless, the logs are usually purchased by the timber traders who normally own the sawmills and sell the sawn wood to different users for house construction (builders joinery, door frames and window frames), furniture manufacturers and retailers. The timber logs are also traded to the plywood, veneer, particle board and fiberboard manufacturers. Very often the importers themselves saw the timber. The cost generally increases by 10-12% from importer to consumer. The importers encourage consumers to buy directly from them, so that the consumers can have a choice and credit facilities, on the one hand, and the importer can obtain a bigger profit margin, on the other hand. This creates a simple win-win environment. This phenomenon is marked in Chennai, but not at all the import ports. Regarding plywood, the general trend is that the importers import logs and make plywood of their own trade mark and do not sell logs to others who make plywood or veneer. Distribution channel of domestic timbers is relatively short where timber may go directly to the consumers or across an abbreviated supply chain through wholesalers and saw millers as shown in the figure below.
Forest auction / private plantation
Saw mills /panel industries
Timber Traders
Builders / Furniture manufacturer
Consumers
Retailers
Figure 3.2 Channels of Distribution of Domestic Timber
The new marketing strategies such as direct home delivery, supermarket sales, either of finished products or assembly parts thereof have also resulted in the shortening of the supply chain. But this is still in at a very small scale in the case of timber products. Facilitation of distribution from supplier and importer through to consumer enhances the choice in favor of timber that reaches the retailer and consumer in a less convoluted manner with lower cost and quickly enough. So far limited attention has been paid to these aspects and there is considerable scope for shortening the supply chain and improving the distribution system. This is particularly relevant to imported timber, for which traders have yet to coordinate countrywide and to organize the marketing channels and concomitant economic information.
4.0 TROPICAL TIMBER TRADE AND TARIFFS

India is one of the major users of wood in the Asia-Pacific region and domestically produced several tropical hardwood species, including valuable teak and rosewood was sufficient to meet the local demands. The situation has changed and, as highlighted in the last section, there is a growing gap between demand and supply of timber. That is largely on account of the increasing requirement for construction and other timber products due to an expanding population, rising standards of living, and fluent supply no more exist due to rapid deforestation and due to various constrains imposed by the Government for trading of wild life products. The gap created in the demand and supply of the timber has resulted in increasing use of plantation timbers and trees outside forests for various applications, but with limitations, such as of suitability for several end use categories. In view of the above and responding to the situation, and as a major policy initiative, the Government of India has permitted import of wood under the Open General License since 1996 with a view to ease out the wood shortage as also to reduce pressure on natural forests. This decision came in the wake of an historical judgment of the Apex Court of India arguing the need for conservation of forests for much needed environmental services and local community benefits. Impact of various tariff and non-tariff measures that have a bearing on international trade in wood and wood products in the country is discussed here.
4.1 Trade Policy Mechanism

Import/export of timber in India mainly takes place through sea ports. Indias international trading regulations, reflected in the Export Import (EXIM) Policy, are formulated and implemented by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in consultation with several other ministries including Agriculture, Environment and Forests, Finance, Shipping and the Reserve Bank of India.
4.1.1 Role of Various Departments in Implementation of EXIM Policy:

The Ministry of Finance is responsible for fixing import duties and other border and internal taxes. The Reserve Bank of India manages the exchange rate policy and also regulates interest rates, for instance, for pre- and post-shipment export credit. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade is responsible for the execution of the Export Import Policy. The Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCIS) is the agency responsible for the collection, compilation and dissemination of trade statistics.
The Commerce Department is also advised by the Trade and the Export Promotion Board (EPB), which facilitates continuous dialogue between the Government and industry regarding major trade developments. The EPB coordinates the work of all ministries in charge of promoting exports and facilitating trade. The Department of Commerce also has regular consultations with trade and industry groups, such as the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce (FICCI), and the Associated Chambers of Commerce (ASSOCHAM). Created in 1998, the Prime Minister's Council on Trade and Industry also serves as a forum for the Government to discuss trade and economic reforms with the business community. Ministry of shipping is responsible for physical import/export through sea ports of India.
4.2
Tariff Policy:
The customs tariff continues to be the main instrument of trade policy of India. An autonomous Tariff Commission under the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion advises the Government regarding tariffs and all tariff-related issues, taking into account the interest of various sectors including producers, traders and consumers as well as India's international commitments. The Commission also looks into the matters relating to tariff rationalization. The Planning Commission also sets up task forces to conduct independent reviews of various policies including trade and traderelated policies; the review reports are often published, though belatedly in many cases.
4.3
Indian Trade in Contest to International and Regional Trade Regulations
Indian trade always has a well-regulated, rule-based multilateral trading system. India was a member of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) since its inception (i.e. after World War II) and is one of the founding members of the World Trade Organization (WTO). An objective of GATT was to pursue the goal of free trade with a view to encourage economic growth of member countries. It is said to have helped in creating a strong and prosperous international trading system by bringing down tariff levels and encouraging multilateral negotiation of trade issues. The 8th round of GATT negotiations, known as Uruguay Round, launched in Punta del Este, Uruguay in September 1986 and concluded in 1994, went well beyond the area of international trade and encompassed issues like Intellectual Property Rights, agriculture, investment, and service sectors. At the conclusion of the round, 134 member states agreed to the creation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) for the implementation and common servicing of all the previous GATT accords. WTO is a permanent multilateral organization created by GATT treaty which was ratified by the member governments in Marrakesh in 1994. The Uruguay Round has a number of important implications for trade in wood and wood products: Reduction in overall tariff rates and escalation and the establishment of bound through Market Access Schedules by each member country rates. India considers that the multilateral trading system had been designed to deal with issues involving trade alone. Thus, attempts aimed at including environmental issues in future negotiations went beyond the competence of the multilateral trading system, while labor related issues belonged to the International Labor Organization.
4.4 Tariff and Non-Tariff Measures:

Tariff -the duty on imports imposed by the importing country has a major impact on imports. The most common non-tariff measures having a direct impact on imports
include quantitative restrictions, quality controls or technical barriers to trade such as standards, certification, rules of origin, and procedures for imports.
4.4.1 Tariffs
The Indian customs tariff is the main instrument of trade policy and for regulating imports. Since the early 1990s, India has moved gradually away from a strategy of industrialization through import-substitution and public sector production to a more open, market oriented trade and investment regime. Nevertheless, policies continue to shield some domestic producers from foreign competition. Table 4.1: Import Value of Wood and Major Wood Products (million US$)
Year 1996-97 2001-02 2004-05 Annual Growth Rate 199296 Item Logs Sawn wood Plywood & Veneer sheets 246.68 7.94 10.60 Million US $ 509.78 13.01 7.37 802.19 16.70 9.60 Percent 18 26 104 Annual Growth Rate 19962002 Percent 21.33 12.78 - 6.10 Annual Growth Rate 20022005 Percent
19.12% 09.45% 10.08%
It is seen that import of log has been increased from 93 % to 96 % from1996 to 2001-02 and the trend has remained more or less constant till 2004-05. The import increase is attributed to reduction in tariff but no such inference can be drawn in respect of sawn wood & plywood. Increase in import of wood logs from 1996-97 onwards is partly due to gradually stricter restrictions on scientific management of natural forests based on the sound principles of sustained yield which has culminated in drastic reduction of tree felling in such forests causing acute shortage of prime quality hard wood required by the major wood processing industries. On the one hand, this has led to increased use of rapid growth plantation timbers characterized by low girth, low natural durability which can be greatly enhanced with appropriate chemical treatment, and low dimensional stability. On the other hand, this has resulted in increasing import of prime tropical hard wood species. With the growth of plywood/block board industry based on plantation timber for core using face veneers from imported timber, the import of wood logs has been steady. This trend is likely to continue, year-to-year. The present tariff is lower than the bound rate of duty as agreed by India consequent to the Uruguay Round of negotiations under the WTO. Hence this imparts a degree of uncertainty due to the scope to raise applied MFN rates, although in the recent years there has been gradual reduction in the applied tariff in respect of all wood and wood based products.
4.4.2 Non-Tariff Barriers

Although tariff continues to be the main regulator of import to India, certain nontariff measures are gaining importance that may become more significant in future. These include Customs procedures - valuation, clearance and financial procedures;
Standards, Quality controls and Certification; Phyto-sanitation, and wood substitution. Some of these are becoming important for negotiations under WTO.
4.5. Standards and Quality Control Standards

The Bureau of Indian Standards, the national standards body of India, has been designated as the WTO-TBT Enquiry Point, while the Ministry of Commerce is responsible for implementing and administering the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade. India accepted the Code of Good Practice on 19 December 1995. Indian standards are formulated by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), which was established as a statutory body under the Bureau of Standards Act, 1986; the BIS had developed large number of standards, including those on wood and wood products. These are generally voluntary standards, as is the case of all wood and wood product standards. In order to ensure their continued relevance, Indian standards are reviewed as and when considered necessary, but at least once every five years. As a matter of policy, the BIS endeavors to align Indian standards as far as possible with international standards. The BIS, which was a founder member of the International Standards Organization (ISO), continues to participate in technical and policymaking committees of the ISO, and the International Electro-technical Commission (IEC).
4.5.1 Certification
Indian and foreign manufacturers who meet a BIS standard may carry the BIS Certification Mark. The BIS Certification mark in respect of wood products is voluntary. The BIS has a scheme under which the imported products may be certified for conformity to Indian Standards. Samples from consignments are required to be tested at BIS recognized laboratories for conformity to the relevant standards. Voluntary certificates are also issued for environmentally friendly products (Ecomark), environmental management systems, quality systems, and hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP). As of now no wood product, either domestic or imported, carries or is required to carry any ecomark.
4.6
Exports
India does not have any export duties and encourages exports for which it also grants several concessions to the exporters. These concessions are in the nature of exemptions on income tax, and refund of imports duty if exported goods are processed from imported raw materials. Since timber products comprise a very small, almost a negligible, proportion of total exports, there are no serious efforts for their promotion. However, India holds a great potential for enhancing the exports not only of designer furniture and wood-work of rose wood, shisham, walnut and sandal but also in respect of plywood, panels and other materials, drawing upon the scope to use quality imported tropical timbers. India has imposed complete ban on export of logs but not on exports of wood based panel products and secondary processed wood products (SPWP) comprising of wooden furniture, builders joinery, table and kitchenware and inlaid wood works. Export values of these products since 1996-97 shows the increasing trend in respect of SPWP, notwithstanding the present low volumes in absolute terms. The decreasing trend in respect of panel products appear to coincide with the changing structure of the plywood industry in the country with the closure of practically all large and medium scale industries and opening up of large number of plywood manufacturing units in the small scale sector based primarily upon plantation grown timber, including poplar in the north India and rubber wood in the southern India. However, considering that there is a vast resource of plantation grown trees and agro residues the industry is seemingly in a
comparatively advantageous position due to availability of sizable pool of skilled and semi-skilled workers, this trend could be reversed with Government support through an enabling policy environment for utilization of plantation timber and imported tropical timber, modernization of plants, research and development, and export promotion. Evolving a revival plan for a sizeable idle infrastructure in the form of closed plywood factories in the northeastern states, particularly in the state of Assam, comprising of relocation of some of the plants and machinery to other suitable places and/or their reopening appears to be an option worth exploring drawing upon wood from diverse sources along with other lignocelluloses raw material, such as bamboo, which is abundantly available in the Northeast.
4.7 Conclusion:
From the comments of various stakeholders consulted and contacted and from the various studies, reports, it is evident that India has ample scope for consumption of timber and timber products. Their consumption is likely to grow at greater rate due to population growth, rising living standards and environmental awareness, among other reasons continues to be the most preferred material and the preferences are not likely to change in favor of alternate materials, except for temporary switch over to fashion products by the elite groups. Consequently, demand of the industry for imported tropical timber is bound to increase further, given the current favorable environment for the same. There is need for strategic studies and interventions, e.g. Study the nature of wood substitution in key consumption areas, e.g., housing and furniture, and its impact on the environment, which has been a major driver for such substitution in the national policy Prepare a strategic plan for boosting timber trade and wood processing, including the Plywood and panel industry, to enhance export quality material, using plantation grown domestic timber in combination with larger quantities of imported tropical hard woods. Study the impact of escalatory tariff on wood trade and industry and suggest a package for strengthening its competitiveness in the international market for secondary wood processed exports, while promoting an easier access for the import of tropical round wood as well as sawn wood, which are among the preferred items of domestic consumption and value-added re-exports Study wood wastage in conversion and carpentry and evaluate the potential of mandatory standards and standardization of consumer products, viz., door and window frame and shutters, in order to minimize substitution by energy intensive substitutes, such as aluminum and steel, which pose a threat to the timber market Provide easy access to timber market intelligence in a transparent and timely manner, the lack of which is a major barrier for tropical timber trade and marketing in and across the country. Such statistics and economic information are also required to minimize and mitigate the volatility of the timber trade that it could otherwise suffer from and act as a non-tariff barrier Make an in-depth evaluation of the prevailing perceptions about other non-tariff barriers, particularly about financial transactions, shipping and smooth customs clearance, and recommend monitoring measures for ensuring cost-effective trading environment Draw upon the evolving national policies and procedures for increased trade and market liberalization for promoting intra- and interregional international timber trade.
PART B RULES AND REGULATIONS TO ENHANCE ACCESS TO AND ENSURE IMPORT (AND EXPORT) OF SUSTANABLE PRODUCED TROPICAL TIMBER; UTILISATION AND QUALITY EXPERIENCE
1. INTRODUCTION:
Drawing upon primary and secondary data, this study reveals an increasing consumption trend of timber and timber products. Tropical timber trade in India mainly import, has increased in manifold during past 5 years. Round wood / logs form the major part of the trade quantifying about 90 % of the total wood production and consumption. Figures of the year 2005 shows that, production of tropical round wood is 13.5 Million M3, where as the consumption is 16.54 Million M3. The gap between the production vis-vis consumption of round wood is more than 3.00 Million M3 which is being narrowed by importing round wood from outside. As per the ITTO Objective 2000 the tropical timber trade shall be promoted through the sustainable developed forest. India being the major player in the trade of tropical timber in ITTO countries, it is essential to encourage and assist to identify and address constraints in its implementation of sustainable forest management and the sustainable development of the forest industry in India. The above trend should continue in the foreseeable future, buttressed by fastpaced urbanization, increasing number of households in middle and upper income groups, and lucrative housing schemes available in the market. All together, the scenario offers good medium to long term prospects for imported tropical timber in order to bridge the growing gap between demand and domestic supply for the preferred tropical hardwoods.
2.
STUDY OF INDIAN REGULATIONS
MARKET
VIS--VIS
RULES
AND
While there is not much study and illustrations available as on date on specific rules and regulations which are made in force which can be studied upon to see the pros and cons to enhance access of the trade of timber, the broader perspective to promote and enhance access the trade should be to overview and look into the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats of Indian Timber market, which are analyzed as under. The production, consumption, imports/export of the tropical timber and timber products is studied from the point of view of the trade mechanism in line with the sustainable managed forest. Strengths of Indian Timber market lies in following: Traditional and continuing consumer preference for tropical hardwoods Inherent timber and timber product competitiveness especially of durable and easily machineable tropical hardwoods versus high energy consuming alternates in a country with chronic power shortage and lack of fossil fuel reserves. Recently rising trends of tropical timber imports to bridge the growing gap between demand and supply
Weaknesses of timber market: Lack of timber market intelligence and economic information, untimely and unreliable sector statistical system, data disparities and apparent lack of transparency Unorganized timber market, industry and trade Disperse distribution channels and instances of high intermediary costs Trade barriers perceived and otherwise, especially non-tariff constraining smooth and economically efficient international trade barriers
Lack of market diversification and limited secondary wood processing for exports
Opportunities: Unprecedented -ongoing and projected- growth of the economy, urbanization, housing, construction, and middle and upper-middle income groups Market and trade liberalization, increasing foreign exchange reserves, innovative investment and incentives for value-added exports and re-exports, including secondary processed wood products -with timber having been placed under OGL Recently available mortgages, loans and facilities for housing starts, including those for lower and middle income nuclear families Rising awareness and possible policy shifts in favor of green economics and even more stringent conservation of natural forests and controlled harvesting of TOF Increased timber and related renewable resource utilization rather than energy intensive and polluting products, which timber can substitute on a sustainable basis, especially if supplies are derived from tropical countries assuring reasonable eco-labeling, competitive pricing and sustainable supplies Increasing access to tropical timber producers within and outside the ASEAN region, with scope for widened outsourcing, joint ventures and bargaining for prices, specific timber types and categories
Threats identified to the Indian Timber trade: Leveraging of the housing, construction, furniture and other traditional tropical timber market by better organized alternate industry producers of substitutes and concomitant consumer taste shifts through targeted market promotion Lack of timber trading agreements with exporters to ensure sustained supplies to meet domestic deficit, high tariffs on sawn wood and other timber products that exporters may increasingly prefer to produce, and non-tariff barriers and high transaction costs, thereby diverting organized exporters to other rising markets Risk of downward spiraling of tropical timber imports and consumption as a result of an apparent or real reduction in imports in a particular period -either due to data inconsistencies or fluctuations in international timber trading and other transient factors, especially if left unmitigated and unexplained among traders, dealers, retailers and constructors Continued constraints for promoting tropical timber trade and use, viz., lack of consistent economic information, market intelligence, timely and transparent statistics
There is space and scope for converting the current weaknesses and potential challenges into outstanding opportunities that India offers for tropical timber trade and marketing. This essentially requires measures and means to organize the timber industry, to build multi-stakeholder partnerships and alliances, to raise awareness about the comparative advantage and environmental appropriateness of wood and wood
products, and to enhance and draw upon their inherent competitiveness in the market. None of that can be attained unless there is readily accessible and reliable economic information, market intelligence and a fully functioning forest sector statistical system. This calls for priority attention to pre-empt the threats and prevent missing a golden opportunity for the sectors sustainable growth, transient volatility of trade notwithstanding. The issue of physical restriction in the supply of tropical woods has been given due priority in the Tenth Five-Year National Development Plan 2002-07. The Government of India has formulated a National Forestry Action Plan (NFAP) to increase the forest/tree cover to 33 per cent of the geographical area of the country and also for sustainable development of forests (NFAP, 1999). The national Planning Commission has set the target of 25 per cent to be achieved by 2007 and the goal of 33 per cent to be achieved by 2012 (the end of Eleventh Plan). Investment requirements for next twenty years to bring 33% land under forest cover, including afforestation of both forest and non-forest lands, are to the tune of Rs. 53,000 millions, far removed from current budgetary allocations for the purpose. It has been proposed to improve forest productivity over 31 m. ha and plantations are to be raised over 29 m.ha at the rate of 3 m.ha per year. This can be achieved by making improvements, amendment/addendum to the rules and regulation in following areas: 1. Academic/Institutional fields: Supportive institutional mechanisms are required to be developed to give fillip and legitimacy to the efforts of Government organizations, PSUs and NGOs. Institute, a national timber trade association or equivalent organization, independently or in association with other trade, commerce and industry federations and institutions, with initial assistance from the Government and/or ITTO, shall be established for an appropriate timber trade and market information and promotion mechanism, including a periodic timber bulletin. The Forest survey of India needs to be assigned the task of periodically undertaking detailed remote sensing of the forest areas and tree cover to assess qualitative and quantitative changes, including extent of invasion of exotics and changes in the type of tree/forest cover. The working of the Indian Institute of Forest Management should be reviewed and the curricula of various courses being organized by the Institute should be suitably modified. The Institute of Forest Management should publicize its achievements and strengths in the field of forest management, education and training, to improve its image and attract consultancies and projects. The Indian Plywood Industries Research and Training Institute must have a detailed vision paper for the next 20 years. The Institute must have constant interaction with industries and other stakeholders for deciding research priorities and other activities to be taken up. Adequate grants-inaid should be made available to carry on with research and extension activities and for facilitating the work of the institute. Single Window concept shall be adopted and a Institute shall be given responsibility for adoption of Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable Management of Natural Tropical Forests by ITTO for preparation of statistical data and reporting to ITTO. Proper auditing mechanism shall be developed. Proper training shall be given to all concerned regarding implementation of various programs regarding maintaining statistical data base and timber
trading through sustainable developed forests. Arranging work shops/ seminars etc. can further improve the attitude of the officials involved in these activities. 2. Initiatives/improvements from Government of India: The national Planning Commission has set the target of 25 per cent to be achieved by 2007 and the goal of 33 per cent to be achieved by 2012 (the end of Eleventh Plan). Investment requirements for next twenty years to bring 33% land under forest cover, including afforestation of both forest and non-forest lands, are to the tune of Rs. 53,000 millions, far removed from current budgetary allocations for the purpose. It has been proposed to improve forest productivity over 31 m. ha and plantations are to be raised over 29 m.ha at the rate of 3 m.ha per year. To achieve these ambitious targets outlined in NFAP and Tenth Plan the allocation to the forestry sector must be increased, both in central and State budgets, and must not be less than 2.5% of the total Plan outlay. The policies of both the Central and State Governments are also imposing restrictions on the domestic supply of timber. One such example is the absence of policy commitment of State Governments regarding lifting of land ceiling for plantation purposes. This acts as a limiting factor for increasing the supply of wood to meet the growing demands of various end use sectors and needs review. Actual ground level survey with the help of GIS technology to identify large tracts of wastelands is yet to commence and the policy shift to involve private industry in degraded forest areas is yet to take place. Action in this regard should be initiated at the earliest. One of the populist decisions like ban on green felling in several States has adversely affected the supply of wood to meet the local needs. Such decisions should be backed by some alternative arrangements. Policies in this regard may be formulated. The Supreme Court of India has categorically stated that the forests should not be worked without approved management plans. In the absence of Management Plans for a major part of the forests in the country, the supply from natural forests with sustainable harvest is unlikely to increase in the immediate future. Preparation, approval and implementation of the Forest Management Plan are the first need of the hour. Establishment of a forum for periodic discussion between Ministry of Environment and Forest, Ministry of Industry and Commerce and recognized associations of wood-based industries, to review and evolve a rational import export policy and review tariff rates keeping in view local demand, supply and market conditions, would be useful. It is necessary to assess the demand and supply scenario of forest products, including exports and imports, to make projections for 2020 A.D. and to suggest strategies to bridge the gap between demand and supply of raw material for forest based industries. The distribution channel of imported logs sometimes gets distorted because of logistics and procedural problems faced by the importers. In ports, the importers are required to invest much time and effort to get their papers cleared fast enough. The delay in processing of papers increase the handling costs and the importers are also charged rent for godowns, if they are unable to lift their timber immediately. Container availability and warehousing facilities are yet to be developed at most of
the ports and hubs. Some of the importers in Chennai have indicated that they would prefer to import the timber from distant Tuticorin and then transport it by road to Chennai even though they can import the timber directly through the Chennai port for local consumption. They favor the Tuticorin distribution channel in view of higher handling charges at Chennai and also due to the ease in processing of papers at the Tuticorin port. Cargo clearing procedures at the sea ports shall be reviewed with respect to such constrains and the same shall be addressed at appropriate level. Environmental and trade restrictions on production and exports in developed countries that affect international trade patterns. Developed countries are also beginning to employ a variety of environmental regulations in their forest industries both alone and in conjunction with export restrictions that may have significant trade implications like Quantitative restrictions on imports of "unsustainably produced" timber products and use of "eco-labeling and "green certification. Many developed countries are also under pressure to adopt quantitative restrictions to limit the import of "unsustainably" produced forest products or to impose countervailing duties on imported products that benefit from an environmental export subsidy, i.e., unsustainable forest management that leads to lower harvesting costs and thus lower export product prices. India should decide to impose such conditions on import of wood and wood products to promote sustainable growth of forest. Indian wood and wood products industry is domestically oriented, highly fragmented and unorganized. Ply wood industry in India is relatively better organized than sawn mill sector. Efforts should be made in the harmonizing the various aspects of the industry. Modernization of the statistical system can lead to the systematic and organized trade and records in this regard. Reduction in tariff and non-tariff barriers for fascinating import of timber and timber products and its market diversification. Development/promotion of Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in the timber trade shall be taken up to reduce labour, law etc. related constrains. Preferences shall be given to the Private Sector participation in the areas like sustainable forest management, environmental monitoring, development of statistical database etc. Latest concept of Public Private Participation (PPP) should be studied for adopting in these fields for implementation. Efforts shall be made to make the tropical timber trade transparent by promoting processing of tropical timber from sustainable sources. A certification mechanism shall be adopted to confirm the timber trade is from sustainable managed forest.
PART C VALUE ADDITION OF TIMBER & UTILISATION

1. INTRODUCTION
India being a tropical country, bulk of the domestic timber is from tropical hardwood species. Over the centuries, Indian consumers have therefore developed a liking for tropical hardwoods. In India timber is mainly used for industrial purpose and domestic uses including firewood. From ancient time timber is being used for multipurpose uses such as fuel, construction works, furniture, decorative items etc. In the modern concept, value addition of Timber is in two ways, Direct and Indirect. Direct value addition is in the terms of wood products including fuel, construction works, furniture, decorative items made up from sawn wood, plywood, fiber boards, particle boards etc. Indirect value addition can be attributed from growing of trees which will result in maintenance of environmental balance. This can also be called as pre timber value addition.
2. DIRECT VALUE ADDITION OF TIMBER:

The direct value addition of timber is mainly Plywood, Sawn wood, Veneer, fiber boards, pulp and Secondary Processed wood Products (SPWP) SPWP mainly contain: Wooden furniture and parts Builders woodwork- joinery and carpentry Moldings Cane and bamboo furniture Other SPWP like packing, cable drums, pallets, wood products for domestic/ decorative purpose
In India greater preference for tropical hardwood products vis--vis temperate hardwoods is given. The attributes of tropical hardwood for which the consumer preference is higher are: Technical Appearance Colour & Consistency Durability Machinability & multifunctional Gluing/fix times and Dimensional stability.
Supply/Market Structure Reliable supplies Regular supplies and supply mix Short and site delivery, Market choices, Locational advantage, Informal transactions and schedules
Specifications/quality Right sizes, and still more scope, Dimensional accuracy,
Moisture content, Quality/grade consistency, Low waste & low energy input, Availability of value-added products
Cost/price Price competitiveness, Price stability, Willingness to discount Freight costs, though not always, Efficient Currency of transaction, Easy mortgages & credit terms
2.1 Distribution Channels

The structure of the distribution systems available in a country is affected by the level of economic development, the disposable income of consumers and the quality of the infrastructure. It is also linked to social and environmental factors such as culture, physical environment and legal and political system. The channel should be such that various timber products are cost effectively and efficiently transported from production and processing centers or from importing ports to the constructors and consumers. Before analyzing the timber value addition, it is essential to see initially the material flows by which round wood gets converted into various end use products like veneer, plywood, sawn wood, pulp and other products. The following figure depicts the most common material flow observed in the
ROUND WOOD
FUEL WOOD &CHARCOAL
INDUSTRIAL ROUND WOOD
PULP & OTHER
VEENER & PLY
SAWN WOOD
PARTICLE BOARD
FIBER BOARD
FURNITURE &
BUILDERS
COMPONANT
JOINERY
Figure 2.1 Wood /Timber Material Flows The above chart reveals that a part of round wood is used as fuel wood and charcoal in fact a very large part and often locally. The other part is industrial round wood, which does get transported over some distances, but often passes through small shipments for conversion by small and medium sawmilling industry. That is because the major users of industrial round wood include sawn wood, besides veneer, plywood, pulp, particleboard and fiberboard, many of whom draw on Timber from other than forest TOF. Furniture and furniture component sector uses sawn wood and veneer and
plywood. Sawn wood has a demand in the builders joinery and construction sector as well and is generally transported by trucks to construction sites, often adding significantly to the cost of raw material, for want of processing facilities, such as for joinery. Distribution channels reflect the value addition as one goes along the channel from the producer and importer through to the consumer. Value addition takes place when the logs are converted initially to sawn wood, which gets converted to furniture, builders joinery, door frames, window frames and other products.
This diagram shows the relationship between industrial processing and value addition. A logical consequence confirms that primary industries should perform as a supply and service industry to the domestic and export oriented secondary processing industry.
2.2
Value Added Products of Tropical Timber
Overall Projections for various timber value added products in contest with Indian trade is as under: Table 2.1: Global Forest Products Model Projections to 2010 ('000 Cu.m)
Projections 2010 Sawn wood Wood-based panels Veneer sheets and plywood Particle board Fibreboard Consumption 22200 624 515 39 70 Production 22200 641 521 39 7
2.2.1 Sawnwood
The end use sectors identified to be using sawn wood are housing, construction, packaging, furniture, automobile, handicraft, catamaran and other miscellaneous industries. The production, imports, exports and consumption of sawn wood are presented in Table 2.2 below. Table 2.2: Sawn wood Production, Imports, Exports and Consumption (000 cu.m)
Production Year Quantity 1992 17460 2005 6000 2010 22000 1992 5 Imports 2005 33 2010 0 1992 7 Exports 2005 1 2010 0 Consumption 1992 17458 2005 5800 2010 22200
From the above table it may be seen that the sawn wood imports and exports are likely to be negligible. Although, India will have sizeable increases in its sawn wood consumption, it is envisaged, as of now, that India will be self sufficient in supplying its hardwood lumber market. The self-sufficiency would be achieved through import of round wood logs (with import tariff of only 5% vis--vis 35% in case of sawn wood) which would be further converted into sawn wood. The scenario could change, if sawn wood levies are also reduced. The share of different sectors using sawn wood is presented in Table 2.3 below
Table 2.3: Sawn wood End-Use Categories

Year 2005 2010 2015 2020 Housing 54 51 50 46 Packaging 15 15 14 14 Furniture 9 11 11 12 Automobile 1 1 1 1 Handicraft 2 1 1 2 Catamaran 0 0 0 0 Others 19 22 21 24 Total 100 100 100 100
Source: Study on Forest Industries, 1999
From the above table it can be seen that the major end use sectors of Sawn wood is housing, followed by packaging and furniture. There is hardly any secondary information regarding the consumption of tropical hardwood for sawn wood. So no inference can be drawn regarding the potential of Indian tropical sawn wood market. It is estimated that out of the total timber consumption for sawn wood, about 84 per cent is tropical hardwood, while the remaining volumes include tropical softwood and temperate hardwood. There would be an increasing trend for use of sawn wood in future, particularly the tropical hardwood type.
2.2.2 Panel wood

Plywood, veneer, particleboard and MDF are the panel industries identified using wood. The most important users of panel wood are construction, furniture and packaging.
Import/export trend of panel wood

Table 2.4: Import and Export of Timber Products ('000 Cu.m)
Item /Year Veneer Plywood 2001 Import Export 2 17 1 64 2002 Import 4 10 Export 1 59 2003 Import Export 4 4 1 61 2004* Import 6 9 Export 7 34 2005* Import Export 6 9 5 34
The projected demand for plywood and veneer is given in Table 2.5 below. Table 2.5: Projected Demand for Panel Wood (million Cu.m)
Year 2005 2010 2015 2020 Plywood 2.00 17.96 22.90 29.20 Veneer 0.30 0.43 0.54 0.70 Particle board 0.18 0.22 0.28 0.35 MDF 0.17 0.21 0.24 0.28 Total 14.69 18.82 23.96 30.53
Source: Study on Forest Industries, 1999, FAO 2005 report
In order to meet the increasing requirements, wood based panels in the country is expected to increase to over 30 million Cu.m by 2020, and plywood would account for more than 90 per cent of wood based panels. However, this demand would be met mostly from domestic sources and import being negligible, unless there is policy change for liberalization, since import of plywood currently attracts a high import tariff. The survey results have indicated that the plywood and veneer consumption in India is very limited, and local species are mainly used in the manufacture of plywood and veneer on account of price competitiveness.
2.2.3
Builders Joinery
No secondary source provides statistics for builders joinery. In the absence of any such secondary data, the results of the survey regarding builders joinery are noteworthy. The survey results show that the share of tropical hardwood species in builders joinery is around 92.5 per cent and the remaining share is mainly temperate hardwood. The use of tropical softwood is negligible in builders joinery.
Secondary Processed Wood Products

SPWP imports of ITTO producer countries grew by 11% between 2000 to 2004 helped by import increases of 159 % in India. India is one of the significant importers of SPWP in ITTO producer countries. India holds a great potential for enhancing the exports of Secondary Processed Wood Products designer furniture and wood-work of rose wood, shisham, walnut and sandal but also in respect of, panels and other materials, drawing upon the scope to use quality imported tropical timbers. India has imposed complete ban on export of logs but not on exports of wood based panel products and secondary processed wood products (SPWP) comprising of wooden furniture, builders joinery, table and kitchenware and inlaid wood works. Export values of these products since 1996-97 shows the increasing trend in respect of SPWP, notwithstanding the present low volumes in absolute terms.
Trend of Indian SPWP Import/Export is as under: Table 2.6: Import and export of spwp (1000 $)
Item/Year Import Global ITTO Export Global ITTO 2000 21321 18990 192181 173259 2001 28663 24548 201812 182399 2002 29614 24694 225627 207710 2003 43547 37186 292673 270072 2004 55133 46041 340665 318868
However, India holds a great potential for enhancing the exports not only of designer furniture and wood-work of rose wood, shisham, walnut and sandal but also in respect of plywood, panels and other materials, drawing upon the scope to use quality imported tropical timbers. Export values of these products are given in Table 2.6 which reveals the increasing trend in respect of SPWP, notwithstanding the present low volumes in absolute terms. The decreasing trend in respect of panel products appear to coincide with the changing structure of the plywood industry in the country with the closure of practically all large and medium scale industries and opening up of large number of plywood manufacturing units in the small scale sector based primarily upon plantation grown timber, including poplar in the north India and rubber wood in the southern India.
PART- D CASE STUDY IN MAHARASHTRA AND GUJARAT ABOUT CURRENT TIMBER USE AND TRENDS
1. INTRODUCTION:
Maharashtra and Gujarat are the two most advanced and economically strong states of India. Both states put together have a consumption of about 1.29 Million M3 of Timber at present and is expected to grow by at least 30% by next 5 years. Maharashtra and Gujarat ports handle more than 70% of total imports in India, 50 % of which takes place in Kandla port only. Kandla port is supposed to be the hub port for supplying imported timber to the Northern, Western and even the central Indian consumption centers. The timber is mainly imported in the form of logs as break bulk and through containers. The major consumption centers for imported timber in these two states include Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat, Vadodara, Pune, Mumbai, Nagpur. Table1: Trends in timber import at Kandla and Mumbai Port (all Species)
Million M3 (lakhs) Year 1997-98 1999-00' 2001-02 2002-03 2005-06 Kandla Port 0.85 1.25 1.34 1.50 1.60 Mumbai Port 0.4 0.43 0.43 0.45 0.48
Source: Kandla and Mumbai Timber Association
The timber imports at Kandla and Mumbai are mainly in the form of logs which are converted into sawn wood at different sawing centers like Gandhidham (near Kandla port in Gujarat), Nagpur, New Delhi, Mumbai, Agra etc. From these places the sawn wood is transported to the major consumption centers. The Channels of Distribution are classified on the basis of the number and type of sourcing in that consumption centre and is as under: Category city 1: The consumption centre receives supply of imported timber directly from Kandla only. Category 2: The consumption centre receives the supply of imported timber from another. The consumption centre and not from Kandla directly. Category 3: The consumption centre receives supply of imported timber directly from Kandla as well as from another consumption centre.
RAPID REVIEW OF THE TROPICAL TIMBER CONSUMPTION IN THE FOUR MAJOR CITIES OF MAHARASHTRA AND GUJRAT VIZ. MUMBAI, PUNE, SURAT AND AHMENDABAD
Rapid review of the tropical timber consumption in the four major cities of Maharashtra and Gujrat Viz. Mumbai, Pune, Surat and Ahmendabad has been recently taken for the sake of this study and the observations of the same is as under:
2.1
End-Use Distribution Trends of Tropical Timber Products in MUMBAI

The end-use distribution of tropical timber in Mumbai is mainly for Builders Joinery and Woodworking, Construction and Furniture & Furniture components. Use of timber for flooring purpose in these two states is almost negligible. Though some very rich class of people and in some commercial offices, the use timber for flooring purpose takes place but by and large is almost negligible. The most commonly used timber product for end-use is sawn wood followed by plywood (including Veneer) and some use of builders joinery in construction. The end-use consumption for these uses of timber is available in total quantity of sawn wood and plywood but the exact bifurcated data for product-wise (Logs, Sawnwood, Veneer, Plywood and Builders joinery) end-use is not available. The consumption figure for the end-uses Builders Joinery & Woodwork, Construction and Furniture & Furniture components for the year 2005-06 are 0.20 Mn Cu.m, 0.08 Mn Cu.m and 0.2 Mn Cu.m, respectively. There was no data found for end-use flooring in Mumbai. The end-use of builders joinery is primarily in construction but the Woodworking, which included in the builders joinery, is also used in furniture & furniture components. However the segregated data of Builders Joinery & Woodworking in the two end-uses of Construction and furniture could not be made available in this random survey. Similarly the segregated data for use of different types of timber products in separate end-uses are also not available however the total timber used in each end-use is available. Therefore, there is a possibility of overlapping of the quantity of timber in the use of different timber products in each end-use, which has to be avoided in the consumption data compilation. End-use of tropical Timber for Builders Joinery The end-use of builders joinery is in the construction sector, which is booming in Mumbai, both for residential and commercial purposes. That is because it is the commercial capital of India, and both increased income and urbanization are taking place. This process is likely to continue in the foreseeable future and may even accelerate as the countrys economy is entering into a take off stage and the renovation and replacement of existing structures and peri-urban development catches up, which has already been taking roots. Out of the total quantity of tropical hardwood used (0.12 Mn Cu.m in 2005-06) in builders joinery in Mumbai, almost 60% is of imported species, while the rest are domestically produced species. Among the major imported species used in builders joinery include teak (55% of the total imports) and sal (31% of the imports). Similarly, among the major domestic species used also include sal (50% of total domestic in builders joinery) and teak (30%), while the remaining are other local tropical hardwood species (Figure 5.4). This scenario may change still more in favour of imported tropical hardwoods, not only because of domestic supply limitations, but also as Mumbais relatively newly established JNPT catches up as a cost-effective modern hub for imports and re-exports, for which the neighboring port areas are being offered as economic exclusive zones for industrial processing. That may involve shifts in on-site joinery and related end-use products preparation to established manufacturing units to cater to the increasing consumption, as also of furniture, taking note of the nearby middle-east market too.
i)
ii)
iii)
End-use of tropical timber in Construction It is reported in the consumption survey that only tropical hardwood is used in the Construction industry and the major species include Teak and Sal which are imported as well as available locally. As mentioned earlier that only the total quantity of tropical hardwood used in the construction could be made available and not each timber product-wise due to shortage of time. However it is obvious
that mainly sawn wood and builders joinery are used in the construction. While the figures for builders joinery include woodwork, which might also be used in furniture making, there could be some overlapping in the data. It was noted during interviews with the builders that on an average 1.0 Cu.m of timber is used per 1000 square feet construction area in Mumbai. On an average approximately 8% of the total house construction cost goes towards use of timber/wood in Mumbai. It was also reported that the type of wood used in construction include Country wood (domestic), Padauk and Sal. The imported wood comes mainly from Malaysia and Central America. The Country wood (Oak and Mango wood) is mainly used in construction, while Sal is used in making doors and windows (construction joinery). The quantity of tropical hardwood used in construction in Mumbai in 2005-06 is 83,647 Cu.m, out of which about 52,000 Cu.m is imported wood while the rest came from the domestic production. The use of high quality teak is currently very limited primarily on account of its high price and hence use of other less expensive timber and domestic hard wood species has been increasing. However there is scope for plantation teak timber in the future, as reported by some builders and retailers. The doors used in house construction are generally flush doors which economize on the quantity of timber used and hence the cost of wood. Flush doors are mainly fitted at the entrance and other places where security of the house is more important. In other areas of houses, door-frames are done with country wood while on the structures, plywood is fitted. Complete door panels are made of plywood and laminated sheets are also readily available for use and are being increasingly used where security is not a concern, such as for bathrooms and inside areas. There is also an increasing trend for use of glass for windows for its low price as well as aesthetic appeal. In recent years there is a positive trend for use of aluminum and metal (black wrought iron) for the window frames. Despite the use of alternatives to timber, the use of timber is bound to increase in absolute quantitative terms for its obvious first preference among the consumers. There is another trend reported in the construction sector for use of standardized size of doors and windows, which are sold in unfinished form and are just fitted while the house is under construction. The finishing is done at the end-use during construction. This has on one hand reduced the cost for the consumers and on the other hand has created demand for readymade door and window panels or flush-doors for large-scale manufacturing. As the house construction sector is growing fast the demand for timber and timber products is expected to grow fast. The boom in house construction and real estate has been fuelled primarily by the decreasing interest rates and attractive & consumer friendly loan schemes. People invest in housing both for self-use as well as an investment opportunity. As a result the demand for wood and wood products is further increasing. This increasing trend of construction and increased wood consumption has been observed through out the Indian Economy and holds true for all the consumption centers considered in this Review. iv) End-use of Tropical Timber in Furniture & Furniture Components The total timber used in furniture & furniture components in Mumbai during 200506 was 218,480 Cu.m, which is almost half of the total industrial round wood consumption in Mumbai. Only the tropical hardwood is used in furniture & furniture components. The timber products used in furniture & furniture components include sawn wood (majority), round wood and plywood. Mainly the imported tropical hardwood (85% of the total) is used in furniture & furniture components. Among the major species used in furniture & furniture components are Teak and Sal (imported) and Rosewood & other Country wood. The ratio of the Household to Commercial furniture is 30:70. The use of Teak is on decline because of its high price. Plywood (made with cheaper wood) is becoming the
preferred timber product for furniture and furniture components as against the costly teak timber.
2.2
i)
End-Use Distribution Trends and Prospects in PUNE

The end-use distribution of tropical timber in Pune consumption centre is mainly for Builders Joinery & Woodworking, Construction and Furniture & Furniture components. Use of timber for flooring purpose in India is almost negligible. The most commonly used timber product for end-use is sawn wood followed by plywood (including Veneer) and builders joinery in construction. The end-use consumption for these uses of timber is available in total quantity of sawnwood and plywood but the exact bifurcated data for product wise (Logs, Sawnwood, Veneer, Plywood and Builders joinery) end-use could not be made available. The consumption data for the end-uses Builders Joinery & Woodworking, Construction and Furniture & Furniture components for the year 2005-06 are 0.052 Mn Cu.m, 0.037 Mn Cu.m and 0.096 Mn Cu.m, respectively. End-use of tropical timber in Builders Joinery Only tropical hardwood is used in builders joinery in Pune. Out of the total quantity of tropical hardwood used (0.052 Mn Cu.m in 2005-06) in builders joinery in Pune, almost 60% are imported species while the rest are domestically produced species. Among the major imported species used in builders joinery include Teak (55% of the total imports) and Sal (31% of the imports). Similarly, the major domestic species used also include Sal (50% of total domestic in builders joinery) and Teak (30%), while the remaining timber is derived from other local tropical hardwood species.
ii)
iii)
End-use of Tropical Timber in Construction It is reported in the consumption survey that only tropical hardwood is used in the Construction industry and the major species include Teak and Sal, which are imported as well as available locally. As mentioned earlier also only the total quantity of tropical hardwood used in the construction was possible and productwise details could not be arranged. However it is obvious that mainly sawn wood and builders joinery are used in the construction. While the figures for builders joinery also include woodworking, which might also be used in furniture making, there could be some overlapping in the data. It was reported during the interview with the builders that the type of wood used in construction include country wood (domestic), Paddock and Sal. The quantity of tropical hardwood used in the construction in Pune in 2005-06 was 38,000 Cu.m out of which majority (25000 Cu.m) was imported wood while the rest came from the domestic production. Among the imported species include Teak (almost 75%) and Sal (25%). The major species domestically consumed in construction include Sal, Teak and other local species. The use of teak is less, primarily on account of its high price, and hence use of other domestic hard wood species has been increasing. The trend for use of tropical hardwood in construction is increasing and with the increasing supply pressure on domestic production, competitive imports are expected to increase further over the years.
iv)
End-use of tropical timber in Furniture & Furniture Components The total timber used in furniture & furniture component in Pune during 2002-03 was 0.092 Mn Cu.m, which is more than half the total timber logs consumption in the centre. Only the tropical hardwood is used in furniture & furniture components. The timber products used in furniture & furniture components include sawn wood (majority), round wood and plywood. Mainly the imported
tropical hardwood species (85% of the total) are used in furniture & furniture components. Among the major species used in furniture & furniture components include Teak and Sal (imported) and Rosewood & other country wood. The ratio of the Household to Commercial furniture is 25:75
2.3
End-Use Distribution Trends of Tropical Timber Products in SURAT

End-use of tropical timber in Builders Joinery Only tropical hardwood is used in builders joinery in Surat. Out of the total quantity of tropical hardwood used in builders joinery in Surat (0.034 Mn Cu.m in 2005-06), almost 60% is imported species while the rest are domestically produced species. Among the major species include Teak and Sal constitutes the majority. Of the total imported timber used in builders joinery 54% is teak while the 31% are Sal. Similarly among the major domestic species used Sal constitutes (50% of total domestic in builders joinery) and Teak (30%), while the remaining are other local tropical hardwood species.
i)
ii)
End-use of tropical timber in Construction It is reported in the consumption survey that only tropical hardwood is used in the Construction industry in Surat and the major species include Teak and Sal which are imported as well as available locally. The total timber end-use in construction for the year 2005-06 is reported as 23,690 Cu.m, which is expected to go up 26,600 Cu.m by the year 2012-13 .The timber used in construction is sourced from domestic production as well as imported from the tropical countries. However the domestic timber quantity is very less as compared to the imported timber. In the year 2005-06, it is reported that 14,600 Cu.m of tropical hardwood was imported for use in construction against 8,800 Cu.m sourced from the domestic production. Among the major imported species include Teak (75%) and Sal (19%), and some Meranti. While Sal (38%) and Teak (24%) are also the main domestic species used in the Construction, some other local species are also used for construction in Surat, especially for interior purposes and there are some signals of substitutes, though they are not so popular in the fast expanding urban centre, relatively recently. The trend for use of tropical hardwood in construction is increasing and with the increasing supply pressure on domestic production, the imports are expected to increase over the years, as the city gets in full swing of expansion which has rather already started. The increasing trend for house construction, which is observed throughout India, is equally, or even more vigorously, applicable for this consumption centre and hence the demand for tropical hardwood for construction end-use will see an increasing trend in the near future.
iv)
End-use of tropical timber in Furniture & Furniture Components The total timber used in furniture & a furniture component in Surat during 200506 was 0.080 Mn Cu. m which is more than half the total timber logs consumption. Only the tropical hardwood is used in furniture & furniture components. The timber products used in furniture & furniture components include sawn wood (majority), round wood and plywood. Mainly the imported tropical hardwood species (85% of the total) are used in furniture & furniture components. Among the major species used in furniture & furniture components include Teak and Sal (imported) and Rosewood & other Country wood produced domestically. The ratio of the Household to Commercial furniture is almost 1:3. The use of Teak is on decline because of its high price. Plywood (made with
cheaper wood species) is becoming the preferred timber product for furniture & furniture components, as against the costly teak timber.
2.4
End-Use Distribution Trends of Tropical Timber Products in Ahmedabad

End-use of tropical timber in Builders Joinery Mainly tropical hardwood is used for builders joinery in Ahmedabad. Out of the total quantity of tropical hardwood used in builders joinery in Ahmedabad (0.042 Mn Cu.m in 2005-06), more than 90 per cent comprises imported species, while the rest are species produced domestically. Among the major imported species used for builders joinery are Teak and Sal. In Ahmedabad, while the builders joinery is generally made out of tropical hardwood species, it consists of nearly 90 per cent of the total builders joinery during 2005- 06. This particular city is under the process of rebuilding and reconstruction, apart from urban expansion, with sizeable repatriation of resources for the purpose from the Indian expatriates abroad, who are seeking relatively higher class residential apartments and houses for themselves and their relatives. As such, the nature of demand includes a sizeable end use category of higher quality imported tropical hardwoods and better specifications for the builders joinery and related woodwork, including furniture.
i)
ii)
Total Consumption of Builders Joinery in Ahmedabad (000 Cu.m) Only tropical hardwood is used in builders joinery in Ahmendabad. Out of the total quantity of tropical hardwood used in builders joinery in Ahmendabad (0.042 Mn Cu.m in 2005-06), almost 60%is imported species while the rest are domestically produced species. Among the major species include Teak and Sal. Of the total imported timber used in builders joinery 54% is teak while the 31% are Sal. Similarly among the major domestic species used are also Sal (50% of total domestic in builders joinery) and Teak (30%), while the remaining are other local tropical hardwood species.
iii)
End-use of tropical timber in Construction It is reported in the consumption survey that only tropical hardwood is used in the Construction industry at Ahmedabad. During the period 2005-06, 0.045 Mn Cu.m timber was used for construction purposes. The consumption of timber for the construction industry is projected to be at 0.06 Mn Cu.m during 2012-13.
iv)
End-use of tropical timber in Furniture & Furniture Components The total timber used in furniture & a furniture component in Ahmedabad during 2002-03 was 0.12 Mn Cu.m, which is 58% of the total timber logs consumption. Only the tropical hardwood is used in furniture & furniture components. Among the major species used in furniture & furniture components include Teak, Sal and Rosewood & other Country wood produced domestically. The ratio of the Household to Commercial furniture is almost 85:15. The ready-made furniture market has also been flourishing in the city. These are like smallscale factories where 20 to 30 persons work on a regular basis. The traders and manufactures try to take advantage of ignorance of the consumers as they mix different types of wood for various components. According to the manufactures they use teak as sawn wood for the outer sides of a bed or other pieces of furniture. But they also use babul for legs and other joints of furniture. Besides, veneer is fixed as a finishing material and underneath is used some non-descript wood. This flamboyance on part of traders and local retailers may not continue, if there were better economic information and market intelligence, which is bereft of transparency, as in most of the country. It is noted that furniture is brought from
the states of Haryana, Delhi and elsewhere, as it is cheaper to have such furniture, often using TOF. This is mainly because of the use of locally available cheaper timber species, such as poplar and eucalypts, which are planted on the boundaries of agricultural fields in Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh coupled with nearby processing and distribution channels, with Yamuna Nagar as an outstanding example. Details regarding the consumption of various heads is enclosed at Annexe. i) ii) iii) iv) Annexe-Consumption centre summary report for urban city: Mumbai (Cum). Annexe-Consumption centre summary report for urban city: Pune (Cum). Annexe-Consumption centre summary report for urban city: Surat (Cum). Annexe-Consumption centre summary report for urban city: Ahmedabad (Cum).
3.
CONCLUSION
From the rapid survey and the analysis made hereby on the various end uses of timber for the 04 consumption centers clubbed for the purpose of reporting here, it can be seen that the majority of the timber is utilized for construction, furniture and furniture components followed by plywood and builders joinery. The type of timber used in construction, furniture and furniture components, and for builders joinery is generally of high quality tropical hardwoods. These are mainly imports from countries like Malaysia, Myanmar and Indonesia, while the tropical softwood is used for plywood. Products other than sawn wood like veneer is refurbished and converted into the final product like value-added plywood at these consumption centers. This is prima-facie a success case which seems to contravene national policies for conservation, by acting as a hub for unregistered and unregulated flow from neighboring forests and TOF for serving the appetite of timber market at the cost of more competitive and environmentally sound sources of timber from elsewhere, especially for better quality tropical timber from the diverse forest resources of the ITTO partners of India. The trend for timber use is, nevertheless, likely to continue, by which timber imports, especially tropical hardwood species, are projected to increase progressively over the medium term in future, up and down aberrations in between notwithstanding. Yet, there are rising threats and challenges from alternates, as observed in Mumbai in particular, which too may warrant to be addressed for the benefit of social, economic and environmental objectives which increased timber use can better serve than the energy intensive alternate. That calls for appropriate market organization and intelligence as well as economic information about the domestic and international availability of tropical timbers, and the competitiveness of such timber and timber products for the various end uses.
Annexure-I Summary Report for Urban City of Mumbai

19992000
S. No. Items Total timber consumption (Industrial roundwood/Logs) in Cubic metres in M3 (2+3+4) Tropical Hardwood (TH) Logs in M3 and major species (such as Teak (Burma-T, American T, Panama T, Ghana-T, Ghana-T, Plantation-T etc., Gurjan, Marsuea, Meranti, Mahogany, Rose wood, Sal, Keruing, Kapur, Andaman Padaouk, Lampati, Laurel, Bonsom etc.) (5+8) Tropical Softwood (TS) Logs in M3 and major species (All types of pine Radianta, New Zealand Pine, Australian Pine and France Pine etc) Temperate Hardwood (TeH) Logs in M3 and major species (such as Oak, Beech, Birch, willow) Imported TH (Tropical Hardwood) Logs M3 major species and countrywise Imported SW (Tropical Softwood) Logs in M3 and major species Imported Temperate Hardwood Logs in M3 and major species Domestic HW Logs in M3 with major species and source-wise F (Forest department) P (Plantation/Agro Forestry) H (Homestead) From other states 9 Domestic SW Logs in M3 with major species and source-wise F (Forest department) P (Plantation/Agro Forestry) H (Homestead) From other states Domestic Temperate Hardwood Logs in M3 with major species and source-wise Sawnwood total in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category (11.4 + 11.8)
1997-98
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
412920
474858
403629
415738
428210
479595
371380
427087
363024
373915
385132
431348
35340
40641
34545
35581
36648
41046
6200
7130
6061
6243
6430
7202
5 6 7 8
222828 34875 5983 148552 7428 103986 37138 Nil Nil Nil 465
256252 40106 6880 170835 8542 119584 42709 Nil Nil Nil 535
217814 34090 5848 145210 7261 101646 36303 Nil Nil Nil 455
224348 35113 6023 149566 7479 104695 37392 Nil Nil Nil 469
231078 36166 6204 154053 7703 107836 38514 Nil Nil Nil 483
258807 40506 6948 172539 8627 120776 43136 Nil Nil Nil 541
10
217
250
213
219
226
253
11
322400
370760
315146
324600
334338
374459
S. No. Items Sawnwood tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3 (11.5 +11.9) Sawnwood tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 (11.6 +11.10) Sawnwood temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 (11.7 +11.11) Total Sawnwood Imports in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category and country-wise (11.5+11.6+11.7) Sawnwood Imports of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Sawnwood Imports of tropical softwood (TS) and major species and country-wise in M3 Sawnwood Imports of temperate hardwood (the) and major species and country-wise in M3 Sawnwood total domestic in M3 with major species with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (11.9+11.10+11.11) Sawnwood domestic of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3
1997-98
19992000
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
11.1
302436
347801
295631
304500
313635
351271
11.2
19034
21889
18606
19164
19739
22108
11.3
930
1070
910
937
965
1081
11.4
193440
222456
189088
194761
200604
224676
11.5
174096
200210
170179
175284
180543
202208
11.6
18600
21390
18182
18727
19289
21604
11.7
744
856
728
750
773
866
11.8
128960
148304
126058
129840
133735
149783
11.9
128340
147591
125452
129216
133092
149063
Sawnwood domestic of tropical softwood (TS) and major species in 11.10 M3 Sawnwood domestic of temperate hardwood (the) and major species 11.11 in M3 Plywood total in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (12.4 + 12.8) Plywood tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3 (12.5 +12.9) Average Thickness considered is 12mm Plywood tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 (12.6 +12.10) Plywood temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 (12.7 +12.11)
434
499
424
437
450
504
186
214
182
187
193
216
12
44020
50623
43030
44321
45651
51129
12.1 12.2
40595 3038
46684 3494
39681 2970
40871 3059
42097 3151
47149 3529
12.3
388
446
379
390
402
450
S. No. Items Plywood total Imports in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category and country-wise (12.5+12.6+12.7) Imports of tropical Plywood hardwood (TH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Plywood Imports of tropical softwood (TS) and major species and countrywise in M3 Plywood Imports of temperate hardwood (TeH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Plywood Domestic in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category (12.9+12.10+12.11) Plywood domestic of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3
1997-98
19992000
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
12.4
527
606
515
530
546
612
12.5
16
18
15
15
15
17
12.6
124
143
122
126
130
146
12.7
388
446
379
390
402
450
12.8
43493
50017
42514
43789
45103
50515
12.9
40579
46666
39666
40856
42082
47132
Plywood domestic of tropical softwood (TS) and major species in 12.10 M3 Plywood domestic of temperate hardwood (TeH) and major species 12.11 in M3 Builders Joinery/Woodworking total in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category (13.4 + 13.8) Builders Joinery tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3 (13.5 +13.9) Builders Joinery tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 (13.6 +13.10) Builders Joinery temperate hardwood (TeH) and major species in M3 (13.7 +13.11) Builders Joinery total Imports in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category and country-wise (13.5+13.6+13.7) Builders Joinery Imports of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Builders Joinery Imports of tropical softwood (TS) and major species and country-wise in M3
2914
3351
2848
2933
3021
3384
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13
70680
81282
69090
71163
73298
82094
13.1
70680
81282
69090
71163
73298
82094
13.2
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13.3
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13.4
48062
55271
46980
48389
49841
55822
13.5
48062
55271
46980
48389
49841
55822
13.6
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
S. No. Items Builders Joinery Imports of temperate hardwood (TeH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Builders Joinery Domestic in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category (13.9+13.10+13.11) Builders Joinery domestic of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3
1997-98
19992000
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
13.7
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13.8
22618
26011
22109
22772
23455
26270
13.9
22618
26011
22109
22772
23455
26270
Builders Joinery domestic of tropical softwood (TS) and major species in 13.10 M3 Builders Joinery domestic of temperate hardwood (TeH) and 13.11 major species in M3 14 15 Price competitiveness by species and country wise vis--vis domestic End-use of timber in Construction Total of timber in M3 (Proportion of Door frames/window frames, door shutters/window shutters/ward robes flooring and others. Inclusive of all income groups High/Medium/Low as based on total houses constructed)
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
15.1
83080
95542
81211
83647
86156
96495
Major import species and quantity in 15.1 A M3 country wise used in construction Teak Sal Others Major species in domestic market and quantity in M3 used in 15.1 B construction Teak Sal Others Preference criteria 15.1 C Construction 15.2 for use in 7738 11780 12400 8899 13547 14260 7564 11515 12121 7791 11860 12485 8025 12216 12860 8988 13682 14403 38440 9622 3100 44206 11065 3565 37575 9405 3030 38702 9687 3121 39863 9978 3215 44647 11175 3601
Builders Joinery/Woodworking total in M3
70680
81282
69090
71163
73298
82094
Major import species and quantity in M3 country wise used in Builders 15.2 A Joinery Teak Sal 38440 21700 44206 24955 37575 21212 38702 21848 39863 22503 44647 25203
S. No. Items Others Major species in domestic market and quantity in M3 used in Builders 15.2 B Joinery Teak Sal Others Preference criteria for use 15.2 C Builders Joinery/Woodworking in
1997-98 10540
19992000 12121
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13 10303 10612 10930 12242
14419 24031 9612
16582 27636 11054
14095 23491 9396
14518 24196 9678
14954 24922 9968
16748 27913 11164
15.3
Furniture/furniture components Total timber in M3 (Proportion of Household and Commercial furniture and also Proportion of imported and domestic species in each) and
217000 30:70 65100
249550 30:70 74865
212118 30:70 63635
218482 30:70 65544
225036 30:70 67510
252040 30:70 75611
Proportion of Household 15.3 A Commercial furniture
15.3.A Timber consumption in Household .1 Furniture in M3 Proportion of imported and domestic species in Household furniture (Name Major species both imported15.3.A with country name and domestic .2 species)
85:15 Teak Sal
85:15 Teak Sal
85:15 Teak Sal Rose wood 148482
Rose wood Rose wood 15.3.B Timber consumption in Commercial .1 Furniture in M3 Proportion of imported and domestic species in Commercial furniture (Name Major species both importedwith country name and domestic species) 151900 174685
15.3 B.2
85:15 Same as 15.3.A.2
85:15 Same as 15.3.A.2 -nil
85:15
85:15
85:15
85:15 Same as 15.3.A.2 -nil
Same as Same as Same as 15.3.A.2 15.3.A.2 15.3.A.2 -nil -nil -nil
Preference criteria for use 15.3.C Furniture/furniture components 15.4
in -nil
Flooring Total timber consumption in M3
Proportion of imported species used in Flooring, quantity in M3, name of 15.4.A country and major species 15.4. B Proportion of domestic species used in Flooring, quantity in M3, and major species
nil
nil
nil
nil
nil
nil
nil --
nil --
nil --
nil --
nil --
nil --
15.4.C Preference criteria for use in Flooring
S. No. Items 15.5 Plywood Total timber consumption in M3
1997-98 44020
19992000 50623
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13 43030 44321 45651 51129
Proportion of imported species used in Plywood, quantity in M3, name of 15.5.A country and major species Negligible Proportion of domestic species used Teak: 20 in Plywood, quantity in M3, and %, Sal: 15.5.B major species 80% Preference 15.5.C Plywood criteria for use in --
Negligible
Negligibl Negligibl Negligibl e e e Negligible
Teak: 20 Teak: Teak: Teak: Teak: 20 %, Sal: 20 %, 20 %, 20 %, %, Sal: 80% Sal: 80% Sal: 80% Sal: 80% 80% ------
16
Preference for any value addedimported timber products (Name of the Value added product and the preference criteria) Trends in Channels of Distribution of each timber product (as of now and 5 years ago) Imported: Importer - Saw mills distributorstockist - Wholesale dealer - Retailer - Consumer Domestic: Government Auctioner/ Agro plantation Co's - Saw mills distributorstockist - Wholesale dealer - Retailer - Consumer Trends in Tariffs on Timber/Timber product Imports to India (as of now and 5 years ago)
--
--
--
--
--
--
17
18
Annexure-II Summary Report for Urban City of Pune

19992000
1997-98
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
153180
183816
174625
183356
188857
217186
137770
165324
157058
164911
169858
195337
13110
15732
14945
15692
16163
18587
2300
2760
2622
2753
2836
3261
5 6 7 8
82662 12938 2220 55108 2755 38576 13777 Nil Nil Nil 173
99194 15526 2664 66130 3306 46291 16532 Nil Nil Nil 208
94234 14750 2531 62824 3141 43976 15705 Nil Nil Nil 198
98946 15488 2658 65965 3298 46175 16490 Nil Nil Nil 208
101914 15953 2738 67944 3397 47560 16985 Nil Nil Nil 214
117201 18346 3149 78136 3907 54694 19533 Nil Nil Nil 246
10
81
97
92
97
100
115
11
119600
143520
136344
143161
147456
169574
1997-98
19992000
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
11.1
112194
134633
127901
134296
138325
159074
11.2
7061
8473
8049
8451
8705
10011
11.3
345
414
393
413
425
489
11.4
71760
86112
81806
85896
88473
101744
11.5
64584
77501
73626
77307
79626
91570
11.6
6900
8280
7866
8259
8507
9783
11.7
276
331
314
330
340
391
11.8
47840
57408
54538
57265
58983
67830
11.9
47610
57132
54275
56989
58699
67504
Sawnwood domestic of tropical softwood (TS) and major species in 11.10 M3 Sawnwood domestic of temperate hardwood (the) and major species 11.11 in M3 Plywood total in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (12.4 + 12.8) Plywood tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3 (12.5 +12.9) Average Thickness considered is 12mm Plywood tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 (12.6 +12.10) Plywood temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 (12.7 +12.11)
161
193
183
192
198
228
69
83
79
83
85
98
12
16330
19596
18616
19547
20133
23153
12.1 12.2
15059 1127
18071 1352
17167 1284
18025 1348
18566 1388
21351 1596
12.3
144
173
164
172
177
204
S. No. Items Plywood total Imports in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category and country-wise (12.5+12.6+12.7) Plywood Imports of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Plywood Imports of tropical softwood (TS) and major species and countrywise in M3 Plywood Imports of temperate hardwood (TeH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Plywood Domestic in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category (12.9+12.10+12.11) Plywood domestic of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3
1997-98
19992000
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
12.4
196
235
223
234
241
277
12.5
12.6
46
55
52
55
57
66
12.7
144
173
164
172
177
204
12.8
16135
19362
18394
19314
19893
22877
12.9
15054
18065
17162
18020
18561
21345
1081
1297
1232
1294
1333
1533
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13
26220
31464
29891
31386
32328
37177
13.1
26220
31464
29891
31386
32328
37177
13.2
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13.3
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13.4
17830
21396
20326
21342
21982
25279
13.5
17830
21396
20326
21342
21982
25279
13.6
1997-98
19992000
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
13.7
13.8
8390
10068
9565
10043
10344
11896
13.9
8390
10068
9565
10043
10344
11896
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
15.1
30820
36984
35135
36892
37999
43699
26220
31464
29891
31386
32328
37177
S. No. Items Others Major species in domestic market and quantity in M3 used in Builders 15.2 B Joinery Teak Sal Others Preference criteria for use 15.2 C Builders Joinery/Woodworking in
1997-98 3910
19992000 4692
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13 4457 4680 4820 5543
5349 8915 3566
6419 10698 4279
6098 10163 4065
6403 10671 4268
6595 10991 4396
7584 12640 5055
15.3
80500
96600
91770
96359
99250
114138
24150
28980
27531
28908
29775
34241
Teak Sal
Teak Sal
Teak Sal Rose wood 64239
15.3 B.2
85:15 Same as 15.3.A.2
85:15 Same as 15.3.A.3 -nil
85:15
85:15
85:15
85:15 Same as 15.3.A.7 -nil
in -nil
nil
nil
nil
nil
nil
nil
nil --
nil --
nil --
nil --
nil --
nil --
1997-98 16330
19992000 19596
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13 18616 19547 20133 23153
Proportion of imported species used in Plywood, quantity in M3, name of 15.5.A country and major species Negligible
Negligible
Proportion of domestic species used Teak : 20 Teak : 20 Teak : Teak : Teak : Teak : 20 in Plywood, quantity in M3, and %, Sal %, Sal 20 %, 20 %, 20 %, %, Sal 15.5.B major species :80% :80% Sal :80% Sal :80% Sal :80% :80% Preference 15.5.C Plywood criteria for use in -------
16
--
--
--
--
--
--
17
18
Annexure-III Summary Report for Urban City of Ahmedabad

S. No. Items 1 199798 1999- 2002-03 2005-06 2000 194400 217728 2007-08 20012-13 243855.4 273118
Total timber consumption 120000 (Industrial roundwood/Logs) in Cubic metres in M3 (2+3+4) Tropical Hardwood (TH) Logs 116000 in M3 and major species (such as Teak (Burma-T, American T, Panama T, Ghana-T, Ghana-T, Plantation-T etc., Gurjan, Marsuea, Meranti, Mahogany, Rose wood, Sal, Keruing, Kapur, Andaman Padaouk, Lampati, Laurel, Bonsom etc.) (5+8) Tropical Softwood (TS) Logs in M3 and major species (All types of pine Radianta, New Zealand Pine, Australian Pine and France Pine etc) Temperate Hardwood (TeH) Logs in M3 and major species (such as Oak, Beech, Birch, willow) 3500
187920
210470.4
235726.8
264014.1
5670
6350.4
7112.448
7965.942
500
810
907.2
1016.064
1137.992
Imported TH (Tropical 87500 Hardwood) Logs M3 major species and country-wise Imported SW (Tropical Softwood) Logs in M3 and major species Imported Hardwood Logs major species Temperate in M3 and 200
141750
158760
177811.2
199148.5
324
362.88
406.4256
455.1967
400
648
725.76
812.8512
910.3933
Domestic HW Logs in M3 with 28500 major species and source-wise F (Forest department) P (Plantation/Agro Forestry) H (Homestead) From other states
46170
51710.4
57915.65
64865.53
Domestic SW Logs in M3 with major species and source-wise F (Forest department) P (Plantation/Agro Forestry) H (Homestead) From other states
3300
5346
5987.52
6706.022
7510.745
10
Domestic Temperate Hardwood Logs in M3 with major species and source-wise
100
162
181.44
203.2128
227.5983
S. No. Items 11
199798
1999- 2002-03 2005-06 2000 115182 129003.8
2007-08 20012-13 144484.3 161822.4
Sawnwood total in M3 with 71100 type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (11.4 + 11.8) Sawnwood tropical hardwood 69500 (TH) and major species in M3 (11.5 +11.9) Sawnwood tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 (11.6 +11.10) Sawnwood temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 (11.7 +11.11) 1400
11.1
112590
126100.8
141232.9
158180.8
11.2
2268
2540.16
2844.979
3186.377
11.3
200
324
362.88
406.4256
455.1967
11.4
Total Sawnwood Imports in M3 16090 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category and countrywise (11.5+11.6+11.7) Sawnwood Imports of tropical 16000 hardwood (TH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Sawnwood Imports of tropical softwood (TS) and major species and country-wise in M3 Sawnwood Imports temperate hardwood and major species country-wise in M3 of (the) and 40
26065.8
29193.7
32696.94
36620.57
11.5
25920
29030.4
32514.05
36415.73
11.6
64.8
72.576
81.28512
91.03933
11.7
50
81
90.72
101.6064
113.7992
11.8
Sawnwood total domestic in 55010 M3 with major species with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (11.9+11.10+11.11) Sawnwood domestic of tropical 53500 hardwood (TH) and major species in M3 Sawnwood domestic of tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 Sawnwood domestic of temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 1360
89116.2
99810.14
111787.4
125201.8
11.9
86670
97070.4
108718.8
121765.1
11.10
2203.2
2467.584
2763.694
3095.337
11.11
150
243
272.16
304.8192
341.3975
12
Plywood total in M3 with 11000 type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (12.4 + 12.8)
17820
19958.4
22353.41
25035.82
S. No. Items 12.1
199798
1999- 2002-03 2005-06 2000 17010 19051.2
2007-08 20012-13 21337.34 23897.83
Plywood tropical hardwood 10500 (TH) and major species in M3 (12.5 +12.9) Average Thickness considered is 12 mm Plywood tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 (12.6 +12.10) Plywood temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 (12.7 +12.11) Plywood total Imports in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category and countrywise (12.5+12.6+12.7) Plywood Imports of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Plywood Imports of tropical softwood (TS) and major species and country-wise in M3 Plywood Imports of temperate hardwood (the) and major species and country-wise in M3 500
12.2
810
907.2
1016.064
1137.992
12.3
12.4
12.5
12.6
12.7
12.8
Plywood Domestic in M3 with 11000 type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (12.9+12.10+12.11) Plywood domestic of tropical 10500 hardwood (TH) and major species in M3 Plywood domestic of tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 Plywood domestic of temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 500
17820
19958.4
22353.41
25035.82
12.9
17010
19051.2
21337.34
23897.83
12.10
810
907.2
1016.064
1137.992
12.11
13
Builders Joinery/ 23000 Woodworking total in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (13.4 + 13.8) Builders Joinery tropical 20500 hardwood (TH) and major species in M3 (13.5 +13.9)
37260
41731.2
46738.94
52347.62
13.1
33210
37195.2
41658.62
46657.66
S. No. Items 13.2 Builders Joinery tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 (13.6 +13.10) Builders Joinery temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 (13.7 +13.11)
199798 1500
1999- 2002-03 2005-06 2000 2430 2721.6
2007-08 20012-13 3048.192 3413.975
13.3
1000
1620
1814.4
2032.128
2275.983
13.4
Builders Joinery total Imports 18500 in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category and country-wise (13.5+13.6+13.7) Builders Joinery Imports of 17000 tropical hardwood (TH) and major species and countrywise in M3 Builders Joinery Imports of tropical softwood (TS) and major species and countrywise in M3 Builders Joinery Imports of temperate hardwood (the) and major species and country-wise in M3 Builders Joinery Domestic in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (13.9+13.10+13.11) Builders Joinery domestic of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3 Builders Joinery domestic of tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 Builders Joinery domestic of temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 Price competitiveness by species and country wise vis-vis domestic End-use of timber in 15.1 Construction Total of 25000 timber in M3 (Proportion of Door frames/window frames, door shutters/window shutters/ward robes flooring and others. Inclusive of all income groups High/Medium/ Low as based on total houses constructed) 1000
29970
33566.4
37594.37
42105.69
13.5
27540
30844.8
34546.18
38691.72
13.6
1620
1814.4
2032.128
2275.983
13.7
500
810
907.2
1016.064
1137.992
13.8
4500
7290
8164.8
9144.576
10241.93
13.9
3500
5670
6350.4
7112.448
7965.942
13.10
500
810
907.2
1016.064
1137.992
13.11
500
810
907.2
1016.064
1137.992
14
15
40500
45360
50803.2
56899.58
S. No. Items 15.1 A. Major import species and quantity in M3 country wise used in construction 15.1 B. Major species in domestic market and quantity in M3 used in construction 15.1 C. Preference criteria for use in Construction 15.2
199798
1999- 2002-03 2005-06 2000
2007-08 20012-13
Builders Joinery/ 23000 Woodworking total in M3
37260
41731.2
46738.94
52347.62
15.2 A. Major import species and quantity in M3 country wise used in Builders Joinery 15.2 B. Major species in domestic market and quantity in M3 used in Builders Joinery 15.3 Furniture/furniture 70000 components Total timber in M3 (Proportion of Household and Commercial furniture and also Proportion of imported and domestic species in each) 30:70
( SAME AS IS THE CASE WITH OTHER CITIES)
113400
127008
142249
159318.8
15.3 A. Proportion of Household and Commercial furniture
30:70
30:70 34020
30:70 38102.4 85:15
#VALUE! 42674.69 85:15 47795.65 85:15
15.3.A.1 Timber consumption 21000 in Household Furniture in M3 15.3.A. Proportion of imported and 2. domestic species in Household furniture (Name Major species both imported-with country name and domestic species) 85:15 85:15
85:15
Teak, Sal, Rosewood 15.3.B. Timber consumption in 49000 1 Commercial Furniture in M3 15.3 B. Proportion of imported and 2 domestic species in Commercial furniture (Name Major species both importedwith country name and domestic species) 15.3.C. Preference criteria for use in Furniture/furniture components 15.4. Flooring Total consumption in M3 timber Nil Nil 85:15 85:15 79380 85:15 88905.6 85:15 99574.27 85:15 111523.2 85:15
Same as is the case with other cities.
Nil Nil
Nil Nil
Nil Nil
15.4.A Proportion of imported species used in Flooring, quantity in M3, name of country and major species
S. No. Items 15.4. B. Proportion of domestic species used in Flooring, quantity in M3, and major species
199798 Nil
1999- 2002-03 2005-06 2000 Nil Nil Nil
2007-08 20012-13 -
15.4.C Preference criteria for use in Flooring 15.5. Plywood Total consumption in M3 timber
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
15.5.A. Proportion of imported species used in Plywood, quantity in M3, name of country and major species 15.5.B. Proportion of domestic species used in Plywood, quantity in M3, and major species 15.5.C. Preference criteria for use in Plywood 16 Preference for any value added-imported timber products (Name of the Value added product and the preference criteria) Trends in Channels of Distribution of each timber product (as of now and 5 years ago) Imported: Importer - Saw mills - distributorstockist Wholesale dealer - Retailer Consumer Domestic: Government Auctioner/Agro plantation Co's - Saw mills - distributorstockist - Wholesale dealer Retailer - Consumer 18 Trends in Tariffs on Timber/ Timber product Imports to India (as of now and 5 years ago)
As per details details given above
17
Same as is the case with other cities
Annexure-IV Summary Report for Urban City of Surat

19992000
1997-98
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
99900
109890
114286
117715
120069
132076
89850
98835
102788
105872
107989
118788
8550
9405
9781
10074
10275
11303
1500
1650
1716
1767
1802
1982
5 6 7 8
53910 8438 1448 35940 1797 25158 8985 Nil Nil Nil 113
59301 9282 1593 39534 1977 27674 9884 Nil Nil Nil 124
61673 9653 1657 41115 2056 28781 10279 Nil Nil Nil 129
63523 9943 1707 42348 2118 29644 10587 Nil Nil Nil 133
64793 10142 1741 43195 2160 30237 10799 Nil Nil Nil 136
71272 11156 1915 47515 2376 33261 11879 Nil Nil Nil 150
10
53
58
60
62
63
69
11
78000
85800
89232
91909
93747
103122
1997-98
19992000
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
11.1
73170
80487
83706
86217
87941
96735
11.2
4605
5066
5269
5427
5536
6090
11.3
225
248
258
266
271
298
11.4
46800
51480
53539
55145
56248
61873
11.5
42120
46332
48185
49631
50624
55686
11.6
4500
4950
5148
5302
5408
5949
11.7
180
198
206
212
216
238
11.8
31200
34320
35693
36764
37499
41249
11.9
31050
34155
35521
36587
37319
41051
Sawnwood domestic of tropical softwood (TS) and major species in 11.10 M3 Sawnwood domestic of temperate hardwood (the) and major species 11.11 in M3 Plywood total in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and the and major species in each category (12.4 + 12.8) Plywood tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3 (12.5 +12.9) Average Thickness considered is 12 mm Plywood tropical softwood (TS) and major species in M3 (12.6 +12.10) Plywood temperate hardwood (the) and major species in M3 (12.7 +12.11)
105
116
121
125
128
141
45
50
52
54
55
61
12
10650
11715
12184
12550
12801
14081
12.1 12.2
9821 735
10803 809
11235 841
11572 866
11803 883
12983 971
12.3
94
103
107
110
112
123
S. No. Items Plywood total Imports in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category and country-wise (12.5+12.6+12.7) Plywood Imports of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Plywood Imports of tropical softwood (TS) and major species and countrywise in M3 Plywood Imports of temperate hardwood (TeH) and major species and country-wise in M3 Plywood Domestic in M3 with type of wood that is TH, TS, and TeH and major species in each category (12.9+12.10+12.11) Plywood domestic of tropical hardwood (TH) and major species in M3
1997-98
19992000
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
12.4
128
141
147
151
154
169
12.5
12.6
30
33
34
35
36
40
12.7
94
103
107
110
112
123
12.8
10523
11575
12038
12399
12647
13912
12.9
9818
10800
11232
11569
11800
12980
705
776
807
831
848
933
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13
17100
18810
19562
20149
20552
22607
13.1
17100
18810
19562
20149
20552
22607
13.2
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13.3
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
13.4
11628
12791
13303
13702
13976
15374
13.5
11628
12791
13303
13702
13976
15374
13.6
1997-98
19992000
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13
13.7
13.8
5472
6019
6260
6448
6577
7235
13.9
5472
6019
6260
6448
6577
7235
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
Nil --
15.1
20100
22110
22994
23684
24158
26574
17100
18810
19562
20149
20552
22607
S. No. Items Others Major species in domestic market and quantity in M3 used in Builders 15.2 B Joinery Teak Sal Others Preference criteria for use 15.2 C Builders Joinery/ Woodworking in
1997-98 2550
19992000 2805
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13 2917 3005 3065 3372
3488 5814 2326
3837 6395 2559
3990 6651 2661
4110 6851 2741
4192 6988 2796
4611 7687 3076
15.3
52500
57750
60060
61862
63099
69409
15750
17325
18018
18559
18930
20823
Teak Sal
Teak Sal
15.3 B.2
85:15 Same as 15.3.A.3
85:15 Same as 15.3.A.4 -nil
85:15
85:15
85:15
85:15 Same as 15.3.A.8 -nil
in -nil
nil
nil
nil
nil
nil
nil
nil --
nil --
nil --
nil --
nil --
nil --
1997-98 10650
19992000 11715
2002-03 2005-06 2007-08 20012-13 12184 12550 12801 14081
Proportion of imported species used in Plywood, quantity in M3, name of 15.5.A country and major species Negligible
Negligible
Proportion of domestic species used Teak : 20 Teak : 20 Teak : Teak : Teak : Teak : 20 in Plywood, quantity in M3, and %, Sal %, Sal 20 %, 20 %, 20 %, %, Sal 15.5.B major species :80% :80% Sal :80% Sal :80% Sal :80% :80% Preference 15.5.C Plywood criteria for use in -------
16
--
--
--
--
--
--
17
18
SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT IN INDIA- A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF PEOPLES PARTICIPATION AND EMERGING MANAGEMENT ISSUES
Dr. V.K. Bahuguna3 INTRODUCTION:
All over the world the human civilization and culture evolved in and around the forests and India was no exception. In fact, Indian civilization and culture have evolved entirely in the forests as is revealed in many historical and religious literatures. In India, the role of communities in governance of resources have been deeply ingrained in the cultural ethos through ages and community participation dates back to 4000 BC soon after the end of hunting age. There are detailed narratives in the Kautilyas Arthsastra about how to go about protecting the flora and fauna and special sanctuaries etc were earmarked for the wild animals. The rulers played a key role in laying down rules and peoples involvement in protection of flora and fauna and of course creating reserves for their pleasure hunting. Though, the people since time immemorial managed forests, the modern forestry practices started only during the last 200 years or so as an enterprise in Europe and later on introduced by the colonial powers in the Asia, Africa, Latin America and other countries of the world. In fact, the science of business management found early application in forestry. Forestry as land use survived on commercial lines through the sustained yield concept for the maximization of return from timber. To ensure this legal system were created which met these objectives. The economic growth in developed nations and the land tenure systems that were developed to sustain this proved a major reason for the success of forestry in these countries. On the contrary in developing countries the forestry practices, notwithstanding the timber bias in practice to meet the colonial needs also perforce focused on managing the forests for larger benefits to the society reflected in adopting and putting into practice ecologically and socially sensitive policy declarations.
2. THE INDIAN SCENARIO:

The love for the forests and the wildlife among the common people in India still retaining a rich bio-diversity in comparison to other similarly placed is reflected countries of the world in spite of the huge pressure from a large population of over a billion people. The people have scarified a lot to retain the cultural heritage and had remained frugal in the use of resources. The people in developed world during the 18th and 19th centuries, moved fast enough towards modern development by slowly shifting their economic activities from land based to industry, manufacturing and services sectors. Indian people however, still draw heavily from the land based resources to sustain their lives and in the modern age this puts tremendous pressures on the life supporting forest resources as the country is racing fast towards globalization and economic emancipation. The degradation of the resources in the midst of rising population and lopsided planning is putting up a serious question mark on the sustainability of the forest resource management in India. The issue of sustainable management of forests needs to be analyzed in the light of history of forestry in India and the policies and practices that had governed it over a period of time.
3 The author is a member of India Forest Service and presently posted as the Managing Director of Tripura Forest Development and Plantation Corporation Ltd, Agartala, He is also working as Additional PCCF, Tripura Forest Department. He headed the JFM Cell of Ministry of Environment and Forests from 1998 to 2004.
India tropical country with fragile ecosystems, heavy monsoon rains occurring only for a few months in a year, has a bourgeoning population with poverty and a large agrarian economy supported by more than 400 rivers and rivulets emanating from the catchments with fragile mountains. Peace and progress and thus law and order shall inter alia also depend upon sustainable management of forests and other life supporting resources. Taking care of the bio-diversity, watersheds, repairing the damaged geographical features, erosion prone areas, and arid and semi-arid regions shall be of equal importance if not more, than attaining the goals of socio-economic emancipations and scientific developments
3.
INDIAS FOREST POLICIES:
The scientific forest management in India began in 1864 with the appointment of trained German forester Dietrich Brandis as the first Inspector General of Forests, which marked a break in the old indigenous practices. He remained at the helm of affairs for nineteen long years and set up the forestry department with trained professionals. Since then in India forest policies have been enunciated in 1894, 1952 and 1988. The implementation of these policies has had a major influence on forest management strategies and methods. The Forest Policy of 1894 subordinated forest conservation to the promotion of agricultural interest. The policy clearly stated that whenever forestland was required for agriculture it should be excised without hesitation. Forest ecology and conservation in those days though were considered inconsequential but nevertheless, the policy did aim at soil and moisture conservation (Bahuguna 2001a). Further, this policy stated that the consideration of forest income should be subordinated to the needs of the local people.
Major Forestry Related Events

1864 1865 1878 1894 1927 1952 1972 1976 1980 1988 1990 2000 2002 Appointment of D. Brandis as Inspector General of Forests. 1st Indian Forest Act enacted 2nd Indian Forest Act was enacted First Forest Policy of India. 3rd Indian Forest Act enacted Second Forest Policy of India Wildlife Protection Act enacted Social Forestry Programme initiated Forestry transferred from the State List to the Concurrent List through 42nd Constitutional Amendment Forest Conservation Act enacted Present National Forest Policy enunciated Joint Forest Management instituted (JFM) Forest Development Agencies Concept introduced to decentralize the forest management through JFM Committees Bio-diversity Act enacted
The National Forest Policy 1952 was adopted after independence and was recognized as an excellent scientific policy document. It rejected the belief that forestry should be restricted to residual lands not required for any other purposes. The policy proposed that 60% of the land in the hills and 20% in the plains and over all 1/3rd of the total geographical area should be under forest/tree cover. This policy also stated the need for checking denudation on the hills, soil erosion and invasion of sand from deserts and coastal areas. The establishment of tree lands to ameliorate conditions and to
promote the well being of the people and to maximize annual revenue in perpetuity consistent with the fulfillment of all the other conditions was also stated. Most provisions of the policy could not be implemented mainly due to the problems of increasing human and livestock population, chronic food shortages and rampant diversion of forestlands for non-forestry practices. The new National Forest Policy was enacted in 1988. The primary objective is to ensure environmental stability and ecological balance. In this policy, derivation of direct economic benefits is to be subordinated to this principal aim. This policy emphasizes the need to meet the domestic demands of the tribal and rural people for forest produce and also the need to involve them in protection and management of forests. The first charge on forest produce would be the domestic requirement of the people living in and around the forests but this fulfillment should be restricted to the carrying capacity of the forests. The conservation and protection of existing forests and restoration of productivity on degraded forests has been prioritized. This policy also emphasized the need for strengthening the Protected Area Network for overall gene pool resource protection and conservation. The Industrial requirements for raw material will not be met from the natural forests but from the farm forestry and agro forestry sector through tie up between farmers and industry. The objective of the 1952 policy of having 33% of the geographical area under tree cover has been reiterated and the policy seeks the expansion by afforestation of the wastelands. The forest managers have always treated the poor people as liabilities in the past due to their dependence but this policy through peoples participation in forest management proposed to convert this liability into an asset for the conservation. The policy is based on the following principles (Anonymous, 1988): Maintenance of environmental stability through preservation and, where necessary, restoration of the ecological balance that has been adversely disturbed by serious depletion of the forests in the country. Conserving natural heritage of the country by preserving the remaining natural forests with the vast variety of flora and fauna, which represent the remarkable biological diversity and genetic resources of the country. Checking soil erosion and denudation in the catchments areas of rivers, lakes, and reservoirs in the interest of soil and water conservation, for mitigating floods and droughts and for the retardation of siltation of reservoirs. Checking extension of sand dunes in the desert areas of Rajasthan and along the coastal tracts. Increasing substantially the forest/tree cover in the country through massive affoestation and social forestry programmes, especially on all denuded, degraded and unproductive lands. Meeting the requirements of fuel wood, fodder, minor forest produce and small timber of the rural and tribal population. Increasing the productivity of forests to meet essential national needs. Encouraging efficient utilization of forest produce and maximizing substitution of wood. Creating a massive peoples movement with the involvement of women, for achieving these objectives and to minimize pressure on existing forests.
Forests contribute to around 1.7 percent of GDP of the country. However, the figure does not include the non-market and vast amount of fuel wood, fodder, NTFPs and
timber collected by the people for their livelihood needs. On a moderate scale the annual value of this is around Rs.400000 million (US$10000 million) (Bahuguna, 2000). The challenge therefore is how to meet the conflicting needs of the society from the limited resource base. This requires an assessment of the demand and a policy to meet it through demand reduction and substitution, increase in productivity on sustainable basis and a mechanism that ensures equitable distribution of the benefits.
4. FORESTRY DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION:

(a) Public Movements: During seventies several popular movements especially the Chipko Movement launched by the people against felling of trees by the forest contractors brought awareness in the forefront for the conservation of forest and environment. The movement started in the Garhwal Himalayas was reflection of the peoples struggle over stagnated forestry practices that deprived the locals of the benefits from the forest. It also reflected the felt need of the people to save the forests and grow trees. The chipko leaders spread the message across the country that led to the establishment of a unique people led environmental conservation movement in India making a huge impact on the psyche of the nation as well as at the international level. As a result several policy and legal initiatives were taken to check deforestation and degradation of forest cover. The recommendations of National Commission (1976) on Agriculture for expansion of forests and tree cover outside the traditional forest under the social forestry programme gave a big impetus to afforestation activities. The social forestry was launched for planting trees on wastelands, intuitional lands and non-forest public and private lands. The agro-forestry and farm forestry was promoted on agriculture lands especially irrigated areas prone to water logging and Salination. Private Participation: The rural community has also taken up planting of private and community lands under Social forestry/Farm forestry/Agro forestry programmes initiated in1980s. In some areas, industry has also developed linkages with the local farmers by supplying planting material, technical advice and making buy-back arrangements. The significant contribution of farmers small and large in production of wood and other products which were earlier obtained only from forests has been a significant success in assuring forest conservation efforts in India. Today around 17 million ha of forest/tree growth exists on the farmlands. Private farmers either as pure plantations or as trees raised on the bunds and near their houses have produced very large volumes of wood mainly of Eucalyptus, Teak, Poplar, and Acacias etc. Forest Departments have also raised very large plantations on the community lands and non-forest Government lands outside the Government Forests. An industry community initiative in the development of forestry resources through block plantations on private degraded lands for the mutual benefit of the stakeholders in many areas like Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Maharastra, U.P.etc has shown possibility of accelerated afforestation of degraded lands. This needs to be critically examined and expanded. Considering the requirements of scale of investment for sustainable forest management and unsustainable withdrawals from the forests, the investments made in the forestry sector are rather inadequate and also poorly planned. On an average around 1% or less has been assigned to forestry during the various five year plan periods and the natural forests, watersheds, infrastructure and capacity building have been woefully neglected. According to an estimate in 2002 as against the annual requirement of around 5500 crore for the afforestation only around 1700 crore were pooled up from all the available Central and State resources. The Government Initiative: The major initiatives taken by the Government for conservation included: The Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 was enacted for
(b)
(c)
protecting and conserving the bio-diversity of the country. Project Tiger was launched to protect the dwindling habitat of tigers and its population. The subject of Forests and Wildlife were taken into concurrent list through the 42nd constitutional amendment passed in 1976 and fundamental duties were enshrined for the conservation of flora, fauna and environment. The Forest Conservation Act of 1980 was enacted to prevent diversion of forestlands with out the permission of Central Government for the non-forestry use. This reduced the rate of diversion per year from 150,000 hectares in 1980 to just around 15,000 ha in 2004. The new Ministry of Environment and Forests was created and new National Forest Policy was adopted in 1988 to lay primacy on conservation and livelihood needs of the forest dependent communities. A major shift in the management was involvement of forest user communities through the Joint Forest Management Programme in 1990 and promotion of agro-forestry for meeting the industrial requirements.
5. THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL FORESTRY

To counter the deforestation during the last fifty-five years or so since independence, around 32 million hectares of forest and non-forest lands have been planted during the various plan periods. The survival of trees on ground is around 50% of the originally planted due to severe biotic pressures on forests, unsustainable removals and grazing as well as forest fires. The survival percentage varies considerably in block planting by Forest Department in public land from 60% to 70% as per the monitoring done in the field by the National Afforestation and Eco-development Board (NAEB) of the Government of India in fifty districts every year since 1992-93. On private lands, the survival percentage is less to varying from 25% to 50%. The results of awareness, forestation efforts and other actions have started showing results. As revealed from the Forest Survey of India (FSI) reports, the process of deforestation has been checked, as the forest cover during the last 12 to 14 years has remained around 19% of the geographic area. In spite of biotic pressure, the country has been able to protect its bio-diversity through rigorous protection measures in the national parks and sanctuaries. The key to this success is the implementation of Joint Forest Management and Eco-development activities in Wildlife areas. However, due to continuous population pressure, the depletion in the quality of forest is still continuing and is a serious cause of concern. The social forestry programmes in India have recently come under increasing criticism for failing to realize their primary objective of producing fuel wood for domestic use, even while becoming successful in growing trees (Blair 1986). The task force set up by the Planning Commission on Greening India for livelihood security and sustainable development opined that cumbersome legislation in respect of felling of trees, transportation of forest produce and processing and market infrastructure are the main constrains for the inadequate development of agro-forestry in India (Anonymous 2001) Bahuguna (1990) argued that the social forestry programmes have benefited the affluent farmers bypassing the larger issues of poverty alleviation due to poor planning, less incentives for the poor, choice of species and other bottlenecks. Ravindranath and Sudha (2000) had criticized the social forestry programme for not promoting local species on village common lands and private farmlands as the farmers wanted to promote fast growing exotics like eucalyptus, acacia auriculiformis for higher returns.
The social forestry Programme led to involvement of the people and awareness about the pitfalls of forests degradation. Though the forest deficit states like Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and the industries benefited from the availability of biomass, the choice of species and management ambiguity, however, led to its failure in so far as genuine involvement of people is concerned. It is a fact that only a few species like eucalyptus, casuarinas, poplars, acacias etc dominated the scene and many fruit bearing species like tamarinds; mango etc disappeared from the countryside leading to alienation of people especially along roadsides.
6. JOINT FOREST MANAGEMENT: THE STATUS

Participatory management of public forests involving the Government and local communities for regeneration of degraded forests through effective protection, sharing of produce and improving the livelihood opportunities of forest dependent communities, was initiated by the Forest Department as a pilot project in Arabari, West Bengal in 1971-72. The programme covered an area of over 1,270 ha degraded forests involving 618 families in 11 villages. This joint initiative rehabilitated the forests and thus became an example to emulate. Similar successful programmes of communitys involvement were coming from other states like Orissa etc. Subsequently; this trend was institutionalized by the Central Government through the Forest Policy of 1988 and Ministry of Environment and Forests JFM Circular of June 1990. On status of JFM in the country latest information as available with the JFM Cell of the Ministry of Environment and Forests based on the proceedings of National Consultation Workshop on JFM held on July 14-15th, 2005, is given below in the Table. Table: Status of JFM as on March 2005
S. No. State/Union Territory Number of Forest Fringe Villages 8903 1846 NA 1462 8747 NA 7363 6600 5994 935 13912 7130 249 21797 Number of Number of JFM committees Forest Area under JFM in Million ha 2.29 0.09 0.08 0.37 2.83 0.01 0.24 0.06 0.42 0.04 2.19 0.32 0.17 5.95 Forest Percentage of Forest Area under JFM
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 S.
Andhra Pradesh Arunanchal Pradesh Assam Bihar Chattisgarh Goa Gujarat Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu & Kashmir Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh State/Union
8343 347 503 532 7050 26 1734 1075 1690 4861 10903 3887 327 14173 Number of JFM
35.87 1.76 2.93 61.18 47.78 10.62 12.54 37.54 11.47 2.13 92.61 8.37 14.80 62.45 Percentage of
No.
Territory
Forest Fringe Villages 15516 NA NA 30 1038 29302 421 7114 NA 3072 416 9712 7944 4500 164003
committees
Area under JFM in Million ha 2.51 0.09 0.004 0.02 0.02 0.82 0.18 0.58 0.01 0.48 0.10 0.08 0.86 0.63 21.44
Forest Area under JFM
15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Maharastra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Orissa Punjab Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttaranchal West Bengal Total
10242 280 73 270 335 9778 1224 4224 155 1367 374 1892 10107 4096 99868
40.56 5.39 0.42 1.11 2.44 14.07 58.30 17.70 1,03 20.94 16.55 4.67 24.78 52.94 28.17
Source: JFM Cell MoEF (Proceedings of National Consultation Workshop July 14-15th 2005)
Thus, as on July 2005, 99868 JFM Committees are managing 21.44 million ha of land covering 28.17% of the forests of the country. Out of the 164003-reported forest fringe villages in the country 99868 villages have been covered under the JFM programme which amount to 60% of the total number of forest fringe villages. The number might have gone up by now as these figures are one year old. In JFM programme around 8.3 million families and 62 million people were managing the forests jointly with the forest department in 2004 (Bahuguna 2004). Many other villages are near the protected areas and may be covered under the eco-development programmes of the state wildlife wings. The launching of the JFM Programme has been a major breakthrough in the involvement of local communities in the management of forests and has produced very positive results in regenerating the degraded forests and grasslands. The quality of forests, the socio-economic and cultural profile of local people, the role of grass root level political workers, the local economy, the market forces and attitude of the local foresters had a bearing on the success of JFM in the past decade (Bahuguna 2001b). Taking note of the success of the programme the Central Government has launched a special component under the National Afforestation Plan (NAP) to universalize it and cover all the forest fringe villages covering around 32 million ha of forests situated in these villages. Under the scheme, it is proposed to provide a one-time assistance of Rs 10,000 for constitution of new JFM committees to take care of the basic expenses like registration, preparing maps, micro plan, inventory, holding meetings etc. The highlights of the programme guidelines promulgated in 1990 by Ministry of Environment & Forest, Government of India is summarized as follows: Developing partnership: between communities and Forest Departments, facilitated by Non-Governmental Organizations Access and benefits: only to organized communities undertaking regeneration, with equal opportunity based on willing participation and on a care and share philosophy
The right over the usufructs: for all non-timber forest products and percentage share of final harvest to communities, subject to successful protection and conditions approved by the State. The share varies from 25% to 100% in some states, but generally it is 50% in majority of the States. Working Scheme: micro-plans detailing forest management regimes, institutional and technical operations to be developed by community organizations with local foresters and NGOs The funding: From Forest Department programmes with encouragement to communities to seek funds from other agencies.
7. PROGRESS OF POLICY AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR JFM:

True to any change management regime, the progress of JFM was slow and tardy in the initial few years as many policy, technical and institutional issues cropped up in the field and there was no policy frame work at the Government of India in the Ministry of Environment and Forests to coordinate and collate information and to give policy directions to the State Governments. Till June 1998 prior to setting up of the JFM Cell only around 4 million ha of forests were under JFM in 17 states. Some of the studies done in institutions like IIFM, Bhopal (like in Harda and Jhabua forest division by this author in 1992 and 1993) were the sole basis for judging the efficacy and success of programme. The programme received a major boost in August 1998 when a JFM Cell was created in the Ministry of Environment and Forests to monitor the progress of JFM, act as a catalyst and policy think tank and a clearinghouse for the information on JFM and community based forest management systems in the country. A JFM network was also constituted in the Ministry for wider consultations with the stakeholders and to give feedback to the JFM Cell on a permanent basis. The network has membership from various stakeholder groups, including donor agencies and grass root level workers of NGOs and forest department. The Ministry also set up a stakeholders forum as an extended arm of the JFM network for continuous consultation with the stakeholders, collecting information on behalf of network and to provide in puts for the network meetings. The Ministry after wide ranging discussions among all the stakeholders through committee of experts and review of the programme with the state Governments issued the major policy guidelines in February 2000. The key reforms were in the form of: Providing uniform nomenclature and legal back up to the JFM committees, 50% representation to the Women in the General Body and 33% in the Executive Committee and The most important one was regarding extending the programme to good forest areas with sharper focus on activities relating to management of Non-Timer Forest Produce (NTFPs)) Developing a conflict resolution mechanism
The Government of India in December 2002, again issued Guidelines focused mainly on: The management and utilization of NTFPs and capacity building of the stakeholders Setting up of a co-coordinating mechanism with the Panchayat raj institutions at the district and JFM committee level in order to ensure support and involvement of constitutional bodies for the management of forest resources.
The JFM Cell also issued Guidelines for the criteria and indicators for the sustainable management in the country in order to integrate the philosophy of participation of people in the process of monitoring the sustainable forest management practices in the country. The JFM programme got further impetus when the JFM Cell and National Afforestation and Eco-Development Board (NAEB) evolved the concept of Forest Development Agencies (FDAs) for empowerment of the local communities for the regeneration of the forests and for execution of the livelihood creation activities. The FDAs are the autonomous federations of JFM committees registered under the societies Act 1860, and complimented by the guidance of combined pool of district level officers. The territorial Conservator of forests with the concerned Divisional Forest Officer acting as the Chief Executive Officer heads the body. They FDAs prepare work plans and take decisions regarding the works to be undertaken and can obtain the funds from various sources. They receive the funds directly from the NAEB and are responsible to the NAEB for maintaining the standard and quality of the works. The NAEB has been arranging monitoring of their activities through independent consultants. The reports of the evaluators are supportive of the venture and it has been decided to continue the scheme in the XI five-year plan. The increase in forest cover in the country can be attributed to the success of JFM. The FDAs are very successful and the national afforestation programme of NAEB is being implemented entirely through them. Even in the far off bordering State Tripura in the Northeast, the JFM is doing exceptionally well. Out of the four FDAs selected for outstanding category by the independent evaluators, one is from Tripura (Bahuguna` 2005). An internal evaluation carried out by the State as per the norms of NAEB for the Sadar FDA in the year 2005 is enclosed as annexure-A (Shailendra Singh 2005). This FDA was chosen as the NAEB has already rated this as Outstanding among the four best in the country based on the findings of an independent conducted by them in the year 2003-04. The forests and tree cover in the State increased by 10% of the geographic area (1028 Sq.km) between 2001 and 2003 assessment. The State is third in terms of total accretion and first in terms of percentage increase in forest cover in the country considering the changes noticed between the two assessments. The efficient implementation of JFM programme is one of the primary reasons for the reduced incidents of tribal insurgency in the State as the programme has provided livelihood opportunities to the tribal people and their genuine involvement forged a new relationship of mutual trust with the forest officials. This resulted in a better political environment and ultimately the feelings of alienation are vanishing. On the other hand, the State needs to take notice of the degradation of good forests, siltation of rivers and soil erosion in the hills due to shifting cultivation, poor species selection in the past and capacity building and empowerment of JFM committees. All these are the essential ingredients of sustainable forest management. To consolidate the gains the State Government has decided to accord forestry top priority to tap its full potential in the socio-economic development of the State and has opted for two external donors funding projects from the Japan and Germany likely to be implemented from the next financial year. In Andhra Pradesh also the JFM programme has seen drastic reduction in naxalite activities in Mehboob Nagar and other districts after the regeneration of degraded forests. In the recent past the JFM has been qualitatively successful in Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. As a result of better monitoring, consultations with the stakeholders and resultant better policy framework and implementation in the field, JFM movement in the country is the high point of success of the National Forest Policy 1988. The programme in the last
six to seven years progressed both quantitatively as well as qualitatively. The Committees are getting the attention of other Government departments also. For example, in Maharastra and Tripura, the JFM committees have been able to tap the financial resources from Panchayats under the Rural Development Departments schemes. In Assam, they are receiving funds from the Oil Companies for promoting Ecotourism. The Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources of the Government of India is also implementing its village energy programme especially the Biomass based energy installations through the JFM committees.
7.
Way Ahead for Future Sustainable Forest Management: The Emerging Issues Including Empowerment of Communities under the JFM:
The success of JFM movement in the country has opened up scope to learn from the experiences and find solutions to the emerging issues. On the positive sides it has become clear that the JFM committees are focused on their primary duty of forest conservation, protection, regeneration, and improvement of their livelihood opportunities and have emerged as a strong grass root level institution of communitys involvement in resource management. The well functioning committees are an example of collaborative actions in the midst of rising polarization of people on political lines and are proving a good platform for evolving consensus among various sections for efficient management of resources. All over the country the self-help groups within the JFM have proved immensely beneficial in generating income and empowering the women and other weaker sections. There are however, issues that are serious enough to be tackled in a timely and transparent manner to retain the interests of the communities and their commitment for the JFM programme. The ultimate gain of JFM in the country has been in making people aware about their role to participate in the governance of natural resources. The experience of Tripura (and other similarly placed States) shows that though the State has more than 77% of its geographic area under tree/ forest cover and the JFM has done very well, nevertheless, the long-term sustainability can only come if the emerging issue in JFM, shifting cultivation and technical forestry are tackled. Merely increasing the tree/ forest cover is no guarantee for ensuring long-term sustainable management of forests unless the inter-related (socio-economic, political and technical) factors impinging on the sustainability of the resources are tackled simultaneously. The situation is no different in other forest-dominated States in the country. Interestingly enough, these States are also having more poor people and are particularly poorer in economic infrastructure compared to other better-developed States and therefore unable to provide alterative economic opportunity to the people. The following issues therefore, need to be considered for making JFM a vehicle for sustainable management of the forests: a) Parameters for Constitution of JFM and scope of JFM: It is necessary that the speaking orders are issued by the State Governments for demarcating the JFM forest areas on maps, the extent to which the JFM can be practiced by the village communities considering the physical and other operational limitations. The working plan of the area should have a list of the beneficiaries, which should be updated frequently. The benefits accrued every year should be documented in a register to be maintained by the JFM committees and consolidated by the FDAs. This should form part of the annual report of the FDAs. The legal status of these committees needs to be stressed and proper rules should be framed under section 28 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927, which provides for such a scope. The committees need to be registered under the societies registration act 1860. The JFM members have been declared as forest officer in Uttaranchal. This should be extended in other states as well with proper rules and procedures. A working
code should be developed and approved to assign roles and responsibility with clear demarcation between the JFM members and the forest officials. b) Capacity Building: One of the important issues for the long-term success of JFM is to build the capacity of JFM bodies both in terms of their being viable and coherent units and their technical capability to handle the complex issues of development, forestry and wild life management. In each State there is a need to create a separate training and capacity building institutes for training the JFM members in technical forestry (like having a high tech nursery etc), skill development for management of land based resources, indigenous knowledge, conflict resolution, livelihood improvements, marketing, experience sharing etc. These institutes shall act as multipurpose capacity building centers. The longterm goals should be to reduce the dependency of people on forests. The income from the forests should be incidental and complimentary to other sources of livelihood. This can only be done if the health, education, social upliftment and economic development of the poor people dependent on forests can be ensured. This would require an enlightened leadership of people, committed planners and resource managers and a massive diversion of development funds in forestdominated villages. People should in general terms be able to realize the global importance of forestry issues. Simultaneously the capacity of field foresters shall have to be developed through proper training and orientation, exposures to policy changes, realization for the changed roles and attitudinal change. Empowerment of JFM Committees: The capacity building measures of JFM committees would lead to empowerment and thus better resource management. The process should start with delegation of management responsibilities, institutional mechanism for the empowerment of women and weaker members of the JFM bodies. As stated in Para a) above the working codes should be evolved and proper rules be framed to ensure that decentralizations of management, access and control is well defined with adequate safeguards for equity and benefit sharing and ensuring sustainability of resources. The forest department will however, have to play critical key role as facilitators . Relationship with the Panchayat Raj Institutions: All the adult member of a village are members of both the village Panchayat a constitutional political body entrusted with the governance at the local level after the enactment of 73rd constitutional amendment as well as the JFM committee. Ideally there should not be any conflict between the two bodies as the general body membership is same and only the areas of responsibilities are different. However, Panchayat leaders and their supporters do not favour the independence of the JFM bodies and their control over the resources and demand that the JFM be subsumed as subcommittees of the Panchayats. The independent identities of JFM bodies need to be maintained to consolidate the gains achieved and to enforce the philosophy of care and share. However, the strength of Panchayat Raj institutions need to be harnessed through a sub-committee of Panchayat as proposed in the Ministry of Environment and Forests Guidelines issued in December 2002. The objective should be to forge political consensus for the better management of forest resources at the village level. A number of potential areas of conflict and uncertainty exist between State forest legislation and Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas Act, 1996(PESA) that need to be better understood and addressed (World Bank 2006). Value addition of NTFPs: So far the earnings from the forests are restricted to low value items due to poor composition of forests, lack of planning and poor marketing strategies. To augment earnings for the beneficiaries from the forests the forestry has to become a high priority area for the planners. One of the important aspects relates to linking this with poverty reduction programme of the rural development department. The primary aim of JFM particularly in good forest areas should be to promote better management and utilization of NTFPs as the
c)
d)
e)
poor people depend more on these resources. This will require value addition, technological and skill up gradation, changes in laws, better and direct marketing access and extension and innovative management practices. This is the most important factor that needs attention of policy makers, planners as well as adequate investments. The capacity especially the human resources and the infrastructure needs of the forest department shall have to be improved for being able to meet these tasks. Many communities can assume a greater role in forestry management and marketing, but substantial time and investments will be needed to build strong local capacities and sustainable institutions (World Bank 2006). f) Monitoring and Evaluation: The success of any venture in public administration requires constant monitoring and periodical evaluation. The monitoring is also essential for the feedback and policy changes. The lack of perceived transparency and accountability makes the Government the prime suspect in the eyes of the public and public policy analyst. No matter how carefully a programme has been designed a few elements in the structural, institutional and policy framework are bound to be at variance with the ground realities (Bahuguna & Upadhyay, 2004). A strong feedback mechanism through constant monitoring and evaluation is therefore, an essential management requirement. The monitoring should be both internal as well as through external agencies. The monitoring should cover all the aspects like socio-economic issues, conflicts, benefit sharing, diversity of forest types, problems in marketing and institutional issues so that all the complex network of interrelated parameters affecting JFM are evaluated. At the local level, the JFM committees, NGOs and academic institutions should be involved along with the forest department as participatory monitoring. This will also help in synergy of action at the local level a must for ensuring sustainable management of the forests. Research and Development: This has been a hitherto neglected are in the JFM programme. A regular flow of information for taking informed decision is very crucial in the sound management of resources. The need for changes in the silviculture and management regimes for the areas under JFM is a well-recognized fact now. The models for the vegetation monitoring, sharing pattern, socioeconomic improvement of people, and marketing, legal, and institutional framework should be evolved and regularly up dated. This will ensure capacity building of the communities and foresters and the programme monitoring will be efficient and productive. The international trade frontiers have opened up scope to conduct research on topical issues of forestry, which may have impact at the grass root level management of forests including the JFM process. Mafa Chipeta (2001) argued that there is a case for India for policy-research on the possible impact of generalized trade liberalization and for development of options for forestry sector adjustments. The National Forest Commission in its report submitted before the Government in 2006, have recommended that the Government should develop the framework for creating democratic forestry institutions at primary, secondary and tertiary levels across the whole country with an aim to increase the efficiency of the ongoing decentralization. This would require in-depth study of existing institutions and the future set up. All this and other issues will be the subject matter of research.
g)
CONCLUSION:
It would be clear from the above critical analysis that the forestry professionals and the civil society in general in India, have realized that it is difficult to accomplish sustainable management of forests by following the traditional ways of dealing with the issues. They have already achieved significant success by involving the people in forest management and tree planting activities. The genuine involvement of larger civil society
and the empowerment of the stakeholders through capacity building and decentralization should be a key element of forest management in India. Foresters in the coming years will have to focus their professional expertise on management of key eco-systems for bio-diversity conservation and spend their energy and skills in grooming people for management of forests and tree lots for production of timber, fuel wood, NTFPs, harnessing the Eco-tourism potential of the beautiful forest landscapes etc. To achieve these goals we need to evolve all-inclusive pragmatic policies and institutional set ups by taking all the segments of the society together. It would be truism to say that the Indian civilization has been exploiting the resources on this landmass for thousands of centuries and the sustainability of the remaining resources would determine the future of generations yet unborn. In India, for the benefit of future generations, we need to combat poverty and take the people away from land-based economy and to have a vision that forests in the end should be managed for getting clear water and air and to retain and enhance the natural heritage and geographic features of the country.
REFERENCES
Anonymous (2006). India- Unlocking opportunities for forest-dependent people. The World Bank Publication: 166 Anonymous (2006). Report of the National Forest Commission, Government of India: 364 Anonymous (2005). Proceedings of National Workshop on Joint Forest Management, July 14-15, 2005. Publication of JFM Cell, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. Anonymous (2001). Report of the Task Force on Greening India for Livelihood Security and Sustainable Development. Planning Commission, Government of India: 17-44 Anonymous (1988). National Forest Policy 1988, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. Bahuguna VK (2005). Participatory Forest Management in India: sharing governance with the people. Commonwealth Forestry Association Newsletter. Volume 31, December 2005: 12-13 Bahuguna VK & Anoop Upadhyay (2004). Monitoring needs for JFM: the perspective of policy makers. In Root to Canopy, Edited by Bahuguna VK, Kinsuk Mitra, Doris Capastrano and Sushil Saigal. Commonwealth Forestry Association-India Chapter and Winrock Publication: 309-316 Bahuguna VK (2004). Root to Canopy: an overview. In Root to Canopy, Edited by Bahuguna VK, Kinsuk Mitra, Doris Capastrano and Sushil Saigal. Commonwealth Forestry Association-India Chapter and Winrock Publication: 15-24 Bahuguna VK (2001a). Production, Protection and Participation in Forest Management: An Indian Perspective in achieving the balance. Keynote address, given on 18th April 2001, at Freemantle Perth, Australia on the occasion of 16th Commonwealth Forestry Conference. Bahuguna VK (2001b). Joint Forest Management: An Instrument for Sustainable Forest Management. In Indias Forest Beyond 2000. Proceedings of the International Workshop Organized By Commonwealth Forestry Association and India Council of Forestry Research and Education, DFID and Planning Commission, Government of India, 19-21 April 2000, New-Delhi. Edited by Bahuguna VK and Peter Wood: 60-66. Bahuguna (2000). Forest in the Economy of the Rural Poor: An Estimation of the Dependency level. Published in AMBIO, Vol.29, No.3, May, 2000:126-129 Bahuguna VK (1990). Management and Research Issues in Social Forestry. Van Vigyan Vol.28, No. 1-2: 46-50 Blair Harry W. (1986). Social Forestry: Time to Modify Goals? In Economic and Political weekly, 21, 30 (July 26th 1986): 1317-1321 D.N. Tewari (2001). Forest Policy Option Aspects. In Indias Forest Beyond 2000. Proceedings of the International Workshop Organized By Commonwealth Forestry Association and India Council of Forestry Research and Education, DFID and Planning Commission, Government of India, 19-21 April 2000, New-Delhi. Edited by Bahuguna VK and Peter Wood: 28-32 Mafa Chipeta (2001). Indias Forestry on the International Stage: Indias Quest for its Own Future. Proceedings of the International Workshop Organized By Commonwealth Forestry Association and India Council of Forestry Research and Education, DFID and Planning Commission, Government of India, 19-21 April 2000, New-Delhi. Edited by Bahuguna VK and Peter Wood: 67-87. Ravindranath N H & P. Sudha (2000). Need for Assessment of Self-initiated Community and Joint Forestry Management Systems In India. In Joint Forest Management and Community Forestry in India- as Ecological and Institutional Assessment. Edited by Ravindranath NH, KS Muarali and KC Malhotra: 124. Shailendra Singh (2005). JFM Case Study- Evaluation Report of Forest Development Agency, Sadar Forest Division, Agartala, Tripura.
Annexure A
JFM Case Study- Evaluation Report of Forest Development Agency, Sadar Forest Division, Tripura
Introduction:
The Ministry of Environment & Forests, GOI in its circular No.35.38.2/2002-BII dated 15th July, 2003 asked the State Governments that Mid-Term Internal Evaluation of Forest Development Agencies (FDA) projects be commissioned through independent Evaluators/ Institutions/ Organizations through both the Government and NonGovernment sectors. In response to this the internal evaluation of Sadar Forest Development Agency was carried out by a team consisting of following officials from 14/12/2005 and 20/12/2005. (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) Shri Shailendra Singh IFS DFO, Teliamura, Shri Parendra Debbarma TFS Additional DFO, Teliamura, Shri Nihar Ranjan Debbarma, SFR, Range Officer, Champaknagar, Shri Samar Majumdar, Forester, BO, Chakmaghat, and Shri Swarajit Sarma, Forester, RA, Teliamura BSF Range The evaluation report submitted by the team is reproduced below: As it was not practically possible to monitor the works of all the JFMCs in the field because of logistics and other difficulties, we selected approximately one-third of total number of JFMCs under FDA for field visits. This selection of JFMCs was made following a random process. Firstly, all the JFMCs under FDA were arranged alphabetically, Range-wise. Then, every 4th JFMC was selected for evaluation from this list, e.g. 1, 4, 7.and so on. Deviation was made in selection only to the extent that at least one JFMC is selected from each Range. In addition, best two JFMCs, as per the report of DFO, Sadar were also evaluated. The JFMCs were evaluated for the following parameters: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 10. General Profile of the JFMC Progress of developmental works Peoples participation Protection efforts Transparency in functioning Record keeping Status of Micro plan and sustainability Socio-economic assets created Human resource development Overall performance of the JFMC
The information on above parameters was recorded for each JFMC in a proforma developed by the Conservator of Forests, Southern Circle. Extensive field visits were undertaken to monitor the activities of JFMCs in the filed. The records of selected JFMCs were checked thoroughly and interaction with JFMC members was made wherever possible. The Member Secretary and Range Officer concerned of each JFMC were present during the evaluation process. The JFMCs were then graded on a scale of 1-10 on the
basis of information collected in the proformas and through informal interactions. The performance of the FDA was finally gauged by extrapolating the ranking of evaluated JFMCs.
1. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT:

1.1 1.2 1.3 Project Title Name of the FDA Project Location 1.4 Project cost Project Duration Project Area : : : National Afforestation Programme. Sadar FDA Sadar Forest Division, South & West Tripura Districts. The area covers six R.D Blocks. : Rs. 90.39 lakhs 2002-03 to 2006-07 8928 ha
1.5 1.6
: :
2. PROJECT PROPOSALS: The Project is under implementation by Sadar FDA, a registered society under Societies Registration Act, 1860 (Reg No. 3954 of 2002). The FDA operates over whole of Sadar Territorial Forest Division. A brief description of the Project proposals is given below.
2.1 General Description of the forest covered by the Territorial Division. 2.1.1 Area of the Division A. B. Total Geographical area of the Division: 158406 ha Total Forest area a. Reserved Forest: b. Proposed Reserve Forest: c. Unclassed Forest: Total: C. 13682 ha 7736 ha 4553 ha 25971 ha
Total forest area is 16.39% of its geographical area
2.1.2 Description of the forest of the division Forest of this division can be grouped in four Main classes. a. b. c. d. Sal (Shorea robusta) Forests Garjan (Dipterocarpus turbinatus) Forests Open deciduous Forest Mixed deciduous Forest
2.1.3 Degree of pressure on Forest Resources Out of total population of the State of 27, 57,205, the population of Sadar Forest division is 8, 50,670 which is 31% of State population. Out of this 7, 09,702 people are habitants of plain area and only 1, 40,968 are habitant of hilly region. Because of such high population, requirement of forest produce is also very high in this Division and hence there is tremendous pressure on the forests. The State capital city Agartala and its satellite towns are situated in this Division. Two SubDivisional towns viz. Bishalgarh and Sonamura are also situated in this division. The other highly populated areas are Melaghar, Bisramganj, Charilam, Boxanagar, Ranirbazar and Mohanpur. The high quality structural timber, highgrade furniture & multi-purpose timbers in huge quantities are required in the urban areas. Fuel wood consumption is also very high although the LPG Gas, electricity and kerosene are used extensively in the Division. The other forest produces like bamboo, thatch, house posts, small timbers etc. are required in high quantities. River sand and stone are used in bulk quantities. Besides good
number of factories run in the capital and adjoining areas where huge quantities of forest produces are used as raw material and basic component. The rural plain areas of the Division need high quantities of small timber and fuel wood. The uses of quality structural timber by the villagers are limited but these are required in high quantity in govt. buildings, bridges, and other constructions. Valuable furniture timber consumption is less in this area but bamboo, thatch, ordinary house post etc. are consumed in high quantity. The cottage industries in the villages use cane, bamboo, small timber etc. as raw materials. Hill people are totally dependent on forest. They use thatch, muli-bamboo (Melocana buccifera) and poles for making their houses and collect firewood for cooking. Their consumption of the forest produces is negligible. But they extract thatch, bamboo, house post etc. from the forests and sell in the local market for earning their livelihood. The businessman pay the royalty of the forest produces, which they purchase from villagers and sell in the big markets.
2.2
Existence of JFM Committees (Number and activities)
Joint forest management as a formal programme started in the Tripura State with issuance of a notification in December 1991, by the Government of Tripura. But its success throughout the State was mostly concentrated in selected pockets only. The First attempt in this direction was made in Melaghar of Sonamura Range of Sadar Forest Division. The Forest Department started the project under the Research Division involving rural families living in 4 villages surrounding a plot of 100 ha of Proposed RF. This first attempt on JFM has been by and large very successful. The degraded barren land had already developed into veritable forest mostly from coppicing of Sal arising out of the still viable rootstock as a result of protection by the organized villagers. Success of this project helped in spreading the concept and importance of JFM in other area also. Thereafter, the Government of India circulated the guidelines of various Centrally Sponsored Schemes, making JFM as an integral part of all Afforestation and developmental activities. This helped in formation of more and more JFMCs in the state and in the Division. At present there are 25 nos. of JFM Committees in Sadar Forest Division and a few more are under the process of formation.
2.3
Location and area of the Project
2.3.1 Socio-economic profile of villages

The project is being implemented in 27 Gram Panchayats of the Sadar Forest Division covering 60 villages. Major criteria for selection of villages are as shown below. a. b. c. d. e. Extent of degradation of adjoining forest Dependence of villagers on forest Unemployment Rampant poverty Where villagers are quite cooperative and desperate for ecological restoration of the forest.
Most of the villages fall along the Indo-Bangladesh Border, which is a major cause of degradation of forests in this Division. Apart from that, in all these villages, the
population density is very high. Total project area is 10029 ha and total no of families that will be benefited are 3732.
2.3.2 Extent and distribution of forest area

As discussed, the forests of this Division are totally degraded with only 10% of area under dense forest cover. Continuous increase in population coupled with large scale smuggling of forest produces to Bangladesh has led to this condition of forest. Out of 8928 ha of estimated project area, 3000 ha are open forest and 2000 ha are scrub forest suitable for further plantation. 3928 ha of forest area are already covered by plantation in last 10 years with ongoing schemes. Remaining area is not suitable for forestry activities.
3.
The Objectives of the Project: The proposal has long term objectives such as protection, conservation and development of natural resources through active involvement of local communities, development of village level institution, skill up gradation of local communities and fulfillment of broader objectives of productivity, equity and sustainability. It would have short term objectives such as: Regeneration and eco development of degraded forests and adjoining areas on watershed basis, augmentation of the availability of fuel wood, fodder and grasses securing peoples participation in planning and regeneration efforts to promote sustainability and equity, promoting agro-forestry & development of common property resources, promoting fuel saving devices to encourage efficient use of fuelwood and reducing the drudgery of rural woman involved in collection of wood, and also to improving the environment, conservation and development of Non Wood Forest Products including bamboo, and medicinal plants, developing water resources through plantation and water harvesting programme, and also development and extension of improved technology, generation of employment for the disadvantaged and poor sections of the society. The Project Components: The project components including ANR, AR,
bamboo plantation, silvipasture development, plantation of mixed species of MFP and medicinal values, regeneration of perennial herbs, soil & moisture conservation, entry point activities, awareness & training, micro planning, fencing and overheads.
4.
5. THE EVALUATION REPORT 5.1 The Grades

The names of Beat-wise JFMCs sampled for evaluation are as given below:
Name of JFMC Kalamcharra Kalsimura Gopi Nagar Jeevandeep Kamalnagar Tulakona Purba Simna Twisamongkorai Charilam Melagarh SF Sonamura Sadar Range Subalsing Name of Range Boxanagar Name of Beat Kalamcharra Kalsimura Kalkulia Melarghar Kamalnagar Tulakona Simna R.S. Para
The evaluation was carried on the basis of performance, both qualitative and quantities, on all the 10 parameters of the evaluation proforma. The grading of JFMCs was, then, done on a scale of 1-10 giving equal weightage to all the 10 parameters. The grade was defined as follows: Excellent: 9-10 Very good: 7-8 Good: 5-6 Average: 3-4 The gradings of selected JFMCs are as follows:
Name of JFMC Kalamcharra Kalsimura Gopi Nagar Jeevandeep Kamalnagar Tulakona Purba Simna Twisamongkorai Grade points 6 9 4 6 5 9 5 4 Grade Good Excellent Average Good Good Excellent Good Average
5.2 The Analysis: The quantitative and qualitative analysis of the parameters selected for the sample JFMCs are done below:
5.1.1 Details of beneficiaries: The total no. of beneficiary families in the sampled JFMCs is 1983. The membership is almost evenly distributed among SC, ST and others. SC = 31.72 % ST = 27.58 % Others = 40.70 % Total = 100% Although males and females are joint members of JFMCs, about 12.50 % of the beneficiary-families are registered only in the names of women members of the families. 5.1.2 General profile of the JFMCs: The sampled JFMCs fairly represent the crosssection of all the JFMCs under Sadar FDA in terms of spatial distribution, degree of evolution over time, socio-economic profile and other vital aspects. All the sampled JFMCs are generally functioning well and playing important roles in the management of forests and socio-economic development of the members. The sampled JFMCs cover a project area of 3714 ha (all forest land): (RF/PRF/PF) and the project area per family is shown below:
Name of JFMC Kalamcharra Kalsimura Gopi Nagar Jeevandeep Kamalnagar Tulakona Purba Simna Twisamongkorai Total Project area (ha) 751 400 200 100 400 365 625 873 3714 No. of families 456 620 42 230 65 214 143 213 1983 Project area per family (ha) 1.65 0.65 4.76 0.43 6.15 1.71 4.37 4.10 1.87
The average area per family in the sampled JFMCs is 1.87 ha which is not too large. This is because of heavy concentration of population within the jurisdiction of Sadar Forest Division coupled with less area under forests. Inspite of extreme biotic pressures the project areas are being reasonably and effectively protected and managed by the JFMCs. 5.2
Progress of Development Work: In the sampled JFMCs, afforestation

over 295.50 ha has been carried out with various forestry species during 2002-03 to 2005-06 and a total of Rs 7.11 lakhs has been utilized during 2005-06. Average survival rate of the plantation raised during the aforesaid period is 70.66 % (which is the weighted average of the survival rate of all such plantations). This rate is quite impressive considering that all the sampled areas are severely affected by cattle grazing. Average height attained by the plantations is also satisfactory. The effect of severe cattle grazing can however be seen in several JFMCs.
A total of 8 water-harvesting structures have been constructed under 5 JFMCs in the sample area with a fund of Rs 6.82 lakhs. This is expected to serve as a useful purpose of augmenting the livelihood activities of the beneficiaries in the form of pisciculture as a spin off. The contribution to revolving fund as of now from the income so generated is Rs 25,700.00 in the sample area under 4 JFMCs. There is no contribution to the revolving fund under Jeevandeep JFMC as the Check Dam was washed off in June, 2005 reportedly due to heavy run-off. This needs to be maintained. The earnings may appear negligible now, but it may take some time when the beneficiaries shall start reaping the benefit of this. The Water Harvesting Structures are managed in all the JFMCs through Self Help Groups (SHGs) which contribute the lease amount as well as 20% of the annual income to the revolving fund of the JFMCs. The management of these structures is the best in Kalsimura JFMC among all the sampled JFMCs. 5.3
Peoples Participation: Out of the 8 JFMCs sampled, only 4 had one GBM
in a year and 6 had at least 4 EBM in a year. The degree of peoples participation needs to be improved drastically. In some of the sampled JFMCs the last GBM was held more than 2 years back. This is an alarming situation. It is also observed that participation of women in the General Body Meetings is abysmally poor (19 %). On the other hand the attendance of women in Executive Body Meetings is encouraging- 33%.
5.4
Protection Efforts: The degree of grazing pressure is high in 4 JFMCs and medium in another 4 JFMC. The detection of such cases by JFMCs has been low. Petty fines collected from such cases were deposited in the JFMC revolving fund in 25 such instances. The detection of illicit felling by JFMCs is good in 2-3 JFMCs but overall the situation is not very satisfactory. The assistance provided by the JFMC members in detection & control of fire is almost nil which indicates that sensitization and motivational programmes need to be focused more in the project area. Barring one JFMC in the sampled area, all others have formed protection groups and most of them are maintaining a protection duty register but actual performance needs much improvement. Transparency in functioning: The fund is jointly operated by the Beat
Officer along with President of the JFMCs in 7 of the 8 sampled JFMCs. Similarly,
5.5
the JFMC accounts were presented in The General Body and Executive Body meetings in 7 JFMCs but reflected in the minuted in only one JFMC. The sanction details of works etc are displayed regularly on blackened walls available in the locality with wet chalks in 3 JFMCs. In 3 other of the sampled JFMCs, the blackboards/walls have been prepared and the display was supposed to take place soon. In other cases also the details of works are discussed formally in the meetings and informally with the JFMC members by the Member-Secretaries concerned. The overall observation is that there is high level of transparency in the functioning of JFMCs. The cohesion among members within JFMC is not very satisfactory in most of the sampled JFMCs. The conducting of regular General Body Meetings and awareness programmes etc. will tend to improve this situation. The position of revolving fund is good in 4 of the 8 sampled JFMCs. 5.6
Record Keeping: The position of record keeping is not very satisfactory in the sampled JFMCs. Plantation journals are being maintained by 4 out of 8 JFMCs and nursery journal by only one. The General Body and Executive Body minutes book are maintained by 6 out of 8 sampled JFMCs. The records/ plantations are inspected by the superior officers but the observations are not being recorded properly by the Range Officers. Care should be taken by the inspecting officials to record their views or at least record their visits in such books. It can be concluded that record keeping should be given more attention. Status of Micro plans & SHGs: All the JFMCs have micro plans approved
by Conservator of Forests, Southern Circle except Gopi Nagar JFMC. A total of 17 SHGs have been created but in only 2 of the 8 sampled JFMCs. The other JFMCs should also be trained and motivated towards formation of SHGs along with creation of alternative income generation activities. Total revolving funds available with the SHGs is to the tune of Rs 2,23,088.00 of which 75% comes from only 2 of the 8 sampled JFMCs. This gives the impression that there is a deep division between the very-well- performing JFMCs and others. This gap needs to be addressed to so that all the JFMCs can contribute towards socioeconomic development of its members.
5.7
5.8
Other Socio-economic Assets created: Other socio-economic assets such as one Book Library and one Weaving Centre have also been created under entry point activities in the sampled JFMCs. In two other sampled JFMCs, 420 nos. families have been covered under farmland tree planting. More efforts are required to be made to create other socio-economic assets. Human Resources Development: The members from 4 JFMCs have participated in various training/awareness progremmes held at Paratia from time to time. The members from 2 JFMCs have undergone various skills up gradation programmes. Over all performance of the JFMCs: The JFMCs have performed satisfactorily in their primary duty of protecting existing forests by forming protection groups and a few of them have excelled in their endeavour. They have been able to make a firm beginning towards sustainable forest management by devising innovative ways to find alternative means of livelihood. They have also been able to raise the plantation with highly satisfactory survival rate and growth, barring some exceptions. The income generation from assets created is also appreciable in a few JFMCs but the overall picture needs improvement.
5.9
5.10
6. General Comments about Sadar FDA:

6.1 6.2 The Project is progressing satisfactory as per the approved targets. The protection duty by the JFMCs is reasonably satisfactory and JFMC members, especially women in some of JFMCs such as Kalamchara, are quite motivated for protection of forests. This also suggests that women members of the JFMCs should be encouraged more to assume a greater role in protection. Special attention, though, is required to be paid to control unregulated cattle grazing. Peoples participation is ensured in micro planning as per the norms of PRA. The entry point activities are duly focused to take into account the local demands; and durable assets are being created. The quality of the assets thus created is good, effective and useful and is creating favourable impact on the local people. Revolving fund is being created in the JFMCs. Meetings are being held fairly regularly, but participation of women needs to be improved. Record keeping needs drastic improvement. More training programmes may be taken up for capacity building. Inspections by Range officers, DFO and, the Conservator of Forests need to be recorded in the register regularly. The FDA has been duly constituted and is functioning by observing the NAEB guidelines. The Scheme is recommended for continuance.
6.3 6.4
6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 6.9 6.10
APPLYING CRITERIA AND INDICATORS FOR SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT IN INDIA (Adapting, Adopting the ITTO C&I)
Prof. P.C. Kotwal Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal
The international efforts to develop guidelines for assessing sustainability have been under way for many years. Within the framework of UNCED a number of countries have initiated the processes to identify set of Criteria and indicators for assessing the (C & I)sustainability of forest resources. These are the tools for monitoring, assessment and reporting of forest management intervention over time. Presently, the processes have made great stride towards monitoring, assessment and reporting on Sustainable Forest Management at national/regional and FMU level.
The B-I Process 2005

The Bhopal-India Process (B-I Process) 1998, was the Indian initiative to synchronize Indias SFM efforts with the rest of the world. It was conceptualized, that development of C&I for SFM in India would provide an effective way to set the management targets, in harmony with the national forest policy 1988 for sustainable forest development. The Government of India (GoI) constituted a National Task Force in November, 1999 which recognized 8 criteria and 43 indicators of Bhopal-India process and recommended a two-pronged strategy for adoption and operationalising criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management. In India, progress towards SFM has been through IIFM-ITTO project, that has registered considerable progress by developing and operationalising a functioning system of C&I for SFM by institutional capacity building through field based research activities and bringing about attitudinal changes in the stakeholders including the community. The National level set of criteria and indicators was refined in the year 2005 based on the experience gained at gross root level field application. The purpose of revisiting the existing set of Criteria and Indicators, through dialogues between all the involved parties, was to make them more robust and easy to apply in various types of forests in the country at the field level within the available resources. The Govt. of India has already opened a special cell for sustainably supporting and co-ordinating the activities of SFM in the country. It is envisaged to open SFM cells in the State Forest Departments. The National Working Plan Code 2004 advises incorporation of C&I and for their successful implementation in preparation of Forest working plans for SFM in the country. The set of C&I under Bhopal-India process of SFM were developed involving a large number of all types of stakeholders across the country. Thus it is widely known and acceptable and also recognised by the Govt. These are suitable to various forest types and other forestry situations in the country. These are also flexible for development of site specific(keeping all the 8 criteria intact for the sake of comparison and for its identity) at the FMU level as per the local forestry conditions. Most of the information pertaining to the indicators at FMU level can be collected through communities and the remaining can be collected from the forest department records. The indicators are simple and robust having scientific basis. The ITTO has expressed that its C&I would serve as a framework within which each country can develop its own system for determining sustainability at the national and FMU level (ITTO, 2005).
The ITTO Process 2005

The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) Criteria and Indicators were originally published in 1992 as Criteria for the measurement of sustainable tropical forest management. These were revised in 1998 to take into account the numerous international developments in ITTO that followed the UNCED in 1992. Since 1998 ITTO has embarked on an unprecedented initiative to provide training to the government and private sectors in its producer member countries, through national level workshops and projects, on the use of the C&I for monitoring, assessing and reporting on forest management in its tropical member countries. The ITTO process was revised in 2005 with 7 criteria and 57 indicators. By identifying the main elements of sustainable forest management, the C&I provide a means of assessing progress towards sustainable forest management and the ITTO objective 2000, which is to enhance the capacity of members to implement a strategy for achieving exports of tropical timber and timber products from sustainably managed sources. The information generated through the use of these C & I will focus research efforts where knowledge is still deficient and identify weaknesses towards Sustainable Forest Management.
The Criteria of ITTO process and B-I Process:

All the criteria between ITTO process and B-I Process are similar except that the criteria no.4 of ITTO comprises of the Production aspects while in case of B-I Process there are two separate criteria for Productivity and Utilisation. Further, the criteria of B-I Process are preceded by specific adjectives indicating the positive direction towards gaining sustainability. The criteria of ITTO and B-I Process are depicted in Table 1. Table 1: Criteria of B-I Process and ITTO Process.
Criteria of B-I Process 2005 1. Increase in the extent of forest and tree cover 2. Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity 3. Maintenance and enhancement of forest ecosystem function and vitality 4. Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources 5. Maintenance and enhancement of forest resource productivity 6. Optimisation of forest resource utilization 7. Maintenance and enhancement of social, cultural and spiritual benefits 8. Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework Criteria of ITTO Process 2005 2. Extent and condition of forests 5. Biological Diversity 3. Forest Ecosystem Health 6. Soil and water protection 4. Forest Production 7. Economic, social and cultural aspects 1.Enabling conditions management for sustainable forest
The Indicators of ITTO process and B-I Process

Nearly 70% indicators of B-I process are similar to those of ITTO. Thus, the set of C&I under B-I Process are in consonance with that of ITTO. It is more suitable in Indian context, as it has been developed involving all the stakeholders keeping the forestry situation in India. The IIFM (through ITTO sponsored research project) has developed a model for development of site specific set of indicators (based on B-I Process) involving
communities, periodic data collection (monitoring) based on the experience gained during application at 8 FMUs in different forest types in the states of M.P. & C.G. The comparative statement of indicators between ITTO and B-I Process is given in Table 2. Table 2: Indicators of Bhopal India Process Corresponding to Indicators of ITTO Process.
S. No. 1.1 Indicators of B-I Process 2005 Area and type of forest cover under (a) Natural forest forest (tree 2.5 3.1 Changes in forested area Extent and nature of forest encroachment, degradation and disturbance caused by humans and the control procedures applied Extent (area) and percentage of total land area under each forest type Protected area containing forest Extent and percentage of production forest that has been set-aside for biodiversity conservation. Measures for in situ or ex situ conservation of genetic variation within commercial, endangered, rare and threatened species of forest flora and fauna. Number of endangered, rare threatened forest dependent species. and (b) Man-made plantations) 1.2 1.3 S. No. 2.2 Indicators of ITTO Process 2005 Extent (area) of forests committed to production and protection
Forest area officially diverted for nonforestry purposes Forest area under encroachment
1.4 2.1
Area of dense, open and scrub forests Area of protected (Protected Areas) eco-systems
2.3 5.1 5.7
5.5
2.3
Number and status of threatened species (a) Animal prone to over (b) Plant species
5.4
2.5
Status of species exploitation
5.6
Existence and implementation of procedures for the protection and monitoring of biodiversity in production forests by: (a) Retaining undisturbed areas; (b) Protecting rare, endangered species; threatened and
(c) Protecting features of special biological interest (eg nesting sites, seed trees, niches, keystone species, etc); and (d) Assessing recent changes in (a), (b) and (c) above through inventories, monitoring/assessment programs and comparison with control areas 2.6 Status of non-destructive harvest of wood and Non-Wood Forest Produce 4.2 4.3 3.5 Incidences of pest and diseases 3.2 Actual and sustainable harvest of wood and non-wood forest products. Composition of harvest Extent and nature of forest degradation and disturbance due to natural causes and the control procedures applied.
S. No. 4.1
Indicators of B-I Process 2005 Area under watershed treatment
S. No. 6.1
Indicators of ITTO Process 2005 Extent and percentage of total forest area managed exclusively for the protection of soil and water Procedures to ensure the protection of downstream catchments value. Extent and percentage of areas in production PFE that have been defined as environmentally sensitive (e.g. very steep or erodable) and protected. Total amount of carbon stored in forest stands (forest vegetation carbon stock) Procedure to protect soil fertility and water retention capacity within production forest. Extent (area) of forests committed to production and protection
6.2 4.2 Area prone to soil erosion 6.5
5.1 5.3
Growing stock of wood Efforts towards enhancement forest productivity: (a) (b) (c) Technological inputs Area under plantations Hi-tech of
4.4 6.3 2.2
Area under Seed Production Areas, clonal Seed Orchards etc 4.1 Extent and percentage of forest for which inventory and survey procedures have been used to define the quantity of the main forest products Similar as 4.1 for non-wood forest produce Number of professional and technical personnel at all levels to perform and support forest management. Existence and implementation of economic instruments and other incentives to encourage sustainable forest management Number of people depending on forests for their livelihoods Value of domestically produced wood, nonwood forest products and environmental services in: (b) Domestic markets; (c) Export markets; and Informal markets including subsistence and illegal activities (estimate)
6.1
Recorded removal of wood
6.2 6.5
Recorded collection Forest Produce
of
Non-Wood
4.1 1.6
Direct employment in forestry and forest based industries
1.4
6.6 6.8
Contribution of forests to the income of forest dependent people Import and export of wood and nonwood forest produce
7.6 7.2
7.1
(a) Number of JFM committees and area(s) protected by them (b) Degree of peoples participation in management and benefitsharing (c) Level of participation of women
1.10
Public participation in forest management planning, decision-making, data collection, monitoring and assessment Existence and implementation of mechanism for the equitable sharing of the costs and benefits of forest management. Extent of involvement of indigenous peoples, local communities and other forest dwellers in forest management capacity-building, consultation processes, decision-making and implementation.
7.4
7.14
S. No. 7.2
Indicators of B-I Process 2005 Use of indigenous technical knowledge: Identification, Documentation and Application Quality and extent to which concessions and privileges are provided Extent of cultural/sacred protected landscapes: forests, trees, ponds, streams, etc. (a) Type and area of landscape (b) Number of visitors
S. No. 7.13
Indicators of ITTO Process 2005 Extent to which indigenous knowledge is used in forest management planning and implementation Extent to which tenure and user rights of communities and indigenous peoples over publicly owned forests are recognized and practiced. Number and extent of forest sites available primarily for: (a) Research and education; and (b) Recreation
7.3
7.12
7.4
7.10
7.11
Number of important archaeological, cultural and spiritual sites identified and protected Existence and implementation of policies, laws and regulations to govern forest management Forest tenure and ownership Existence of forest management plans Long-term projections, strategies plans for forest production and
8.1
Existence of framework
policy
and
legal
1.1 1.2 1.11
8.3
Level of investment in Research and Development
4.8 1.3
Amount of funding in forest management, administration, research and human resource development Training, capacity-building and manpower development programs for forest workers Value and percentage contribution of the forestry sector to gross domestic product (GDP) Amount of funding in forest management, administration, research and human resource development Number of professional and technical personnel at all levels to perform and support forest management Capacity and mechanisms for planning sustainable forest management and for periodic monitoring, evaluation and feedback on progress Availability and implementation of silvicultural guidelines for timber and nonwood forest products Availability and implementation of harvesting guidelines for timber and nonwood forest products Existence of communication strategies and feedback mechanisms to increase awareness of sustainable forest management
8.4 8.5
Human efforts
resource
capacity
building
7.7 7.1
Forest Resource Accounting (a) Contribution of forestry sector to the GDP (b) Budgetary forestry sector allocations to the
1.3
8.6
Monitoring mechanisms
and
Evaluation
1.6
1.9
4.10
4.11 8.7 Status of information dissemination and utilization 1.7
Indicators of B-I process and ITTO Process (2005)
Not matching 30%
Matching 70%
Unique Indicators of Bhopal-India Process 2005:

There are 13 indicators in B-I Process that are unique and address to the Indian forestry scenario. These do not match with the indicators of ITTO process. These are depicted in Table 3. Table 3: Unique indicators of Bhopal-India Process 2005 (Not corresponding to indicators of ITTO Process 2005)
Indicators process of Bhopal-India Justification conditions and their importance in Indian
1.5 Tree cover outside forest area 2.2 Number of (a) Animal species (b) Plant species 2.4 Status species of locally significant
Very useful in areas having low forest cover (<33% cover) Records biodiversity at species level
Status of locally significant species from ecological, economic and social point of view. Also, from conservation priority point of view Most of the forests in peninsular India are prone to accidental forest fires that affect the forests in many ways and therefore very important indicator. India has nearly 18% of the worlds livestock population and a large proportion graze in the forests. This significantly affects the forests particularly the regeneration of plant species.
(a) Animal species (b) Plant species 3.2 Incidences of forest fires
3.3 Extent of livestock grazing (a) Forest area open for grazing (b) Number of livestock grazing in forest
Indicators process (a) Area (b) Weed type
of
Bhopal-India
Justification conditions
and
their
importance
in
Indian
3.4 Occurrence of weeds in forest
Most of the open forest areas are infested with perennial weeds like Lantana that compete with the forest species and affect their growth & productivity. These are unique areas where normal plant growth is not possible and beyond the reach of normal regime of improvement treatment The soil fertility is an index of soil physical, chemical and biological parameters and can be assessed by growth/productivity of plants. Water is the limiting factor in areas having <1000 mm rainfall and the natural forest cover plays important role in soil water recharging through stem flow The increment in volume of wood species is below world average, which needs improvement through appropriate technologies. Reduction in wastage amount to productivity and need to be reduced. Like agriculture, the forestry sector also needs to fore see and plan to meet the requirements of the burgeoning population. There is a big gap in requirement of forest produce and their availability, which need to be patched up by appropriate means.
4.3 Area under ravine, saline, alkaline soils and deserts (hot and cold) 4.4 Soil fertility/Site Quality
4.5 (a) Duration of water flow in the selected streams (b) Ground water in the vicinity of the forest areas 5.2 Increment in volume of identified species of wood 6.3 Efforts wastages. towards reduction of
6.4 Aggregate and per capita consumption of Wood and Non-Wood Forest Produce. 6.7 Demand and Supply of Wood and Non-Wood Forest Produce.
Unique Indicators of ITTO Process 2005:

In ITTO Process there are 17 indicators that are unique and not matching to B-I Process. These are depicted in Table 4 along with the remarks. Table 4: Unique Indicators of ITTO Process 2005 (Not corresponding to Indicators of B-I Process 2005)
Name of the indicator Structure and staffing of institutions responsible for SFM Remarks At present there is no separate structure for SFM and staffing in the forest departments in the country. However, a special Cell for SFM has been created in the Ministry of Environment and Forests, GoI. Similar cells are envisaged in the state forest departments also. Technologies for harvesting of timber are standardised for certain tree species and in certain forestry situations. But precise standardisations are not developed ensuring sustainable production, efficient utilization and marketing system of forest products particularly for the NWFP. The extent (area) and percentage of total land area under comprehensive land-use plans is a matter of different departments such as agriculture, revenue, forest etc. that need interdepartmental co-ordination.
S. No. 1.5
1.8
Existence of, and ability to apply, appropriate technology to practise sustainable forest management and the efficient utilization and marketing of forest products.
2.1
Extent (area) and percentage of total land area under comprehensive landuse plans
S. No. 2.4
Name of the indicator Percentage of PFE with boundaries physically demarcated.
Remarks This is a useful indicator for FMU level to assess physical demarcation of the forest boundary in the field to avoid any encroachments in the forest land. This indicator describes area under of primary forest; area of managed primary forest; area of degraded primary forest; area of secondary forest; area of degraded forestlands. In India such classification of forests do not exist and therefore practically not possible to get the relevant data. The Forest Working Plans cover the forest harvesting/operational plan for the particular period and the area. Harvesting of other forest produce need relevant permits. The forest working plan of the FMU contain the prescriptions/for felling of mature trees for timber.
2.6
Forest condition
4.5
Existence and implementation of: (a) Forest harvesting/operational plans (within forest management plans); and (b) Other harvesting permits (small-, medium- and large-scale permits without forest management plans)
4.6
Existence of compartments/coupes harvested according to: (a) harvesting operational plans; and (b) any other permit harvesting/cutting
4.7
Existence of a log-tracking system or similar control mechanisms
There are separate Production Forest Divisions who keep the log-tracking from harvesting of timber as per the working plan, transport to timber depots and their auction to private parties. Thereafter the log-tracking does not exist. Historical records exist at the FMU level in the old working plans and compartment history records. At FMU level silvicultural and harvesting guidelines of important forest produce. Working plans exist and are implemented. There is an official document on Planning Protected Area network in India that subscribes PA representation in all Bio-geographic Zones and connecting biological corridors. The species are categorised according to IUCN categories but in the State Forest Departments there is no mechanism for identification of such species and no specific plans for their conservation except some prominent species in selected areas like tiger, rhino etc. Watershed approach is followed in dry areas having undulating terrain and open forest where soil is vulnerable to erosion.
4.9
Availability of historical records on the extent, nature and management of forests Area over which silvicultural and harvesting guidelines are effectively implemented Protected biological stones areas connected by corridors or stepping
4.12
5.2
5.3
Existence and implementation of procedures to identify and protect endangered, rare and threatened species of forest dependent flora and fauna Procedure for forest engineering, including, (a) Drainage requirement. (b) Conservation of buffer strips along stream and rivers (c) Protection of soils from compaction by harvesting machinery (d) Protection of soil from erosion during harvesting operations.
6.4
S. No. 7.3 7.5
Name of the indicator Forest products and efficiency. industry structure
Remarks Difficult to get the relevant data/information on this indicator. To some extent in JFM areas but need to be strengthened.
Existence and implementation of conflict-resolution mechanism for resolving disputes between forest stakeholders Existence and implementation of procedures to ensure the health and safety of forest workers Area of forests upon which people are dependent for subsistence uses and traditional and customary lifestyles
7.8
Only general safety precautions.
7.9
All the JFM areas are jointly managed by the communities and Forest Department where people are dependent for subsistence uses and traditional and customary lifestyles without harming the forests.
Strength of B-I Process:

Developed by involvement of a large number of all Types of stakeholders across the country and thus has wide acceptability. In consonance to the Indian Forest policy Recognised by Govt. of India Suitable to Indian forestry situations. Developed operational strategy and field application model. Flexible for development of site specific set of indicators according to specific forestry situation at FMU level. The indicators are simple, robust and the relevant data/information can be collected by involving communities at FMU level. Does not require technology, high expenditure. Incorporated in the National Working Plan Code 2004 and that most of the indicators are already covered in it for which the data/information is already collected during preparation of the working plans. Suitable for application at FMU level.
References:
Govt. of India. (2000). Report of the National Task Force on SFM.IIFM, Bhopal. Pages 1-44. Govt. of India. (2004). National Working plan Code. Govt. of India Ministry of Environment and Forests. Pages 1-48. IIFM. (2000). Bhopal-India process for sustainable forest management of Indian forests. IIFM, Bhopal. SFM series. Pages 1-28. IIFM. (2003). Strategy for operationalsing criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management. IIFM, Bhopal. Pages 1-42. IIFM. (2005). Proceedings of the national workshop on refining indicators of Bhopal-India process and implementation strategy of C&I in India. IIFM, Bhopal. ISBN 81-7969-023-7. Pages 1-44. IIFM. (2005). Proceedings of the workshop on Incorporation of criteria & indicators in the forest working plans. IIFM, Bhopal ISBN 81-7969-024-5. Pages 1-56 ITTO. (2005). Revised ITTO criteria and indicators for sustainable management of torpical forests including reporting format. ITTO Policy Development. Series no. 15. ISBN 4 902045 20 6 Pages 1-40.
FOREST CERTIFICATION AND ITS ROLE IN SFM

Dr. Bipin Behari
Certification is a market-based auditing system that verifies compliance with a number of criteria. It is a market-based approach that effectively shifts the burden of ensuring compliance from the government to the private sector and civil society. Currently, the vast majority of wood comes from sources with widely varying claims, or lack of claims, about the sustainability of the logging operations. Many governments have been generally unable to effectively ensure ecologically benign forestry. Many nations have been unable to stop even illegal logging on their forestlands, let alone assure that it is done in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. The certification movement has emerged to fill the gap. Forest certification, or green certification, is an attempt to identify forestland that is well managed toward a goal of sustainability. Sustainability includes the ecological, economic, and social aspects of managing forests. The purpose of certification is to provide verification that something- a product, service of process-has been done following the prescribed norms. Forest certification is the process of inspecting particular forests or woodland or any kind of forest product to see if they are being managed according to an agreed set of standards. Certification has thus emerged as a market-based mechanism in support of Sustainable Forest Management (SFM). Certification initiatives rely on consumers exercising purchasing choice in favour of products labeled as originating from forests certified as being sustainably managed. These initiatives evolved mainly by Environmental Non-Governmental Organizations (ENGO), have now assumed global importance and acceptance. Certification and Eco-labeling are the new mantras to enhance the product positioning for a premium price on one hand and ensuring better forest management practices on the other hand. Since environmental issues, including Certification and Eco-labeling are already under the purview of WTO under the Technical Barriers to Trade and therefore, becoming important in international trade in forestry related products. These can be used both for improving better environmental and forest management practices and hindrances for forestry products from developing countries to the developed markets. Forest certification is thus, a tool to help consumers choose ethical and environmental products from well-managed forests. The process of certification identifies these forests and the products coming from them. Through certification, individual forests as assessed against publicly-available standards, and if the forest scores sufficiently well, the forest owner obtains the right to sell and promote the products from that forest as certified. At the point of sale a label which bears the logo of forest certification scheme tells the consumer that the product is sourced from a forest that meets certain environmental and social standards. There are a number of competing forest certification schemes in operation, which vary considerably in scope, rigour, backing and history.
Objectives of certification:
A system that assures the public that environmental concerns and values have been addressed. Manage resources holistically so that healthy environments are maintained. Control resource management techniques.
Deputy Inspector General of Forests, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India Compilation of papers 251
Control resources economically Improve livelihoods Diminish the amount of regulation that is being imposed on a forestland owner Balance the need to extract resources from the environment while maintaining sustainable ecosystems. Control the values of private forestland owners, or for private forestland owners to maintain their values in the face of societys drive to impose its values on them.
General Types of Certifications:

Depending on the party responsible for certification and defining of standards, the process can be classified as: 1. First party certification: its an internal assessment process, where the organization itself sets up standards to evaluate its own management systems and practices. Second party Certification: The assessment is done by the consumer or an outside trade organization. Third party Certification: The standards are pre-defined and accepted, against which the performance of the applicant is evaluated by an independent third party. Also on the basis of approaches for certification it could be segregated as: 1. Performance based Certification: As followed by the FSC, there is pre-defined standard against which the management practices of the applicant (company) are evaluated. Management system based: as followed by the ISO 14000, wherein the standard and goals to achieve certain environmental performances is sent by the applicant (company) itself, against which the applicant monitors and assess their environmental performance and implement corrective measures.
2. 3.
2.
Forest certification contributes to the promotion of economically viable, environmentally appropriate and socially beneficial management of forests as defined by the Helsinki Criteria. But, while certification is becoming a baseline requirement for timber suppliers in some markets and market segments, buyers may not be expected to pay any extra for certification, even though certification adds value to the product in the sense that it provides information on the environmental quality of the product. Indias share in world forestry exports is negligible at US $ 47 million out of a total of US $ 145 billion; whereas the forestry imports are more than US $ 1 billion. But the Wood based Handicraft products exported from India (total handicrafts exports from India in 2003-2004 were at Rs.10,000 Crores) have a potential threat because of the certification requirements from the foreign buyers. Some foreign buyers including Indonesia, Malaysia, USA & UK are asking for certification and therefore, the office of the Development Commissioner (Handicrafts), Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India has taken the interest/initiative in this regard. According to them, certification can be perceived as a threat or an additional burden for doing business. But for others it can be viewed as an opportunity a chance to gain access to a market or gain significant advantages in the market place. Whatever be the point of view, it is important that suitable response is devised either by individual companies or nationally, by those organizations responsible for the production and sale of timber and wood products.
CLASSIFICATION OF COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH FOREST CERTIFICATION Total Costs
Direct costs of the certification process
Indirect costs (compliance with the standard requirements)
External Auditing
Internal costs
Compliance with performance criteria
Compliance with management system criteria
Initial costs
Costs of surveillance audits
Preparation
Participation in the process
Forest Management
Ecological
Social
Resources assessment & forest inventory
Records
Planning
Monitoring
Strategic
Operational
253
Compilation of papers
CLASSIFICATION OF BENEFITS ASSOCIATED WITH FOREST CERTIFICATION Total Benefits
Direct (revenue)
Indirect
Price premium
Additional sales
Monetary
Non-monetary
Assured current markets/sales
Cost reduction
Avoidance of loss of sales revenue
Other
Long term Resource
Environmental
Social
Organizational
254
Forest certification is therefore, a market-based, voluntary instrument created in the 1990s. It was designed as a means of identifying forest products sourced from a forest or forestry operation that follows minimum standard of good practices, including responsible processing of wood harvested from a sustainably-managed forest resource. Certification was created as an alternative to the failure of public policies and government actions to control illegal logging or check rates of deforestation and forest degradation. Forest certification has had an extremely successful history in the short decade since the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) was established in 1993 in Oaxaca, Mexico. Currently, more than 100 million hectares are certified under all scheme worldwide- 39.87 million hectares of these under FSC comprise 560 forest management areas in 57 countries (as of Nov., 2003). There are more than 10,000 certified wood product lines in the market, and more than 600 companies have joined the Global forest and trade Network. Buyers groups promoted by World Wildlife Fund were concentrated initially in the UK, but gradually expanded to North America and elsewhere.
Swedish FSC Standard for Forest Certification:

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an independent international organization with its headquarters in Bonn, Germany. Its aim is to encourage the environmentally responsible, socially beneficial and economically viable management of the worlds forests. The FSC promotes a voluntary accreditation programme for organizations and enterprises that certify forestry. The FSCs Principles and Criteria contain overall forestry management guidelines that may be generally applied all over the world. The system of certification, however, is to be adapted to the local conditions that apply in different countries, and one of the FSCs most important tasks is therefore to support the work of developing the Swedish FSC Standard. The objective here is to manage and use forest and forest land in forms that: Maintain, and where necessary regenerate the ecosystems production capacity, fundamental ecological processes and biodiversity, Secure peoples livelihoods, promote a safe working environment, respect the cultures of, respectively, the local population and the Sami people and their timehonoured rights, and attach due importance to values such as wildlife, fungi, berries, fish and recreation, and Promote long-term valuable wood production and good economic profitability. Certification in accordance with the FSC regulations signifies that the enterprise/landowner carries on environmentally responsible, economically viable, socially beneficial forestry management that complies with all applicable laws and regulations, the FSC Principles and Criteria and the Swedish FSC Standard. This certification also allows forest products from certified land holdings to be marked with the FSC symbol in forms decided by the FSC. There are two types of FSC certificates available from certification bodies:
(i)
Forest Management (FM) Certificate:
Forest management certification involves an inspection of the forest management unit by an independent FSC accredited certification body to check that the forest complies with the internationally-agreed FSC Principles of Responsible Forest Management.
If the forest practices comply with FSC Standards, then the FSC accredited certification body issues a certificate for the operation. Certified forest operations can claim the forest products they produce come from a responsibly managed forest. Before a certified forest operation can sell their products as FSC certified, they must also obtain chain of custody certification (FM/COC).
(ii)
Chain of Custody (COC) or labeling Certificate:
Chain of custody certification provides a guarantee about the production of FSCcertified products. Chain-of-custody is the path taken by raw materials from the forest to the consumer, including all successive stages of processing, transformation, manufacturing and distribution. It thus provides the link between buyers and sellers from the forest to the points of final sale From a customer perspective, the FSC label represents a promise that is being made to them. Chain of custody standards are the mechanism FSC has to ensure that promise is delivered. Operations that have been independently verified for FSC chain of custody certification are eligible to label their products with the FSC logo. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has the most widely used and highest possible standards for timber certification. These standards have 10 principles, each with its own guidelines. These principles include ensuring that local laws are respected and taxes paid; providing a wide range of economic benefits and reducing wastage; producing a management plan; sustaining timber output; and controlling environmental effects such as erosion and water pollution. Other FSC principles reflect the fact that much of the original concern regarding lack of sustainability came out from biologists but from human rights and indigenous peoples groups. Hence, 3 of the 10 FSC principles are devoted to local people and workers rights. This, of course, is laudable and necessary. But there is marked lack of corresponding principles regarding biodiversity in general and wildlife in particular.
Programme Schemes:
for
Endorsement
of
Forest
Certification
(PEFC)
The Programme for Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) Schemes was officially launched in Paris on the 30th of June, 1999, following months of intensive development work. The PEFC scheme, a voluntary private sector initiative, is to provide assurance to the customers of woodland owners that the products they buy come from independently certified forests managed according to the PEFC Criteria as defined by the resolutions of the Helsinki and Lisbon Ministerial Conferences of 1993 and 1998 on the Protection of Forests in Europe. The PEFC members include Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States of America. The purpose of the PEFC scheme is to promote an internationally credible framework for forest certification schemes and initiatives in European countries, in the first instance, which will facilitate mutual recognition of such schemes. Timber from certified forests that meet the PEFC criteria and requirements will have access to the PEFC logo. The total forest certification under the PEFC council endorsed scheme is 48.47 million hectares.
The Programme for Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) scheme provides the only alternative to the FSC at the international level, the debate has become very polarized; the fact that the two schemes are competing with each other in the marketplace does not help, either.
Canadian Standards Association (CSA):

The Canadian experience has been quite unique because over 80% of Indigenous Peoples live within Canada's extensive forest lands over 94% of which are publicly owned. It is reported that at the end of January, 2002 almost 93 million hectares of forestland across Canada was certified. CSA published a national Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) standard (CAN/CSA Z809) in 1996. The certified forests in Canada are based on ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems Standards (majority), CAN/CSA Z809 standards and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) standards.
Malaysian Timber Certification Council (MTCC):

The Malaysian Timber Certification Council is an independent non-profit organization established to plan and operate a voluntary national timber certification scheme to provide assurance to buyers of Malaysian timber products that the products have been sourced from sustainably managed forests. It has a Board of Trustees comprising representatives from academic, research and development institutions, the timber industry, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and government agencies. The national certification standards are prepared in close association with FSC. However, FSC has not mutually recognized the MTCC standards.
Malaysian Criteria for Forest Management Certification:

Principle # 1: Compliance with laws and FSC Principles: Forest management shall respect all applicable laws of the country in which they occur, and international treaties and agreements to which the country is a signatory, and comply with all FSC Principles and Criteria. Principle # 2: Tenure and Use Rights and Responsibilities: Long-term tenure and use tights to the land and forest resources shall be clearly defined, documented and legally established. Principle # 3: Indigenous Peoples' Rights: The legal and customary rights of indigenous people to own, use and manage their lands, territories, and resources shall be recognized and respected. Principle # 4: Community Relations and Worker's Rights: Forest management operations shall maintain or enhance the long-term social and economic well-being of forest workers and local communities. Principle # 5: Benefits from the forest: Forest management operations shall encourage the efficient use of the forest's multiple products and services to ensure economic viability and a wide range of environmental and social benefits. Principle # 6: Environmental Impact: Forest management shall conserve biological diversity and its associated values, water resources, soils, unique and fragile ecosystems and landscapes; and by so doing, maintain the ecological functions and the integrity of the forest.
Principle # 7: Management Plan: A management plan appropriate to the scale and intensity of the operations shall be written, implemented, and kept up to date. The long term objectives of management, and the means of achieving them, shall be clearly stated. Principle # 8: Monitoring and Assessment: Monitoring shall be conductedappropriate to the scale and intensity of forest management to assess the condition of the forest, yields of forest products, chain of custody, management activities, their social and environmental impacts. Principle # 9: Maintenance of High Conservation Value Forests: Management activities in high conservation value forests shall maintain or enhance the attributes, which define such forests. Decisions regarding high conservation value forests shall always be considered in the context of a precautionary approach. The Malaysian Criteria & Indicators (MC & I) made a lot of emphasis on biodiversity conservation. Many activities such as documentation and protection have been imposed. However, there are few activities that can generate economic value, particularly for the concessionaires. The economic benefits from biodiversity conservation is not yet realized.
ITTO CRITERIA FOR SUSTABIABLE MANAGEMENT OF TROPICAL FORESTS
Criterion #1
Enabling Conditions for Sustainable Forest Management (Legal, policy, and institutional framework)
Criterion #7
Economic, Social, and Cultural Aspects (Socio-economic functions)
Criterion #2
Sustainable Management of Tropical Forests

.. the process of managing forest to achieve one or more clearly specified objectives of management with regard to the production of continuous flow of desired forest products and services without undue reduction of its inherent values and future productivity and without undue undesirable effects on the physical and social environment.
Extent and Condition of Forests (Extent of forest resources)
Criterion #6
Soil & Water Protection (Protective functions)
Criterion #3
Forest Ecosystem Health (Forest health and vitality)
Criterion #5
Biological Diversity (biological diversity)
Criterion #4
Forest Protection (Production functions of forest resources)
259
ISO 14000 Series:
(International
Organization
for
Standardization)
The ISO 14001 certification requires a company to monitor and assess its environmental performance and implement corrective measures. These standards provide guidelines for the company to achieve certain environmental performance and their standards and goals are set by the applicant.
ISO (International Organization for standardization) Related to Certification Schemes and their Operations :
Guides
ISO Guideline 23: 1982. Methods of indicating conformity with standards for third party certification systems ISO Guideline 59: 1994. Code of Good Practice for Standardization. ISO Guideline 60: 1994. Code of Good Practice for Conformity Assessment ISO Guideline 61: 1996. General requirements for assessment and accreditation certification/ registration bodies. ISO Guideline 62: 1996. General requirements for bodies operating assessment and certification/ registration of quality systems. ISO Guideline 65: 1996. General requirements for bodies operating product certification systems. ISO Guideline 66: 1999. General requirements for bodies operating assessment and certification/ registration of environmental management systems I ISO 17030: 2003. Conformity assessment -General requirements for third-party marks of conformity ISO 19011: 2002. Guidelines for quality and/or environmental management systems auditing ISO 14020: 2000. Environmental labels and declarations -General principles. ISO 14021:1999.Environmental labels and declarations -Self -declared environmental claims (Type II environmental labeling). ISO 14024: 1999. Environmental labels and declarations -Type I environmental labeling - Principles and procedures ISO/TR 14025: 2000. Environmental labels and declarations-Type III environmental declarations
Forest Certification and Communities :

Over 50 communal forest management certificates have been awarded to community forest enterprises and hundreds of other communities around the world have been affected by the certification of public and private forestlands and forestry operations. The range of communities that have been involved in certification are the following: Community-based forest enterprises. Community players in company-community ventures. Community partners in company-community ventures. Community stakeholders in public consultations. Communities employed as laborers in industrial forestry operations and forest management, including Indigenous communities in Malaysian or Indonesian concessions, in forest communities in the Amazon, and in plantation schemes in the Philippines, and Communities of Indigenous Peoples seeking recognition of land and resource rights.
Certification has been a different experience for communities in the first category, depending upon the following characteristics: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) tenure rights to the forest - is it community-owned as in Mexico or a forest concession as in Guatemala, Indigenous versus non-Indigenous and whether certification is an element in an Indigenous rights movement or affects cultural practices, The mix of timber, wood, and non-wood products for which the forest is being managed, and links to agriculture or tourism , The degree of vertical integration between harvesting and processing and linkages to domestic and international markets, The participation of private sector or governments partners in the enterprise as investors, co-owners, or decision-makers, and, The size and quality of the forest resource and how this affects the scale of operations and the cost of becoming and remaining certified.
Since there is only limited experience with certification of communities, there are not many cases to compare, or to use as an indicator of future trends. Certification is also desirable for entrepreneurs because certified forests are exempted from the government forest audit. Some concessionaires and entrepreneurs have indicated that they prefer to deal with an independent certifying firm rather than with the government bureaucracy. Forest certification has some positive advantages for tribal enterprises. FSC certification standards are consistent with tribal values for sustainable resource management and provide public recognition to the consumer that a tribal enterprise is working sustainably. Certification of tribal management practices indicates to non-tribal neighbouring forest landowners that tribal practices are sustainable and worth emulating, helping tribal enterprises encourage these neighbours to adopt their resource management practices. Benefits of Certification to Communities
Examples of Advantages to Communities of Certification. Improvement in certified communities creates a new standard in a country with many problems of poor management and raises the standard of private as well as community enterprises overall-shows new possibility. Gives a legitimate vehicle to promote national dialogue on issues of forest tenure, worker equity, citizen participation in the allocation and management of public resources, community value systems, sustainability. Provides a measure of good management that communities need to protect their access to a resource and freedom to manage it. Provides a measure that can be a proxy for loans, payment for ecosystem services etc. Attracts donor financing FSC Examples ISO 14001Based Schemes
Bolivia, Mexico, Brazil, Sweden, Finland, Indonesia.
Brazil, Canada, South Africa
Canada, Sweden, Poland, Latvia, Europe.
Guatemala, Mexico, Bolivia, Brazil, Isaac, Canada. Yes Mexico, Guatemala, Bolivia, Yes
Examples of Advantages to Communities of Certification. Can reduce the illegality and poor practice in private sector competing with community enterprises for market. Creates a possibility of a specialized niche market for community products in a competitive environment
FSC Examples
ISO 14001Based Schemes
Bolivia, Guatemala
Ecuador,
Naturally durable tropical timbers, natural long-fiber pine.
Yes
Does Forest Certification protect indigenous and community rights?

For the communities that do not engage in community-based forest enterprises, but who live in public forest lands being zoned by government for diverse use, forest certification can be an important instrument to demand that governments and industries respect the land and forest tenure rights of Indigenous People and local communities. The FSC principles 2 and 3 establish the principles and criteria for tenure and use rights and respect for Indigenous Peoples. Other forest certification scheme such as SFI and PEFC do not assess indigenous and local community rights, an important distinction with FSC. Forest certification has thus led to an awareness of the need for and greater attention to forest tenure and livelihood rights, conditions of employment and worker health and safety, and forest sustainability. However, the current structure of forest certification scheme precludes the entry of a large number of forest communities into the process of certification, even if there is a simplification as proposed of some procedures and rules. This is particularly a risk for communities in the tropical forested countries where Indigenous and local people are highly dependent upon forests to sustain their cultural way of life and livelihoods and to raise incomes. It has been widely recommended by leading NGOs of the world that forest certification schemes be examined in light of the effect, impact, or congruence on communities. Certification should not be the only point of entry to a community or a problem of unsustainability, but remain complementary to other instruments and to adequate government and donor investments in promoting better practices among small and large-scale operations, striking a balance between raising the standard and helping the market share of certified products to expand. Comparative assessment of options for the recognition and validation of different well-known certification systems :
Model International Accreditation Forum (IAF) Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Strengths Commonly agreed criteria for forest management standards. Operating under current ISO accreditation standards. Established procedures Single scheme which can provide clear rules Support from NGOs and part of trade and industry. Current visibility in the marketplace of the common trademark. Weaknesses The arrangement is between national accreditation bodies, which do not exist in all countries. Uncertain if sector-specific arrangements may have priority within IAF Monopoly of the only scheme in the world. No other scheme formally recognized as yet. High level of requirements leads to limited access to the scheme in practice.
Model International Forest Industry Roundtable (IFIR) Programme for Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) Scheme Keurhout
Strengths Comprehensive approach addressing all elements and all kinds of schemes. Quality assurance provisions Support from industry and some other stakeholders. Comprehensive approach addressing all elements. Established mechanisms for endorsing national schemes. Common trademark. Comprehensive approach Can be applied to both certification systems or individual certificates No need for own label by applicant schemes. Flexible, meets the needs of users Possibility of linking with other models.
Weaknesses Still at conceptual stage. Assumes schemes wish to get mutually recognized
Regional application only for the time being. Lack of ENGO support. Accreditation arrangements not yet fully completed Low perceived performance requirements by some stakeholders. Unilateral mechanism. Certain level of ambiguity in the role of the recognition body.
Users' assessment
Different evaluation criteria creates problems for schemes. Not directly proliferation. aimed at
by
users
reducing
(Source: Compiled, based on Rametsteiner & Simula, 2001)
Forest trends, a leading world NGO of USA - recommended the following two sets of actions (i) The first set of actions is to revisit the objectives of certification and to modify the criteria and indicators and process of certification to reach a wider range of forest communities. Currently, standards are set up to apply best to enterprise in the formal sector. Certification is not taking advantage of long-standing practices of communities that achieve the same set of goals but in a different way. The second set of actions is targeted to those forest communities for which forest certification is not a currently viable option. Here, efforts are needed to foster and expand coverage of alternative SFM instruments (fair trade, ethnical collection standards, deregulation of market barriers, devolution of rights & responsibilities, and business support). Alternatives must address the multiple income streams that money, forest communities derive from the forest so that SFM instrument is not too expansive.
(ii)
Approach of International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) towards forest certification:

ITTO was one of the first international intergovernmental organizations to address the issue of forest and timber certification. Intense and protracted policy discussion within the International Tropical Timber Council (ITTC) in the early 1990s led ITTO to commission its first study of the issue in 1993. ITTO work on 'forest and timber certification' is made more urgent by the fact that certification and labeling are making great strides in developed countries while tropical and other developing countries are lagging far behind. There is thus, a clear need to support the efforts of those developing countries that want to engage in
certification and labeling to promote sustainable forest management and to enhance market acceptance of their forest products.
Summary of Proposed Procedure of ITTO for 'Phased Approaches to Forest Certification':

The chain of custody certification should be an on/off element in phased approaches. Appropriate control of the chain of custody and its certification are essential conditions for the success of the phased approach. To develop a phased approach system within an existing certification scheme, the following issues should be addressed: 1. the definition of how many phases will be defined taking into account the difficulties achieving full compliance; between two and four intermediate stages are suggested; the definition of the requirements to be complied with at each stage; the definition of the allowable time frame for the entire process and its individual phases definition of the mechanism to communicate on the progress to customers, the public, and other stakeholders implementation of the phased approach development of provisions for the phased approach within existing certification systems.
2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
The proposed procedure will depend on the option of phased approach to be implemented. For each option there are other procedures to be adopted. These are: Option 1. Baseline and Action Plan Option: establish the baseline requirements. These should include the legal requirements. establish the process of verification.
Option 2. Cumulative Phases option: establish the number of intermediate phases. establish the set of requirements that constitute part of the first level. establish the score that need to be attained at each level. establish the weighing system to establish the scores. establish the checklists to be used by the auditors.
Option 3. Pre-defined Phases Option: establish the number of intermediate phases. break down the requirements of the standard into each phase. In each phase there should be requirements of each sustainability dimension (social, economic and environmental). The first level should include all the legal requirements. There are some common procedures in all the three cases: establish a consultation process to conduct the development of the scheme and the establishment of the certification rules (for example, establishing a certification committee with the participation of representatives of the interested
parties with single interest dominating). This committee would be in charge of conducting and supervising the entire process of setting up the phased approach. The consultation process can include a public consultation about its rules. define which option of the phased approaches will be used. establish the mechanism of communication on the achievement of each phase to the stakeholders establish the timeframe allowed to the implementation of the phased approach.
Systematic verification of legal compliance in forest management using external auditors is still in its early stages and the experience shows that it is a complex issue. Swiss-based SGS company is promoting the establishment of a system of 'Independent validation of legal timber' based on the concept of independent monitoring and verification of land use changes, timber flows and resource management both at the national and producer level. This concept includes two components that can be implemented stepwise: (i) Certification of legal origin verification that the logs or timber products (a) were legally purchased from the rightful owner and have legally been sold and transferred down the chain of custody to the point of reference of the certificate, and Conform to national or international product specific regulations such as protected species or minimum diameters etc.
(b)
The system would also periodically verify that duties have been paid and the allowed volumes of cut or quotas have been respected. Past, unsettled noncompliance may block the whole process. The products could be labeled as 'Timber from a legal origin'. (ii) Certification of legal compliance involves the assessment of forest management with regard to compliance with specified national legislation and regulations including the terms of the concession agreement of harvesting permit. This typically covers the preparation and implementation of the forest management and harvesting/operational plans, including mapping, boundary demarcation, forest inventory etc. If the certificate of legal origin has been issued, products could be labeled as 'validated legal timber' if the certificate of legal compliance is obtained.
Enabling Conditions:
There are number of specific pre-conditions to make market-based certification work: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) Demand for certified and/or labeled products; Conducive policy and regulatory framework; Certification is locally driven; Expected benefits exceed costs; Sustainable forest management is achievable in the short or medium term, and progress towards this goal can be recognized through certification; and Effective broad-based participation can be arranged for setting of certification criteria.
These pre-conditions can be taken as necessary but they may not be sufficient to make certification work in practice. Enabling Conditions: Governance and Regulatory Framework
S. No. 1 1. CONDITION ANNOTATION Implications of absence or potential for certification to support 4 Certification is difficult to achieve where tenure rights are not clearly defined.
2 Tenure and Resource rights
3 They are legal and traditional tenure and resource rights clearly recognized and maintained or a process in place that is accepted by most stakeholders for resolving tenure conflicts. It is illegal logging and forest clearance is adequately controlled.
2.
Resource protection
Good forest management, and therefore certification, is difficult to achieve where illegal activities are widespread or uncontrolled. Certification contributes to the development of better recognition of roles and responsibilities through the standard- setting process and requirements for participation and consultation. Certification is difficult to achieve where policies and laws are confused or inconsistent with responsible forest management. However, in some cases certification may trigger the recognition of problems and provide an opportunity for change. Certification promotes legal compliance but is unlikely to be sufficient on its own. Certification can be a useful tool to assist or support monitoring of legal compliance.
3.
Rules of different stakeholders and institutions
These are the roles of all stakeholders and institutions in forestry negotiated and recognized.
4.
Coherent forest policy and legislation.
There is a coherent framework in place, which requires and supports responsible forest management and an absence of laws and policies, which prevent or conflict with its implementation.
5.
Coherent set of instruments
These are the mechanisms in place to encourage and enforce implementation of laws and policies. This is the mechanism for supervision and control of legal and other requirements for responsible forest management.
6.
Monitoring
Certification of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs):

In recent times, there has been a paradigm shift from timber oriented forest management to Non-timber Forest Product oriented multi-tier forest management. Standards for certification of NTFP include the technical specifications of the raw materials as well as the processed materials required by the end-user industry e.g. pharmaceutical industry in case of medicinal plants. Such standards should also include the good silvicultural and management practices such as adapting the WHO/FAO recommended practices like good harvesting practices (GHP).
FSC standards are not appropriate to many of the NTFP collection practices and where collection extends outside of tribal lands to public lands where tribal members have collection rights, this complicates certification. The Inter-Tribal Timber Council in USA has been evaluating alternatives to forest certification, which are more appropriate to tribal needs and interests, such as setting of ethical standards work a "tribal" market logo or certification of NTFP collectors rather than specific forest management areas. According to assessment report of the Canadian Forest Service of Non-timber Forest Product Management, certification of NTFP, only makes sense if the market is at a greater distance from the collection site-the more local the market, the more a local labeling system or methodology will serve the needs of forest, the collectors and the consumer. As in the case of tenure disputes, rights to collect NTFP can present a problem of considerable complexity to a certifying body where national and local laws do not deal with the realities of actual practice. How it affects the competitiveness of different collectors of NTFP have not been evaluated with any degree of seriousness across the certification landscape. Small-scale collectors of NTFP and community-based enterprises with commercial non-timber activities already face a serious set of policy and regulatory barriers to access market and gain reasonable prices for their products. Some of the alternatives lie in evolving models for licensing access to NTFPs or in labeling products as sustainably harvested outside of timber-based community operations. The current model at large, is to over lay biological protected areas, which acknowledges the rights, presence and contribution of communities and preserves their rights to pursue traditional activities and activities that have a positive impact on the biological landscape. This can be positive when local peoples' needs and interests coincide with the interests of the environmental stakeholders particularly if the legal figure of the protected area provides protection to local communities from outside encroachment on their resources. It has been focused in the Indian context that NTFPs are collected by the local communities and therefore, the community awareness is must. The community, society and the State may like to develop first the database on the NTFP resource availability and then on the products, markets and the services related to these NTFPs. Before setting any standards both for product as well as management practices, thorough research has been emphasized to be carried out on specific aspects of each NTFP with respect to its silviculture, management, harvesting and post-harvesting practices in order to ensure the requisite quality of raw-materials for the user industry. Chhatisgarh Forest Deptt. conducted a workshop on certification of NTFP, medicinal, aromatic and dye plants at Raipur on 9.4.2003. The distinguished participants from different parts of India identified certain pre-requisites for certification programme of NTFPs(i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii) (viii) (ix) Community Controlled Resources Organic production Traceability/chain of custody Benefit sharing mechanisms Non-destructive harvesting Value addition Socio-cultural matrix Green marketing Quality control mechanisms.
The cultivators of NTFPs mentioned that certification is a costly affair and hence it shall be attempted according to the market vied for. It is the process that is certified and not the product. There should be a Govt. of India run certification agency working along the lines as prescribed by international protocol. However, the main recommendations of the said workshop are Set up an autonomous independent certification agency. Invite membership from willing parties to be associated with the NWFP certification programme. Financial requirement for the process must be borne by an unbiased source to avoid any conflict of interests. Services such as Laboratories facilities may be sourced from external agency through appropriate integration. 'Operational Plans' for harvesting are sanctified but modalities must by set for implementing the same on the ground. So far we have the 'Working Plans' for management of timber. Similarly, there is a need for a separate criteria and indicator for management nonwood forest produce. The NGOs should be involved in the certification process. For this, there should be: a strong participatory forest management (PFM) network. benefit sharing mechanisms strong conservation based commercial use capacity building of people.
There will be a need for formulating local standards. Local people will have to be trained in these local standards. Guidelines will have to be developed Guidelines will have to be communicated to the various stakeholders and at village level, trainings will have to be conducted for sensitizing the local communities regarding certification and the benefits accruing thereof.
Forest Certification in India:

The very basis of modern management of forestry in India is and has been sustainable yield, which in real terms is sustainable management. Even during the premodern era, management of forestry was given high importance and was also in sustainable manner. Thus, the term sustainable Forest Management (SFM) is not new to the Indian Forestry. But, forest certification is a relatively new concept to India. Nation Forest policy, 1988 maintains the long-term viability of commercial forests, protects bio-diversity and provides a continuous stream of social and economic benefits. In India timber markets largely dictate forestry practices. After the intervention of the Hon'ble Supreme Court, the visible market force in the forest management has been affected adversely. India thus, has to initiate a process of certifying forest/forest products to get access to Green markets and receive a premium price in the international market. This shall ultimately benefit the local communities by sustainable and improved price for the resources and value added handicraft products.
Bhopal-India process evolved criteria and Indicators for SFM but they are yet to be implemented at the national level. Looking the development of global scenario, it has become imperative to have a national policy on 'forest certification'. From domestic (National) point of view also, certification is necessary to ensure the continuity of forest goods and services through SFM approach. Export promotion council for Handicrafts (sponsored by Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India) has suggested two responses/ options in this context:(i) Laissez - faire response: National and State Govts. do not take a decision on certification but leave it to Indian based suppliers to respond. This is an open market approach for them and would be cost-effective. The suppliers can choose which scheme national/international certifier they want to undertake the certificate. If India decides that it wants to be able to access certified markets with timber and wood products from its domestic forests, it will have to design an appropriate strategy to get some (or all) of its resource base credibly certified.
(ii)
Thus, there are various crucial issues that need to be addressed in the process of developing certification activities both for timber and NTFPs in India, which cannot be further delayed. These include: (i) Role of Government of India and State Govts. in developing policy and legal framework for certification activities and also in developing the certification process. Clearly defining the objectives, area and responsibility to bear large expenses of forest certification. (a) Developing appropriate national regulatory, fiscal and institutional structures that are essential for certification system to operate and the mechanisms to implement the certification schemes. Role of such a Nodal /National Autonomous Agency for forest certification in India
(ii) (iii)
(b) (iv)
Participation of stakeholders in setting of national and regional standards and in the implementation of the certification processes including smaller growers/farmers and communities. Developing certification processes and models to cover a diverse array of forest products, tenure arrangements including Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) etc. Ensuring credible and feasible certification schemes encompassing the elements of quality of assessment of forest management and acceptability to all key stakeholders. Cost effectiveness and commercial viability. Ensuring comparability and equivalence in standards with the other international certification imitatives and in consistent with the provisions of WTO. Developing range of incentives for Industries and private farmers to participate in certification. Establishing minimum accreditation or licensing standards for 3rd party certifiers and recommending mechanisms for registration, monitoring the work of certifiers. Mobilizing international assistance for operationalising forest certification schemes in India. Developing of bio-safety protocol with regard to chemical interventions in a natural process.
(v) (vi)
(vii) (viii) (ix) (x) (xi) (xii)
(xiii)
Raising of awareness about forest certification amongst broad cross section of state or national stakeholders; and technical assistance etc.
(xiv) Developing certification capacity in civil society and imparting of training and
The Ministry of Environment and Forests has thus, constituted a National Working Group/Governing Body to frame the policy guidelines on Certification of timber and NTFPs. The National Working Group/Governing Body will also prepare the Terms of References (TOR) for the composition and functioning of the following three separate committees: (i) (ii) (iii) Committee for Certification Criteria Committee for Certification Processes Committee for Accreditation Criteria and Processes
The matter is under progress to move forward with the certificate of Forests, timber, Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) including medicinal plants and seeds & planting material of forestry species in a systematic manner visualizing the Indian conditions but having necessary compatibility with international standards.
TOR for the Committee for Certification Criteria

1. The committee shall study the various International Certification Schemes and the processes of Sustainable Forest Management such as ITTO initiative on C&I, African Timber Organization, Program for Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes- PEFC, Montreal Process, TaraPoto Proposal, Dry-Zone Africa Process, Near East Process, Lepaterique Processes Central America, Regional Initiative for Dry Forests in Asia Bhopal India Process. In addition to the International Certification schemes namely FSC (Forest Steward Council), PEFC (Program for Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes) and ITTOs phased approaches of forest certification & cost benefit analysis etc., the committee will also study the National certification schemes like MTCC (Malaysian Timber Certification Council), LEI (Lembaga Eco-level Indonesia) etc. The committee will also study the implementation of C&I developed under Bhopal India Process at 8 FMUs in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh under ITTO-IIFM Project to understand the applicability / problems of implementation of the 8 criteria and 43 indicators developed under this process and to accordingly formulate the certification criteria so as to meet the requirements of international processes and the local situation in the country. The committee will also study any certification projects undertaken so far in the country. The committee shall also study the certification projects undertaken in NTFP certification including MAP certification such as in Brazil and the Pilot project in Nepal. The committee after studying all above, shall then recommend a set of Principles, Criteria, Indicators and Verifiers for Forest Certification in India which may be acceptable internationally, based on the conditions and situations in the country with respect to the management of forests, inter-dependency of forest and the local communities. The committee will recommend the Certification Standards for Timber Certification and for NTFP Certification separately i.e. principles, criteria, indicators and verifiers for each separately.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
The committee will also explain/define each term used in the certification standard such as principle, criteria, indicator, verifier, FMU, timber certification, NTFP certification, forest, communities, auditor etc. as implied in the certification standard and applicable for forest certification in India. The forest certification standards shall reflect a balance approach between Ecological, Social and Economic aspects of Sustainable Forest Management. National Forest Working Plan code shall be strengthened to include various Criteria & Indicators (C&I) to facilitate the certification process. The Committee shall prepare a Draft National Forest Certification Policy in conformity with National Forest Policy focusing on natural forests and also the forest produce coming from agro-forestry, plantation-forestry etc., irrespective of their ownership.
7. 8. 9.
TOR for the Committee for Certification Processes

1. The committee shall study the certification processes adopted by International Certification Agencies such as PEFC, FSC, MTCC, LEI and BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards), Quality Council of India, International Standards Organization (ISO 14000) etc. The committee will recommend the certification processes and the detailed procedure to be followed by the certification bodies for carrying out the assignment/audit of a forest management unit (application) in India. The committee will specifically recommend as to how each principle and indicators/criteria/verifiers within each principle are to be assessed by the auditor/audit teams. The process and procedure of certification should also specify the field verification methodology with respect to indicators to be verified, method of verification, instruments used for verification, method of analysis. The certification process shall also include the stakeholders participation and consultation on major sustainability aspects i.e. Ecological, Social, Cultural and Economic aspects. The committee will also explain/define each term used in the certification process as implied in the certification standard and applicable for forest certification in India. The committee should arrive at a workable framework for certification processes so as to develop a synergy leading towards mutual recognition from International Forest Certification Schemes.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Terms of Reference for Committee for Accreditation Criteria and processes

1. The committee shall study the accreditation criteria and processes followed by the International and National Certification Schemes such as FSC, PEFC, MTCC, LEI, BIS, APEDA, MoCI for organic Certification, QCI (Quality Control of India), ISO14000, Brazilian Certification Scheme etc. After studying all the above, the committee will recommend the setting of an accreditation body for forest certification in India. Such an accreditation body may be an autonomous body so as to be a representative of various stakeholders and to be viewed as an independent and neutral body. Such a third party approach is supposed to have more credibility for being impartial.
2.
3.
The committee shall specifically recommend the criteria for selection of a certification body for accreditation with respect to its competence, legal and financial status and the organization structure including the competence of experts available with the certification body. The committee shall recommend the criteria for selection/empanelment of experts as auditors/assessors who will undertake the assessment of a forest management unit (applicant) on behalf of the certification body and as per the certification standard of the National Certification Scheme (India). The criteria for evaluating the competence of expert should include the educational qualification and the practical experience in this field. The committee shall also explain/define each term used in the accreditation criteria and processes such as accreditation body, certification body, assessors/auditors, implied in the accreditation criteria and processes and applicable for forest certification in India. The committee shall also recommend a suitable logo to be used for the National Certification Scheme. The committee should arrive at a workable framework for Accreditation Criteria and processes so as to develop a synergy for Indian Forest Certification Scheme leading towards mutual recognition from International Forest Certification Schemes.
4.
5.
6. 7.
These Committees will discuss the identified issues related to Forest Certification along with criteria and processes to develop a National Scheme for the same. If necessary, Indian Forest Certification Council, an autonomous/independent institution may also be proposed to be created for the Forest Certification of Timber and nonTimber Forest Products which will go a long way in not only further strengthening the roots of Sustainable Forest Management in the country but also to safeguard the interest of exporters of forest based produces/value added items.
*****
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT STATUS: REQUIREMENTS FOR PROMOTING SFM

Dr. S.S. Negi, IFS Director, Forest Research Institute, Dehradun
Forests are a key factor in maintaining the well being of an ecosystem. Through the ages, forests have occupied a unique position in various life supporting processes. Forests and their sustainable management is an inseparable ingredient of sustainable development. The Rio statement stated that forests, with their complex ecological processes, are essential for economic development and the maintenance of all forms of life. They are the source of wood, food and medicine, and are rich storehouses of many biological products yet to be discovered. They act as reservoirs for water and for carbon, that would otherwise get into the atmosphere and act as a greenhouse gas. Forests are the home to many species of wildlife and, with their peaceful greenery and sense of history, fulfill human cultural and spiritual needs. The sustainable use of forests will require sustainable patterns of production and consumption at a global level. Forests should be managed to meet the social, economic, ecological, cultural and spiritual needs of present and future generations. India is the seventh largest country in the world having a total geographical area of 3.28 million square kilometers. The climatic diversity along with the edaphic element endows the country with forests of many kinds. The forests cover 23 percent of the total land area of the country. They are characterized by immense biotic pressure, low productivity and acute degradation. The average productivity of Indian forest is 0.7m3/ha/ year against the world average of 2.1m3/ha/year. Besides having a significant role on economic, ecological and scientific values, the forests of India have social, religious and ethnic importance also. In number of cattle and domestic animals, it stands at the top of the list of countries. The fuelwood collection is far in excess, than the carrying capacity of these forests. Historically, the aim of forest management was to have sustained yield of output but later on the management objectives changed from production forestry to conservation forestry. The present management system mainly relies upon massive afforestation programmes, efficient use and reclamation of wastelands, scientific management of natural forests as per the working plans, increase in the productivity of existing ecosystems, efficient utilization of wood, NWFP management, protection of fragile ecosystem, conservation of biodiversity, planting stock improvement, peoples participation in forest management and the sustainable use of natural resources. The decrease of forests are mainly due to over exploitation in the form of loss of land to agriculture, industries and human settlement, shifting cultivation, multipurpose projects, construction of roads, etc. and degradation due to felling, excessive grazing, litter removal, and lopping for fuel and fodder. The research being carried out in forestry sector need to be evolved in an intergraded manner to increase the Today forestry in India has been called upon to deal with conflicting interests and to somehow strike a balance between them so that there is no further degradation of our forests. The following conflicting interests have to be taken into consideration while prescribing the management of our forests. 1. Local Needs: The needs of the local population with regard to fuelwood, fodder, small and constructional timber are of paramount importance. In most cases
people living in the rural areas particularly those residing in and around forests belong to the poorest sections of our society. They depend heavily on forests for their everyday needs and many even for their livelihood either in part or fully. Under such circumstances it is not possible to close our forests for use by these people though the fact remains that the damage caused by this factor alone has been primarily responsible for degradation of our forests over the centuries. 2. Diversion of Forest Land: Another conflicting interest comes into play when forest land has to be diverted for non-forestry purposes such as for construction of roads or for submersion under hydro-electric projects. Usually these projects are very important for development of a region and also for the socio-economic uplift of the people living there. There have been cases where the construction of a road or canal has been held up for long periods due to non-clearance under the Forest Conservation Act of 1980. However, forests once lost or cleared are probably lost for ever as it is not possible to recreate a forest ecosystem artificially no matter how much area is planted up under the compensatory afforestation programmes (prescribed in such cases of diversion of forest land for non-forestry purposes). 3. Shifting Cultivation: The harmful practice of shifting cultivation has been a way of life for many tribal and indigenous populations for centuries. Their ancestors were probably growing food in this way when our towns and cities were not even founded. Irrespective of the negative values of this way of cultivation and the adverse effects it has on the rich forest ecosystems of the area, these populations have to grow food and this is perhaps the only way they know how to do it. Commercial Forestry: Trees are the source of paper and timber for hundreds of other uses in the everyday lives of human beings. Inspite of the increasing ecological costs, commercial forestry has to be undertaken in some of our ecologically less vulnerable forests in the absence of which the nation will have to pay scarce foreign exchange for timber imports. Environmental Interests: Ecological and environmental interests are very vital for the long term benefit of the human race. Ecological security leads to food security and forests must be conserved atleast at the present levels for our long term prosperity.
4.
5.
SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT

Sustainable forest management has become very important for the well being of millions of people living in India. It is clear that the land available for maintaining under forests is limited and it would be possible to increase the land under forests only marginally keeping in view the requirement of other forms of land use such as agriculture. It is in this context that we must examine the emerging concepts of sustainable forest management from the days of sustained yield when more stress was laid on obtaining sustained yield of timber than on managing the forest resources in a way that they could meet the everyday needs of fuel and fodder of our teeming millions living in this rural areas and also provide ecological security for us. Evolving Concept of Sustainable Forest Management: According to the World Commission on Environment and Development, usually referred to as the Brundtland commission, sustainable development is a process of change in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological and institutional change are all in harmony and enhance both current and future potential to meet human needs and aspirations. This explanation could very well be adapted after minor modifications to sustainable forest management in India. Now when we talk of sustainable forest
management we must have not only timber production in mind but also the wider ecological and social functions of forests which are essential for the well being of the human race. The concept of sustainable forest management has therefore been evolved to address these wider issues and values. It is now multipurpose management of forests so that its capacity to provide the goods and services which it has been doing for the past several centuries is in no way reduced. However, the increasing demographic pressure on forest lands is a major obstacle in this direction. Natural forests have been under intense biotic pressure in the form of removal of fuelwood and grazing. A stage has come where most of our natural forests may perhaps not be able to provide a sustained yield of timber together with providing goods for use by the local population and also ecological security. So either the production of commercial timber has to be shifted elsewhere (in areas other than natural forests) or alternative arrangements made for the local supply as ecological benefits provided by natural forests cannot be substituted by any other means. If sustainable management is to be achieved, such issues must be resolved. In the present day context the concept of sustainable management should take into account the following considerations: (a) (b) (c) Securing an improved quality of life for the present generation while maintaining the rich forest heritage for posterity. Socio-economic and rural uplift of the rural masses is linked with management of the forests lying in the vicinity where they live. A balance must be struck between the conflicting interests and a clear cut line of action evolved. This will vary from area to area depending on the local conditions.
Forestry activities will have to compete for scarce financial allocations and in this context the role of forests in providing valuable goods and services must be adequately brought out. To respond to the changing needs and objectives of sustainable development, all efforts at the national and regional levels are being backed by proper education, research and development, and extension programs. All are now well dispersed throughout the country.
Bhopal India Process

Sustainability provides a unifying framework for evaluating the overall effect of human uses of land and resources. It has emerged as the conceptual framework for international comparisons of forest use and condition and of assessment at various seales. Issues that need to be resolved include utility tradeoffs between current and future generations, the distributional implications of forest use, and meaningful measures of forest value. The concept of developing criteria and indicators (C&I) as a way of measuring, monitoring and achieving sustainable forest management deserved appropriate attention at different level. Bhopal India process for sustainable forest management (SFM) was lunched by the Indian Institute of Forest Management , Bhopal with the objective of carrying forward the process of SFM in India. It was launched in 1998 to develop a practical and measurable set of C&I for monitoring the process of forest management in the country. A series of national technical workshop and consultation meetings were held to sensitize various stakeholders, which ultimately led to the identification of 8 national level criteria and 51 indicators under Bhopal- India Process. These indicators were further refined into 43 indicators. These criteria are
Increase in the extent of forest and tree cover Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity Maintenance and enhancement of ecosystem function and vitality Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources Optimization of forest resource utilization Maintenance and enhancement of social cultural and spiritual benefits Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework. India is one of the few biodiversity rich regions of the sub continent and has always adopted a planned approach to manage the forests. This is reflected in the continuously evolving forest policies. The early policies supported agricultural and timber production as highest priority assets, but have gradually evolved to ensure environmental stability and ecological balance over a period of time. 62,890 Joint Forest Management Committees have been constituted managing about 22% (14.25 m ha) of the total forest) (GoI, 2001). Little has been done to monitor the continuously changing patterns of problems related to forest management like encroachment, grazing, fire, etc. India is a member of ITTO and is committed to the objective, 2000 of ITTO which states The objective is that the total exports of tropical timber products should come from sustainably managed forests by the Year 2000. In order to achieve this objective it is imperative to redefine forest management and strengthen it through research finding.
International Cooperation
India is an active partner in regional and international forestry cooperation. It is a signatory various international conventions such as CITES, the convention on the conservation of migratory species of wild animals, international whaling convention, convention on wetlands of international importance (Ramsar convention), convention on biological diversity, world heritage convention, framework convention on climate change, United Nations convention to combat desertification, and others. India is currently co-chairman of the inter-governmental panel on Forests, established by the Commission on Sustainable Development. The concepts of sustainable forest management are changing international context too and there is a need to keep Indian forestry in line with the developments taking place all over the world particularly in the developing countries. The decisions taken at various international for a such as the Rio Summit in 1992 clearly bring out the role that forest management would play in the decade to come.
STATUS OF R & D FOR SFM

Under Indian conditions, SFM includes a very wide range of subjects ranging from silviculture to natural resource management, biodiversity conservation and information management, as all these contribute directly or indirectly to SFM. The status of R&D for SFM is presented below.
CREATION OF AN APEX RESEARCH BODY (ICFRE)

Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) was constituted by Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India in December 1986 to formulate, organize, direct and manage forestry research, transfer the technologies developed to states and other user agencies; and impact forestry education. Its mission is to generate, preserve, disseminate and advance knowledge, technologies and solutions for addressing issues related to forests and promote linkages arising out of interactions
between people, forests and environment on a sustained basis through research, education and extension.
Objectives of the Council

To undertake, aid, promote and coordinate forestry education, research and its application To develop and maintain a National Library and Information Centre for forestry and allied sciences To act as a clearing house for research and general information relating to forests and wildlife To develop forestry extension programmes and propagate the same through mass media, audio-visual aids and extension machinery To provide consultancy services in the field of forestry research, education and training and in allied sciences To do other things considered necessary to attain the above objectives The council has 8 Research Institutes and 3 advanced centres in various parts of the country to cater to the research needs to different bio-geographical regions of the nation. These are located at Dehradun, Shimla, Allahabad, Ranchi, Jorhat, Jabalpur, Chhindwara, Jodhpur, Bangalore and Coimbatore.
PLANTING STOCK IMPROVEMENT

Planting stock improvement programme under the World Bank sponsored Forestry Research Education and Extension Projects (FREEP) has brought about radical change in the production of superior genetic material and quality of nursery seedlings. It included creation of Seed Production Areas, Seedling Seed Orchards, Clonal Seed Orchards, Vegetative Multiplication Gardens and improved nurseries equipped with modern technology i.e. root trainers, mist chambers, growth chambers and hardening units. 1225 ha seed production area was established in various parts of country under FREEP (1996-2001) covering all the important forestry species. The genetic material from these orchards not only increases the productivity per unit area but also help in Tree Improvement Programme. The best provenances were collected in one place to develop future strategies and better out come. The main objective was to supply high quality planting material to the users including SFDs, NGOs and public at large. Various techniques were standardized and demonstrated to the end users. As the forests cover has stabilized and demand is increasing, the gap between demand and supply can only be reduced by increasing productivity per unit area through tree improvement programme, progeny and provenance trials, germplasm banks of important tree species, and recently assessment of genetic diversity and phylogeny of target species using DNA markers. The molecular characterization of selected genotypes and development of clone/species/trait markers have added additional advantages for the proper identification of quality planting material at the initial stage.
SEED PRODUCTION AREA (SPA)

Demarcation of seed production area is the first step to meet the interim requirement of seed. The expected genetic gains from seed collected from such upgraded stands is 5-10 percent of yield. The seed production areas of important tree species such as Tectona grandis, Dalbergia sissoo, Eucalyptus spp., Terminalia spp.
Myriocarpa, Gmelina arborea, Santalum album, Cedrus deodara, Pinus roxburghii, Abies pindrow etc. have been identified in the States of Arunchal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, M.P., Maharasthra, Manipur, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu, Uttaranchal and Uttar Pradesh.
PROVENANCE TRIALS
Provenance trials aim at identification of the population for use in a particular locality for increasing the genetic gains and also for the population for the uses of gene conservation. In India provenance trials of various species like Acacia nilotica, Albizia lebbek, Azadirachta indica, Casuarina equisitifolia, Dalbergia sissoo, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, E.grandis, E. tereticornis, and pinus roxburghii have been established in different states. Multilocation provenance trials of Jatropha curcas have also been raised all over the country to evaluate the best parent material for oil yield.
MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF PLANTING MATERIAL

Molecular characterization of Tectona grandis, Pinus roxburghii, P. wallichiana, P. gerardiana and P. kesiya, Eucalyptus tereticornis and same other multipurpose tree species have been done to estimate the genetic diversity existing between and within the population for improving the productivity.
BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION
Biodiversity is the variety and variability of flora and fauna on our planet. The Indian subcontinent is specially rich in biodiversity having more than 130,000 species of plants and animals which have been scientifically documented. The country has been referred as one of the 12 mega diversity areas of the world. India has a high degree of endemism in its flora second only to Australia. The biodiversity of the country is under severe threat due to various factors such as increasing population pressure, environmental degradation, indiscriminate resource utilization, etc. The alarming rate of loss of biodiversity particularly in terms of ecological, genetic, economic and evolutionary consequences became a matter of universal concern when the eventful Earth Summit at Rio de Janiero was held in 1992, later culminated in 1993 in the ratification of a global agenda on biodiversity, now referred as the UN convention on biodiversity. India is signatory to the convention on biological diversity. Thus, the nation is committed not only to the conservation of its biodiversity but also to sustainable and equitable utilization of its genetic resources. The research works on biodiversity conservation in the country includes establishment and monitoring of preservation plots; Establishment of botanical garden and arborea, germaplasm banks; declaration of national Parks and Sanctuaries; ex-situ and in-situ conservation of rare and threatened species, etc. There is a need to expand baseline database on species and genetic diversity and their macro and micro-habitat, identification such umbrella species conservation of which ensures protection of all related species as well; strengthen research efforts in conducting studies in genetic diversity, species diversity and ecosystem diversity. Studies especially in genetic diversity are not yet very widespread and sharply focused. There is a need to study traditional as well as present techniques of resource utilization and to modify or improve these by making them less energy intensive and more environments friendly.
FOREST PROTECTION
The damage due to insect pest and diseases is one of the major constraints for seed productivity at the time of inflorescence, seed formation and on seed shedding. In nurseries and plantations, the insect pests and diseases may caused
mortality of the whole plant or plant part and/ or weakening of plant vigor as a result of affected planting material does not yield desired growth. The fungus associated with seed may also upset the planting target and many lead to economic losses. Considering the fact the emphasis has been given to set the standards for storage of seeds of forestry species and techniques have been standardized for their long term storage. Among the nursery diseases, damping off, blight, powdery mildews, seedling wilt disease, root knot nematodes are the most common root diseases. Surveys of important multipurpose tree species and medicinal plants grown in nurseries and plantations and in natural conditions in the various states have evolved effective controlled measures of identified diseases.
GROWTH, YIELD AND ECONOMICS

Growth, yield and economics of plantations and natural forests are important determinants of forest management. Statistics of growth and economics equip a forest manager to reliably set rotation age, plan cultural operations, harvesting and other related activities. Another aspect of this information lies in assessment of productivity of a forest system. Economics of plantations provide a basis for financial management and motivate people for taking up afforestations. The research work done, till now has resulted in the publication of 76 volume tables and 26 yield tables for important timber species. Studies on allied subjects such as thinning, regeneration and bark thickness etc. have also been carried out. Stand tables for Eucalyptus grandis, E. hybrid, Pinus excelsa, P. roxburghii, Abies pindrow and Shorea robusta have been prepared. Besides this, site qualities have been worked out for different species. It gives an idea of the productive capacity of the site for respective species. Currently, greater emphasis is being given to the volume tables of agro forestry plantations and of successful exotic species in the country.
MANAGEMENT OF NON-WOOD FOREST PRODUCE

Timber considered as major produce of forests faces the threat of varnishing, if the step to check the destruction of forest will not initiate in a effective manner. In the wake of such threats interest in non-timber forest products (NTFPs) is increasing rapidly. They have become more important as they are directly linked in fulfilling the subsistence need of the people living in and around forest. The technology have been developed for preparation of katha from Uncaria gambier, Detoxification of Jatropha curcas seed oil, production of FRI Jigat for agarbatti, compost from the plant debris, eco-friendly dyes from forest biomass, polysacchenide formulation to impact functional properties for ice-cream making, production of high fructose syrup (42% HFS), insolation of commercially important essential oil from Saussuria lappa, Vateriana walichii & agar oil, and Tamarind kernel powder and Cassia tora gum as fluid control agent in oil well drilling, etc. The patent has been obtained for process for the production of high fructose, preparation of cassia tora gum, adhesive for agarbatti, katcha from gambier extract and also in pipeline to obtained patent for other significant works. The medicinal plants have also an important position as they contribute substantially in the revenue generation activities of local people. It has been estimated by WHO that the present value of international trade is to the tune of US$ 70 billion and is growing at a rate of 70% annually. The planning commission, GOI, has estimated that total trade under this sector is the tune of Rs. 42,000 crores annually. With the declaration of the state government to project Uttaranchal as a Herbal State, FRI has put special emphasis in encompassing this important sector. Various research projects are being supported by the National
Medicinal Plant Board, New Delhi on various aspects of cultivation, seed processing and germination, etc.
WOOD SUBSTITUTION AND IMPROVED EFFICIENCY IN TIMBER USE

Wood is increasingly in short supply and the situation is likely to worsen. One of the strategies to lessen the shortage is to substitute wood with alternative materials such as aluminum, steel, cement, kerosene, and liquefied petroleum gas. Other initiatives include the promotion of eucalyptus and other short rotation species; encouraging farm forestry systems to produce the packaging materials for horticulture produce in place of long rotation conifers; withdrawal of latent subsidies and royalty rates on wood from natural forests; the use of corrugated fibre board boxes, multi-walled craft paper bags, and polythene-laminated jute boxes instead of conventional plywood tea chests; conversion to concrete railway sleepers; substitution of other materials for wood in public construction projects; use of panels and boards manufactured from non-wood lingo cellulosic materials such as baggasse (fibrous residue of sugar cane), medium-density fiber board, etc; use of new wood-efficient housing designs; and the use of steel pit props in mines. Appropriate fiscal measures (excise duties, tax and royalties) and policies have been adopted to encourage competitiveness, enhance cost effectiveness, and promote the greater use of wood substitutes. Several measures have also been taken to improve the efficiency of timber use and to promote value addition by industries. These include: Promoting and supporting the use of secondary timber species and juvenile wood from plantations Encouraging solar kiln during and wood treatment to enhance durability The adaptation of improved conversion techniques, better logging activities and the use of small dimension nail-joined timber in place of larger ones The use of lower grade timber in plywood and veneer in place of costly solid timber such as teak and rosewood.
IMPORT OF WOOD AND WOOD PRODUCTS

The total annual requirement of timber in the year 2001 and 2006 has been assessed to be 73 and 81.8 million cubic meters, respectively (NFAP, 1999). As against estimated requirement of industrial wood, availability from the forests is projected to be around 12 million m3 annual leaving a huge gap between the demand and supply. The pressure on domestic supply is accentuated by the massive Indian population, which is growing at an annual rate of 1.5 percent. Besides this the improving standard of living and growing economy the demand and supply gap is increasing day by day. The present industrial round wood consumption in India is around 28m3 per 100 persons, which is much below the world average of 290m3 per 1000 persons Zhang et al. (1997). With a view to ease the timber shortage as also to reduce pressures on natural forests, government took a major policy initiative and permitted import of wood under open general license category in 1996. Escalatory tariffs have been adopted to facilitate import of wood logs while keeping import of processed wood and products low to provide protection to the domestic wood processing industries. In terms of volume, around 95% of imports consist of industrial roundwood, mainly tropical. The Govt. of India, encourages the import of roundwood with a tariff of 5% on logs, in comparison with
15.3% on sawn timber and 34.44% for mouldings, veneer and panel products (ITTO TTM Report 11:7-1-15 April 2006). India now imports the wood from more than 100 countries. However, six countries namely Malaysia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Nigeria and New Zealand account for bulk of the import. About 85% of the total import during the year 2001-02 was from these countries. Gandhidham, in Gujarat, is the biggest trade centre for imported timber in India. There are about 850 traders dealing mainly in imported wood in this market. Wood is imported through Kandla port and is chiefly in the form of round logs (industrial round wood). 40% of the total imported wood is sawn locally and 60% moves outside. It was estimated that Kandla port alone handles about 50% of the total quantity of wood imported to the country (Muthoo, 2004). Timber imports amount to around US$ 550 million a year at current exchange rate, which is a small fraction of the overall imports into India valued at over US$50 billion. Import of industrial wood volumes has grown threefold during last ten years, comprising mainly non-coniferous logs. The annual import was around 2 million m3 during 2004, which is around 5% of the total consumption of wood in the country (Muthoo, 2004).
National Forest Library and Information Centre

The library of FRI was upgraded under FREE project to make it National Forest Library and Information Centre. The library contains over 3,00,000 books on various aspects of forestry, conference proceedings, reference books and subscribes to about 400 journals in the field of forestry and allied science. Almost all the documents have been bar coded and catalogued. The NFLIC subscribes to Biological abstracts, CAB-CD, TREE- CD, ECO- Disc, AGRIS, Pollution abstracts, Entomology abstracts, Biotechnology abstract and Ecology abstract, etc. The modernization of library facilities are helping in the improvement in research quality throughout the country.
FORESTRY EDUCATION
Curricula development for M. Sc. course viz., Forestry and Environment Management for the whole country was taken up under FREE project. It has already been adopted by some of the universities and other have started its implementation in a phased manner. FRI Deemed University, Dehradun is currently running three M. Sc. courses viz. Forestry, Environment Management and Wood Science and Technology. Besides this, 3 Post Graduate Diploma Courses i.e. Management of NWFP Resources, Natural Resource Management and Pulp and Paper Technology are also being conducted by FRI DU. The annual intake is 25 students in each M. Sc. course and 15 in PG Diploma course. The students are selected on all India basis entrance examination and the placement records of the student are highly encouraging. It is serving good purpose by providing qualified trained manpower for spreading forestry research and extension in the country.
NATIONAL FORESTRY RESEARCH PLAN

A comprehensive methodology for setting the research priorities for the forestry sector based on transparent, participatory and competitive system was developed under FREE Project. The methodology based on weighted criteria method was used by organizing state level workshops in 26 states and eight regional level workshops at ICFRE institutes. During these workshops, stakeholders, managers and researchers at state, regional and national level, prioritized the research themes for the states, region and the country as well. Some of the research national priorities which emerged during these consultations are mentioned below:
Eco-restoration of degraded forests. Development of agroforestry/social forestry models. Planting stock improvement of important species (Teak, Eucalyptus spp., Shisham, Gamhar, Bamboo, Casuarina, etc.) Biodiversity conservation and utilization. Soil and water conservation (including integrated watershed management). Participatory forest management. Human resource management problems of forest department. Sustainability of forest management/joint forest management.
ISSUES REQUIRING R&D FOR PROMOTING SFM

The issues requiring R&D for promoting SFM in India are listed below: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Effect of forest management prescriptions/present usage on forest ecosystems and watersheds. Alternatives to chemical control of forest pests and diseases use of bio-pesticides and bio-fungicides. Seed collection time, viability, germination per cent, dormancy, seed treatment, storage, etc. Vegetative propagation methods and planting performance of vegetatively propagated material with respect to sites. Developing cost effective moisture conservation techniques and determining soil working intensities for afforestation of exacting sites. This includes pit sizes, trenching and other moisture conservation devices. Site productivity studies as related to survival rates when using tree species, shrubs and legumes in different density mix and as per site capacity. Studies on nutrient cycling, drain and replacement during harvesting under monoculture and mixed plantation practices in respect to important species. Development of growth and yield statistics for timber plantations. Developing optimum tending schedules for timber plantations. Developing silvicultural optima for desired production characteristics in timber plantations. Establishment of seed production areas and seedling/clonal seed orchards for timber plantations. Multilocational trials of other selected and experimentally produced genotypes of timber species to assess their performance on growth wood properties, yield, disease resistance and other traits. Screening of site specific superior genotypes for the desirable traits (fast growth rate, wood quality, drought resistance, salt tolerance, pest and disease resistance adaptability to poor sites etc.) within and between provenances. Interspecific and intraspecific hybridization to exploit heterosis and for creating new genotypes and recombinants for further selection. Somatic hybridization and transfer of genes from donor species to recipient species eliminating sexual pathway for quicker improvement of species for required traits.
6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.
13.
14. 15.
16. 17.
Studies on regeneration, harvesting, processing and storage of medicinal plants. Studies on harvesting and processing of resins, gums, essential oils, etc. Socio-economic and policy research for developing strategies towards attracting peoples participation in forest management and growing of non-wood forest produce and adoption of tree farming practices. Diagnostic survey of existing agroforestry systems to improve the existing and in developing new systems based on expressed needs and concerns of farmers and also to address market needs. Designing of economically efficient Agroforestry models for sustainable use of land in consonance with local needs. Developing of package of practices relating to harvesting/pollarding, lopping schedules, intensity of lopping for optimum production from agroforestry system components including associated grasses/legumes etc. Study of socio-economic factors related to culture and management of plantations on individual farmers lands and on community lands. Studies related to sharing of usufructs by the beneficiaries and the impact of such distribution on socio-economic uplift of the local inhabitants. In situ conservation of forest ecosystems. Ex situ conservation by means of germplasm banks and botanical gardens. Monitoring of sample plots and preservation plots in natural forests and plantations and also in national parks, sanctuaries and biospheres. Use of advanced analytical techniques for prediction of wood properties. Computer aided simulation techniques for product performance. Real time machine vision for grading of logs and converted timber. Quality assessment of standing trees. Integration of wood quality traits in selection of material for tree improvement and linking them to phenotypical descriptors. Shifting focus from wood quality assessment to product based research and package development. Effectiveness of finger jointing in different species for various end products. Cost effective wood finishes for dimensional stability and appearance of wood products. Development of new eco-friendly wood preservatives. Development of fire retardant cum preservative combinations for bamboo/wood. Plantation grown timbers for cooling towers. Development of cost effective wood adhesives for plantation timbers. Solid wood substitutes through reconstituted panel products and modified woods. Standardization of processing methods for bamboos. Studies on drying behaviour of plantation grown species for their useful applications especially for small-scale rural saw millers and artisans. Research on policy issues related to timber production. Countrywide research on forest certification leading to development of C&I.
18.
19. 20.
21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42.
CLONAL PULPWOOD TREE FARMS CHANGE THE RURAL LANDSCAPE IN ANDHRA PRADESH A case study on outgrower farms of clonal trees of ITC, Ltd.
S.N. Rao ITC, Ltd. Bhadrachallam, Paper Mill, Khammam (A.P.)
ITC Ltd, Paper boards and Specially Papers Division (ITC-PSPD) operates an integrated pulp and paper mill located at Sarapaka in the Khammam district of Andhra Pradesh. This mill was established in 1979 and currently has an installed capacity of 1,00,000 mt of pulp and 182,500 mt of paperboards and paper per year. Present requirement of cellulosic raw material of ITC-PSPD is about 400,000 tpa, which will grow to 800,000 tpa, with increase in its production capacity and product range as envisaged. The mill currently meets its raw material requirement from various sources. An interesting feature of ITC PSPD is the sponsorship and support of the company to promote out grower (Small farmer) involvement to produce pulpwood from genetically improved and high yielding varieties of pulpwood species. Beginning 1982, the company distributed a total 4.67 million free Eucalyptus seedlings to farmers but discontinued in 1986 due to poor response. From 1987 to 1995 the company started a bank loan scheme supported by NABARD to promote farm forestry. A total of 7,441 ha were established on holdings of 6,185 farmers in 1,138 villages in th e district of Khammmam, Krishna, West Gioadvari, Guntur, Prakasam, Nellore, Nalgonda, and Warangal. The farmers were given quality planting stock (of seed route), technical extension services and buy back guarantees at minimum support price or the market price whichever is higher. However, the acerage achieved was far below the set targeted and the productivity of 6 10 cum/ha/yr was too low to be attractive to farmers as a land use option. The overall experience with the scheme was not very satisfactory as (i) farmers harvested their plantations earlier than the stipulated rotation period and (ii) the company paid the farmers only after first setting with the bank loans. Since the proceeds proved insufficient even after waiving the companys service charge of Rs. 70 per mt the scheme was accordingly discontinued after 1995. The company realized the need for research to improve the quality of pulpwood plantations and their productivity and it launched a tree improvement programme. Presently, the company is concentrating on research to develop better clones and on commercial sale of clonal saplings to the farmers. The research and development programme of the company started in 1989. Based on performance of individual clones in the field trials, promising, fast growing and diseases resistant clones, of Eucalyptus tereticornis and E.ccamaldulensis were identified, including 23 I site-specific clones adopted to problematic saline an d alkaline soils. 37 these are categorized as most important commercial clones based on their productivity and disease resistance capability. The company is currently supplying 11 different Eucalyptus clones (called Bhadrachalam clones) on a commercial basis to farmers and offers a buy back guarantee at an agreed price. Up to 1999/2000 the company had solver over 7.2 million clonal saplings. And is in the process of implementing a core area development programme
within 150 km radius of the mill to intensively promote tree farms through offering additional incentives to farmers. This should help to reduce the cost of transportation of raw material. By the end of 2002, 6372 farmers had participated in the clonal plantation programme and presently about 30% of the companys pulp wood requirement is met by clonal tree farms. The company expects 100% supply by 2007 from 35,000 ha of such farms in the core pulpwood area. The clonal trees are disease resistant, self-pruning and with large clear bole. Survival rate is as high as 95%. The MAI of Eucalyptus spp ranges between 20 and 58 cum per ha per year with farmers earning a net profit of Rs.50, 000 to Rs.150, 000 per ha from the first cutting after 3 years. As characteristic of coppicing crops, profits increase in subsequent cuttings due to depreciating costs. Further, when combined with agroforestry practice, additional income is accrued with the harvest of agricultural crops. The plantation research unit of the company carries out trials on genetic improvement of the planting stock and silvicultural/agroforestry practices, (e.g. spacing on planting rows, type of inter crop) to be adopted. Some of the important aspects of the case which entitles it to be qualified as a source are voluntary mobilization of investment for tree farm development research, technology development and extension support by the wood processing company; increased productivity of clonal plantations; employment and increased income for local community; reduction of pressure on natural forest for raw material; and mutually beneficial collaboration between the company and the farmers.
STATE LEVEL ENERGY PARK, INDIRA GANDHI MUSICAL FOUNTAIN, BANGALORE

Arun K. Bansal, IFS Addl. PCCF & Project Director OFSDP
The Project
The State Level Energy Park is about Education. Education about energy from Panchbhutas. The Panchbhutas Fire, earth, Air, Water and Space Constitutes Nature. Nature Gift of the Gods. Hence, The State Level Energy Park is a park for the visitor to appreciate the Gifts from the Gods and to learn about them, to live with them in the modern context Zero Energy Living. To educate about Zero Energy Living That the concept of the Park. Energy to live Sun, Air, Water, Trees. Light from the Sun both in the day and the night! Air to breathe. Shelter from Bamboo! Bamboo in the world of plants Bamboo is the representation of divinity. This is because of the ease with which it can be processed with the simplest tools for almost any use. Bamboo is a low energy material. A comparison of the energy balance of various building material (energy required to produce a unit of building material with a certain level of load bearing capacity) gives an idea of the sustainability of Bamboo. Table : 3
Materials Energy for Production MJ/Kg 0.8 30.0 1.0 0.5 Weight per Volume Kg/m3 2400 7800 600 600 Energy for Production Kg/m3 1920 234000 600 300 Stress When In use 8.0 160.0 7.5 10.0 Energy per Unit stress 240 1500 80 30
Concrete Steel Wood Bamboo
Source: Prof. J.A Janssen, Eindhoven University, The Netherlands
Hence, we felt that Bamboo would be the most appropriate building material for the Energy Park and also it will get great visibility to the general public in the park. Bamboo Most appropriate building material for the Energy Park where Living with nature in the most unobstructive way is being demonstrated. Most appropriate platform for popularizing the use of this
State
Level Park
Energy
wonderful material Bamboo which gets approximate 4000 visitors/day on weekends and holidays.
Since the information on Bamboo is very less and even the Government organizations are hesitant to come forward, we tried various types of structural systems, joints, treatment methods and untried technologies of bamboo so that a database could be created. And this database could give confidence to the general public, Govt. Agencies, Engineers, Architects, Policy makers, Contractors and Entrepreneurs to take up Bamboo as a major building material. All the structures in the campus exhibit the inherent character of Bamboo i.e., High Science ---Simple Technology
Project Brief
Name of the project: State Level Energy Park, Bangalore, Karnataka.
Nature of the project: Public Park for Education + Entertainment =Edutainment Karnataka Renewable (KREDL), Bangalore Bangalore, Karnataka December 2004 Energy Development Limited
Client Owner Location Date Completed Gross area
Department of Horticulture, Government of Karnataka
Total Area Total Landscape Area Built up area Solar Hut Gazebo [5 nos.] Change rooms [2 nos.] Plant room Kitchen block Toilet block Parking area Construction Cost Civil Cost Landscaping Cost Energy Systems Contractors
17 Acres [approximate] 14 Acres [approximate]
1000 sft. 475 sft (Garden pavilion) 80 sft 64 sft 450 sft 300 sft 2 Acres Rs.14 lacs Rs.12 lacs Rs.100 lacs
1. Aditi Constructions, Bangalore; 2. Karnataka State Habitat Centre, Bangalore; 3. Tata BP Solar [India] Ltd.
Climate zone
Moderate
Project/Building Features
Building Material selection to reduce embodied and transport energy Used recycled Material Use of timber Special water conserving installation Natural organic sewage treatment Measures to encourage low energy Landscaping Complete Bamboo based construction for all Civil structures Recycled debris, stones, plants etc. Bamboo, Neem Rainwater harvesting treatment systems To recharge pits and 4 water bodies Bio-gas from waste from the solar kitchen and the Public toilet All the features like the playing Equipments, sculptures, pergolas, gazebo etc. from recyclable/recycled/biodegradable Material or Greenery concrete blocks
Project Energy Features

Natural Ventilation Peak time Ventilation Energy from renewable resources Solar energy systems for energy Requirements Approximate percentage of gross floor naturally ventilation- 100% Natural 75-80% 2.1 kwp for solar hut - 8.25 kwp for all over lighting and other purposes - 2 HP Solar Pumps - Solar water heating system for swimming pool and food court - Parabolic solar cooker for food court - Solar garden lights/ Street lights Wind energy systems - Wind mill attached to the bore well for lifting water - Wind solar hybrid 1.5kv system Energy from waste Energy from water Bio gasifiers used all the turgs branches etc. to produce heat energy Micro Hydelwaterfall electric system for a small
Components of the Project:

* Solar Hut that to a 1000 sqft full fledged 2- Bedroom house constructed with Bamboo, with bamboo furnitures, bamboo light fittings, bamboo chandelier complete with landscaping with bamboo! Food Court solar show kitchen constructed with Bamboo with parabolic solar cooker and biogas cooking arrangement from its waste.
* * * * *
Public Toilet pay and use toilet constructed completely out of Bamboo with red oxide flooring. 5 Garden pavilions are with bamboo columns and various types of bamboo roofingsBMCS, BMB and Ferro cement on bamboo understructure. Bamboo bridge A 6 m long 1.5 m wide bamboo bridge near the mini hydroelectricity plant over a lotus pool. Swimming pool, Change Rooms for the swimming pool are spiral shaped and made completely of bamboo. Bamboo pergola and space frames, garden lights, fences, screens are part of the landscape.
Buildings Systems -- 80 % of the building materials used are either recycled, recyclable or bio-degradable More than 70 % is Bamboo. 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) Foundation: 2dia MS pipes grouted in 0.45 x 0.45 x 0.45 foundation to receive the Bamboo columns. 0.6 m strip foundation for walls. Columns: Chemically treated 4 Bamboo columns grouted into the 2 MS pipes. Wall: Bamboo Crete walls- a grid of 1 bamboo splits to covered with mesh and plastered. Roof understructure: 4 dia treated Bamboo with bolted and grouted its. A pyramid space structures, truss systems etc. Roofing: BMCS (Bamboo Mat Corrugated Sheet), BMB (Bamboo Mat Board) Ferro cement with bamboo grid. Furniture and Light fixtures: 4 dia round bamboo, 2 dia bamboo and BMB used for furniture.
High points of my design

* The total development including the active energy systems has been kept low key merging into the landscape of the park to generate a spontaneous and unobstructive ambience. Most of the energy park show monstrous. Civil constructions and factory like equipments to show technological advancements Man conquering Nature. But this Energy Park is about respecting Nature, and acknowledging its Superiority and offering to it the little technical. Knowledge that we have gained from it in the most humble manner. Even the landscape of the park is very low key and low energy consuming. No big expanse of water hungry lawns, no exotic variety of trees, no metal roads, everything very subtle and very basic. Bio-fuel plants and various types of bamboo plants has been used in the landscape. The foundation system of the bamboo buildings has been changed from our previous projects to protect the Bamboo columns from termite attack. The columns are not put into the foundation, but are bolted to a 2 dia MS pipe and grouted at the node. The pipe is cost with the foundation.
* *
The Pyramidical roof of the Solar Hut is uniquely designed with no support in the centre. At the same time it carries the weight of the heavy Glass and Aluminium panel of the BIPV system at the centre. We have built different types of roofs for the Gazebos. The Ferro cement roofing on the grid matrix has been done which has given us confidence to do organic shaped roofs. The Park has been thrown open to the public and is all set to prove that
* * * *
Bamboo is sustainable Bamboo is magical building material Bamboo is high-tech BAMBOO IS THE GIFT OF THE GODS !
PROVIDING CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION SERVICES IN THE FORESTRY SECTOR: CHALLENGES, OPPORTUNITIES AND THE STATE OF PREPAREDNESS
Promode Kant Introduction
Global warming due to anthropogenic reasons is perhaps the serious most concern that faces mankind today since the early 1990s. The world community has initiated a number of measures that began with the signing of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at Rio de Janeiro in 1992 committing the countries to take appropriate measures to tackle this enormous problem. The Kyoto Protocol, signed in 1997, took this process further by assigning mandated reduction targets to developed countries. The clean development mechanism (CDM) is a flexibility tool under the Kyoto Protocol that has the twin objectives of assisting developed countries meet their commitments towards mitigating the effects of climate change, and help developing countries achieve sustainable development (IPCC 2000). Another unstated, but obvious, objective is to draw the developing countries into reducing their emissions ahead of the commitments that they would be required to make sometime in future (McDougal 1999). Both emission reduction and sink enhancement projects are eligible. Land use, land-use change and forestry offers low cost climate change mitigation options through protection of existing carbon stocks, sequestration of more carbon, and substitution of fossil fuel use by bio-fuels. Globally, these forest sinks are estimated to have the capacity to help reduce atmospheric carbon by 60 to 87 GtC (IPCC 2001a; IPCC 2001b). India, as the second biggest developing country, has a strong stake in the success of the clean development mechanism, as it would enable the country to access new technologies and capital and give a significant boost to efficiency in energy production, wheeling and use and in greater production of renewable energy. But this could happen only after the country takes appropriate steps to streamline legal, policy and other infrastructural issues as required under the CDM rules to enable investors to take advantage of the unique opportunities that India could offer. A normal afforestation project aimed at production of biomass involves the provision of land and planting of seedlings followed by their maintenance but a CDM carbon sequestration project must also fulfill the Protocol requirements of additionality, leakage accounting, sustainability, biodiversity conservation and a monitoring and verification system based on consistent, transparent and accurate methodologies leading to a credible certification of the carbon. These requirements can only be fulfilled at considerable costs enhancing the cost of production of carbon credits far above that of biomass. This paper examines the underlying issues in details, reviews literature for the current and expected prices of carbon, makes an assessment of real costs and presents an analysis of the profitability of CDM afforestation projects in the different biogeographic zones in India.
Lands Suitable for CDM Forestry Projects in India

The CDM projects are high cost ventures with its attendant risks. Investments in it would be attractive only if the likely returns are high enough to justify the risks. The productivity of the land would, therefore, be the most crucial factor in deciding the site of a CDM forestry project. There is a huge variation in land productivity across the ten bio-geographic zones and 26 biotic provinces of India and many attempts have been
made to categorize these lands in terms of their potential forest productivity. One of these is the Paterson's productivity Index, also called the CVP (Climate, Vegetation, Productivity) Index. Paterson argued that the optimal productivity is a function of light, temperature and moisture conditions. His formula estimates forest productivity in ideal sites under ideal conditions of management (Champion & Seth 1968, Lal, 1992). CVP Index X = (Tv/Ta) x P x (E/100) x (G/12) And Y = 5.20 log X - 7.25 where Tv is the mean temperature of the hottest month in degree Celsius Ta is the difference between the mean temperatures of the hottest and the coldest months P is annual precipitation in millimeters E is the evapo-transpiration intensity G is the growing season in months, and Y is the ideal ecosystem productivity expressed in cubic meter per hectare per year Applying Paterson productivity index to the 10 bio-geographic zones in the country the following scenarios emerge:
S. No. 1 Biogeographic zone TransHimalayan Description CVP index < 25 Potential Ecosystem Productivity Unproductive Suitability for C sequestration Unsuitable
Ladakh and high altitude zones abutting Tibet, very cold and arid, sparse alpine vegetation Thar and Kutch in western India, sandy deserts, seasonal marshes, sparse thorn forests Plains of Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat, Eastern Rajasthan, west-central UP, western MP. Most lands under agriculture, limited forested area Four distinct biotic provinces of north, west, central and eastern Himalayas. Sharp altitudinal differences. Well forested and also degraded in places, rich biodiversity. Tea cultivation in eastern part.
Indian Desert
< 100
1-3 m3/ha/yr
Largely unsuitable
Semi-arid zone
100-300
3-6 m3/ha/yr
Mostly suitable for agroforestry, small opportunities for reforestation Suitable for sequestration through reforestation but biodiversity conservation requirements enhances costs. Also suitable for tree planting in agriculture and tea plantations
Himalayan biogeographic zone
300
6 m3/ha/yr except on very high elevations. Tree productivity of Cryptomaria japonica upto 39 m3/ha/yr
S. No. 5
Biogeographic zone Deccan Peninsula
Description
CVP index 3001000
Potential Ecosystem Productivity 6-9 m3/ha/yr
Suitability for C sequestration Good opportunities for both agroforestry and reforesation
Raised land covering 40% of India; bound by Satpura, western ghats and eastern ghats; elevation ranges from 300 to 1000 meters in east; covered by tropical dry and moist forests Plains of UP, Bihar, West Bengal; most fertile alluvial soils, mostly under crop; very little forest cover Brahmputra and Barak river valleys and north eastern hills; evergreen and moist deciduous forests, heavily subjected to shifting cultivation and encroachment
Gangetic Plains
3001000
6-9 m3/ha/yr
Large opportunities for agroforestry but little for reforestation Lands under shifting cultivation and encroachment present opportunities for reforestation. Also good for agro forestry. Suitable for bio-fuel plantations, also for reforestation and agroforestry Few opportunities for reforestation under CDM; but good opportunities for agroforestry under tea, coffee etc; Already well forested, no opportunities for reforestation or agroforestry
Northeastern biogeographic zone
10005000
9-12m3/ha/yr Tree productivity for Gmelina arborea upto 35m3/ha/yr
Coastal region
Coastal belts of west and east coasts, higher rainfall in west, exposure to cyclones in east, extensive casuarinas plantations on eastern coast Moderately high hill range along west coast, eastern side under rain shadow, very rich in bio-diversity and forest cover; large extent under tea, rubber, coffee, cardamom, tapioca; significant area under protected areas for wild life Group of 325 islands in Andaman sea and also Lakshadweep along west coast; heavy rainfall, warm and humid climate, extensive forest cover
>5000 on west coast, 1000 5000 on east coast >5000 on west side, 1000 5000 on east
>12m3/ha/yr on west coast, 9-12 m3/ha/yr on east coast
Western Ghats
>12m3/ha/yr on west side, 9-12 m3/ha/yr on east
10
Indian Islands
> 5000
>12m3/ha/yr
Source: Champion & Seth (1968), Kant (2004), Lal (1992), WII (2000)
Opportunities in Lands under Shifting Cultivation in Northeastern India

The estimates by FAO, Planning Commission and FSI on shifting cultivation in the north eastern part of India can not be easily compared, not only because of underlying differences in defining land under shifting cultivation, but also because the earlier estimates placed far too great a reliance on anecdotes and claims. As per FAO classification the forest areas affected by shifting cultivation even once in the past are recorded as forest fallow even if such areas presently support dense forest vegetation, whereas the FSI classifies land according to its present status (FSI, 1999). Moreover at the time of assessment by FAO in 1975, large extents of lands under shifting cultivation have since been permanently converted to settled cultivation and horticultural or urban uses. However, these do indicate a broad trend of reduction in area under shifting cultivation in spite of sharp increase in the tribal population from 2.9 million in 1971 (Anon 1975) to 8.14 million in 1991 (Anon 1999). With urbanization, education and basic lifestyle changes the younger generation among the tribes of the north-eastern India is far less inclined towards shifting cultivation than even one generation ago. There is little need for him to grow food through inefficient means of past when it is available on competitive prices in the public distribution system and in the open market and adequate money is available to him for affecting the purchase from his other income generating activities. This is the reason behind the decreasing trend in the area under shifting cultivation in the region. Tree cultivation, requiring less intensive management and less manpower than the agricultural crops, enables tribal people to pursue education and jobs elsewhere and is, therefore, more suitable to their changed lifestyle as can be seen in the attempts by a large section of Naga tribes to move towards tree cultivation in the state of Nagaland. As discussed elsewhere in this paper raising tree for carbon sequestration can significantly enhance the economic returns and reduce the gestation period. On account of larger and quicker earnings combined with the lessening interest in the traditional shifting cultivation among the tribal youth at least one third, or about 0.6 million ha, of lands currently under shifting cultivation in the north-eastern region would be available for reforestation under CDM.
C Sequestration on Encroached Government Forests Lands

There are an estimated 0.75 million ha of government forests lands under encroachment in India. Since eviction has not been possible in spite of several efforts a realistic view of the situation would be that these lands have provided a temporary opportunity to the government for settlement of people and the opportunity cost would be measured by the costs incurred in settling these people elsewhere which would involve purchase of land, construction of houses and infrastructural facilities and transportation of people and their assets to the new sites. These are prohibitive costs, and going by current Indian norms it costs upwards of Rs 300000 (US$ 6000) per ha. Such high costs would make even the most attractive C-credit project economically unviable. An alternate way could be to involve these people in the management of reforested lands raised over part of the encroached area through the mechanism of joint forest management in which case the opportunity cost would be value of benefits from cultivation foregone and this category could then be clubbed with the non-forest lands under agriculture taken up for sequestration project discussed below for the purpose of assessing the opportunity costs. Unlike in the rest of the country the encroachment in the north eastern region are not always driven by landlessness or poverty. The per capita land holding in the north-
east is 0.81 ha which is far higher than the national average of 0.39 ha (Anon, 1999). Further the cultural ethos of the region have ensured a fairly even land distribution and instances of landlessness are far less than in the rest of the country. The underlying reason of this large-scale encroachment in the Brahmputra valley is the ethnic aspirations of the various tribal communities for control over fertile valley lands for establishing claim for a larger share of the political power. Since the primary purpose is not agriculture and livelihood the extent of land encroached is usually far beyond the capacity of the encroacher to cultivate. Most of these encroached lands in Brahmputra valley are not put to intensive cultivation and are often allowed to go fallow or only one crop is taken. Elsewhere illegal migrant labour from a neighboring country is used extensively. In the last few years the tribal ethnic disturbances in the region appear to be approaching final political settlements. With this the need for establishing political claims through control over lands felt by some of the tribes in the Brahamputra valley in the state of Assam has gone down. It is, therefore, felt that this is the time for restoration of forest cover over a substantial part of the encroached lands in the Brahamputra valley in such a manner that even as the forests get restored the encroaching tribe also gets a continuous flow of income through the restoration process. The reduction in the perceived political advantages from the encroachments and greatly enhanced economic benefits from reforestation for carbon sequestration should turn the balance in favour of reforestation. The situation in the hill states of Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya with significant extents of forests lands under encroachment is, however, different. For example, encroachment of 34227 ha reported in 1987 in Arunachal Pradesh is by tribal people belonging to the neighboring hills who have migrated to more productive valley lands in the foothills abandoning their shifting cultivation lands. These lands are under fairly intensive cultivation and a number of small townships have developed on these lands. Moreover, the state government of Arunachal Pradesh has also sent proposals to the central government to permit diversion of the encroached forests as the tribal people are willing to part with an equivalent extent of the shifting cultivation lands for these more productive forest lands in the valleys. These encroached forests lands in Arunachal Pradesh and similar lands in Meghalaya can not be considered as easily available for reforestation at least in the immediate future. Of the 268064 ha in Assam under encroachment about 131196 ha had been encroached prior to 31.12.89, the cut-off date for eligibility under the clean development mechanism (CDM). Since some land has already been used for long term uses like house, roads etc and, moreover, since some encroaching tribal communities may not yet be convinced that their objectives have been fulfilled the authors estimate that about 0.1 million ha would be actually available for reforestation under CDM through joint forest management (JFM) provided attractive incomes to the encroachers (often citizens of neighboring villages and, therefore, eligible for benefits flowing from JFM) are assured. While the tribal encroacher is not likely to pose a problem in leakage prevention since they stand to gain significantly from reforestation under CDM one could not say the same about the illegal migrants from a neighboring country who can not be made to benefit from the CDM projects but whose survival might be dependent on the lands that they are illegally cultivating. They might move to other forest areas in the neighborhood for cultivation and thus cause leakage. This poses considerable challenge to the forest administration of the states as it could be prevented only by greater vigilance in vulnerable forest areas in the short run and by effective implementation of the appropriate laws to send them back and an international development package to rehabilitate them in their own country in the long run. Till such times that it can be ensured it might be appropriate to delay the inclusion of lands that present this problem in the reforestation package under CDM. While no separate authoritative figures on the
forest encroachment by illegal migrants are available the author, from his personal experience of having inspected most of the encroached areas in the region between 1997 to 2002 as the representative of the Indian Ministry of Environment & Forests, places its extent at not more than 10% of the total encroached area. An informed choice in the matter will have to be made by the political administration of the concerned state.
C Sequestration on Non-Government Forests Lands

On these lands, usually under excessive harvesting, the opportunity costs to the owner(s) is the real outgo of earnings even when these arise from unsustainable harvesting. Further even though there are non-monitory benefits from reforestation these are often not valued by the owner(s) and, therefore, increase in non-monitory benefits as would accrue from CDM reforestation activities is unlikely to enthuse them. Their expectation would clearly be that their monitory earnings go up significantly under the CDM project compared to their current levels of earning. The opportunity costs, from the point of view of the owner(s), would be the monitory equivalent of the benefits irrespective of the sustainability of the process.
The Leakage Costs

Leakages can take place in the shape of activity displacement, demand displacement, supply displacement or investment crowding (IPCC 2000). Activity displacement would occur when an activity (say, use as a grazing or play ground) on a land taken up for carbon sequestration shifts to another land in the neighborhood and causes a certain loss of carbon on the new land. Demand displacement occurs when carbon removal through, say, fuel-wood collection going on over a land taken up for carbon sequestration shifts to another accessible land. In developing countries like India it could pose a serious problem because both agriculture and forest lands provide the fuel, small timber and livelihood needs of many people who may not figure as owners of the lands. Supply displacement is when cheaper forest products from a plantation supported by, say, CDM makes costlier forest products from existing forests unviable and lead to conversion of the existing forests in to agricultural lands due to economic pressures. In India the gap between the supply and demand of forest product is too large for the supply displacement to cause any serious leakage. Investment crowding could occur when the incentives to invest in plantations for carbon sequestration are so high that the funds meant for other economic activities, like solar power generation for replacement of fossil fuel, are also diverted for the former. Certainly there is no danger of it happening in India because of land for afforestation would limit the investment even if funds were available without any constraints.
The Transaction Costs

The transaction costs are incurred in reaching a product to the consumer except the production and transportation costs and, under the CDM, include the search costs, negotiation costs, verification and certification costs, monitoring costs, enforcement costs and the insurance costs. These are linked to the rigour of standardization and verification expected under the CDM. The transaction costs in India may turn out to be the lowest on account of its very large trained scientific and legal manpower coupled with a number of institutions having expertise and capacity of carrying out the tasks at prices far lower than that anywhere in the world.
Bioenergy
Environment friendly energy production may become the predominant mode in not too distant a future and the change over may be quite fast and dramatic. It is
estimated that as much as 50% of the world energy requirement may be met by renewable sources by 2050. Since energy related emissions form 85% of the global GHG emissions it would make enormous difference to the mitigation efforts (Agarwal et al 1999). Biomass is one of the most familiar sources of renewable energy across the world. Cow dung, sawmill waste, forest lops and tops, agricultural byproducts, methane fumes from landfills, and the organic components of municipal and industrial waste can be burned to generate energy and can be converted to other forms for easier and cheaper transportation. This renewable resource can replace the burning of nonrenewable fuels such as coal, petroleum and natural gas. A major advantage of biomass energy is that it can be converted into solid (charcoal), liquid (ethanol, methanol, liquid hydrocarbons and oil), and gaseous (methane and synthetic gases) fuels all of which can be used to generate both mechanical power and electricity (Agarwal, 1999, Datye, 1997). Use of biomass energy also reduces toxic air emissions and dependence on imported oil so crucial for developing economies. In the United States, biomass has surpassed hydroelectric power as the largest domestic source of renewable energy and supplies more than 3 percent of total U.S. energy consumption, mostly through industrial heat and steam production by the pulp and paper industry, and electrical generation with forest industry byproducts and municipal solid waste. In India up to 90% of rural household energy needs are met by traditional fuel consisting of firewood, dung cake and crop residues, the composition of which varies from place to place depending upon the availability and relative ease in accessing the resource, and firewood alone, on average, accounting for 60% of the total (Pandey, 2002). Forests meet about 40% of nations energy needs supplying about 270 million cum of firewood (MoEF, 2004). It is the single biggest cause of forest degradation in India. The FAO has estimated that over 80% of bio-mass removals from forests in India is destined for fulfilling energy needs. And even though there is greater reliance on other forms of energy in the recent years, in absolute terms the consumption of firewood is still on the increase. Restaurants, brick and tile making industries, sugar, tea, tobacco and handicrafts are some of the major consumers of fuelwood-based. Fuelwood fulfils 68.5% of the per capita energy requirement in the rural households and 45.5% in urban households as shown in the table below (FSI, 2004): Table: Rural and urban energy consumption patterns
% consumption by form Rural 0.6 16.9 2.3 68.5 8.3 3.4 Urban 5.9 30.2 13.7 45.5 3.2 1.5
S. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Electricity Oil products
Energy source
Coal products Firewood Animal dung Others
Source: (FSI, 2004).
Climate change mitigation through use of bioenergy can occur in two main ways: by utilization of carbon neutral biomass as an energy source replacing fossil fuels and by using wood products in place of fossil-fuel intensive goods. Forest bioenergy substitution projects are particularly attractive option since the amount of emission offsets generated is theoretically infinite, on account of the renewable nature of this energy resource. There is little doubt that in the climate change mitigation strategy the replacement of fossil fuel by biomass-based fuels would be an important component. The production of biomass would also create hundreds of thousands of jobs while helping to
reduce CO2 emission by a massive margin. Biomass currently provides one percent of industrialized countries' power needs but this could multiply many fold with appropriate energy policy changes and technological advancements. Bioenergy projects have the potential to reduce global emissions by approximately 1.44.2 Gt C year, which is roughly 40130% of the average annual global emission in 1990s (IEA, 2001).
Bio-diesel
Bio-diesel is made by combining alcohol (usually methanol, also called wood alcohol or ethanol) with vegetable oil and animal fat or recycled cooking medium. It can be used as an additive to reduce vehicle emissions (typically by 10, 20 or 30 percent) or in its pure form as a renewable fuel for diesel engines. Unlike gasoline and conventional diesel, biofuels contain oxygen. Adding biofuels to petroleum products lets the fuel burn more completely and reduces air pollution. Ethanol is an alcohol made by fermenting any biomass that is high in carbohydrates such as starches, sugars or cellulose, the main part of the cell wall in most plants. Ethanol is mainly used as a fuel additive to cut down a vehicles emission of carbon monoxide and other pollutants. In US it is often made from corn seeds. Converting sugars in the corn kernels to ethanol is easy but it is much more difficult to convert the corn stover, the leftovers, stalks and other biomass material thats not in the fruit of the plant. But it is the abilty to convert stover that is crucial for any significant breakthrough since converting it to biofuel would produce several times the energy as that produced from kernels alone. But this is not a simple task as it involves unlocking the molecular structure that takes a lot of energy. Presently researchers are working on a variety of enzymes that break the cellulosic material and the solution to the problem of cutting costs of conversion of non-sugar biofuel source to ethanol may lie in it. Today, both biofuels tend to be used in mixtures. Europeans typically use "B5"standard diesel, blended with 5% biodiesel, usually made from rape oil. In America E10 "gasohol"-10% ethanol, 90% standard gasoline has often been used. Brazil has introduced "flex-fuel" engines that can run on any ethanol-petrol blend with 75% to 25% being the standard while the American version of flex-fuel runs on E85. These fuels reduce the pick up but are economic to run and have attracted elderly car users not keen on speed. China has already built the world's biggest ethanol plant, and has plans for many more. France and Germany are raising their output by 40-50% annually. In Britain a small biodiesel plant has just become operational, and another as big as Europe's biggest is being built. In Canada a major breakthrough may come in the shape of a plant that would use straw instead of the costlier grain or sugar feedstock (IEA, 2001). Pollution control measures have also accelerated the use of these fuels. Antismog rules in the US require a clean-burn additive to petrol, and Ethanol, used pure or with suitable additives, can do the job. Pressure from the corn-growers is also providing the necessary push to these oils, like Minnesota as a large part of corn grown in US finds its way to ethanol production. Many US states have made it mandatory to mix fossil fuels with biofuels, raising the existing minimum mandatory limits. In Europe also the situation is very encouraging with the European Commission having set targets under its "Biomass Action Plan" (EU, 2001) and the European Biodiesel Board charged with the responsibility of reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
Bio-refineries
Bio-refineries are facilities that integrate biomass conversion processes and equipment to produce a range of fuels, power and chemicals from biomass. By producing multiple products, a bio-refinery can take advantage of the differences in biomass components and intermediates and maximize the value derived from the biomass resources, or feedstocks. This follows on the model of the petrochemical industry and, like a petroleum refinery, a bio-refinery would not just produce ethanol but a lot of other
products out of the same biomass stream. The bio-refinery concept is critical to biomass commercialization but is yet to take off in a major way. It would require mandatory mixing of fossil fuels with biofuels before this concept takes roots across the major energy consuming world.
Recommendations on Bioenergy
(i) It is incumbent on all parties to the UNFCCC to take steps to reduce their respective use of fossil fuel. But since the use of energy cannot be curtailed and it would instead rise with faster pace of development it would be necessary to replace fossil fuels with renewable forms of energy. Biofuels are easily the most important renewable fuel both on account of its widespread availability and the long history of its usage by the human societies across the globe. What hinders its use is its cost of transportation and the inconvenience in use. The only way forward in this very promising field is scientific and technological research. High investment in research is required bio-fuels by the modern society. And in view of the limitations of the government research organizations this work must be outsourced to universities and other private institutions. There have been some efforts in this direction by the Ministry of Non-conventional Energy IISc, Bangalore, has been conducting research in the area of development of gassifiers. But the pace is insufficient and it is not clear whether the best talent available has gone into this field because the technical solutions suggested so far have fallen. Far short of expectations Much more is required to be done in this field and this has to be done in both public and private sector. The government may have to take the initiative by setting up an advanced biofuel research center in one of the IITs and four centers specializing in different aspects of renewable sources in four different research centers in the four regions of the country like the wind energy and tidal energy in a southern campus; cattle, oil seed and fuelwood based research in the western region, small hydel based research center in the east and agricultural residue based center in the north. The Planning Commission has already taken steps to promote the oil seeds from Jatropha and Pongamia plantation in forestry sector. These species can grow well on poorer degraded soils across the length and breadth of the country. There is a need to reverse subsidized supply of alternate sources of domestic energy the tribal people living within the rings of forest areas contained in paragraph 4.6 of the NFP and replace it with a policy that enables the tribal population to become energy suppliers by growing biomass sustainably in a specified area around their villages for meeting, their own energy needs and also that of others in a demarcated zone of influence using gasification and other appropriate technologies. An appropriate strategy be evolved to offer tax relief on the amount spent on active research by private sector industries with a commitment to continue the same for a period of 10 years. But research would get a push in the private sector only if the business sees grown opportunities in it. One of the most important steps required in this direction would be laws that make it mandatory to use a biodiesel mix with about 20% biodiesel in all motor fuels. But since such a law would need availability of this fuel on country wide scale first it would be necessary to make a law that becomes effective only after a period of three years or so that provides a window for ensuring supplies. Alternately, there could be insistence on the use of these fuels in major cities with populations of 1 million and above in the first stage
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
(v)
(vi)
(vii)
(viii)
which can then be extended to other areas gradually as the supply situation improves. (ix) Since mandatory provisions could create difficulty in enforcement the same results could also be obtained if the taxation policies are designed in such a way that it is economical to use bio-diesel mix. Another factor that would encourage biodiesel is the relative cost advantage it offers when compared with the fossil fuels. In the recent months there has been very sharp increase of oil prices internationally and the government of India is under pressure to absorb the increase rather than passing it on to the consumer. While this can not be completely avoided for socio-economic reasons increased cost absorption, recommended by some political formations, would prove to be counterproductive because the money would have to come at the cost of other important sectors like education, health, infrastructure development and defence etc which we can ill afford to neglect. But, equally importantly, it would leave us unprepared when the prices reach such levels that absorption of the increases become not merely difficult but impossible. If the subsidies supporting the consumption of fossil fuels are gradually reduced to a relatively sustainable level and the same increased in favor of bio-diesels it would make the shift to the latter an economic proposition and encourage private sector investment in research and development of bio-diesel. The high use of fossil fuels is partly due to subsidies. It is recommended that these subsidies may now be shifted towards the use of bio-fuels. Certain industries, like sugar and rice mills, get biomass as a bye product and it is possible to synergise energy production with that of the main product. Taxation policies must be so designed so as to force these industries for investing in inhouse energy production, by the use of bio-fuels. Conscious attempts must be made to raise firewood outside the forest areas, preferably under CDM renewable energy projects, because firewood collection is often the single biggest cause of forest loss and fragmentation that lowers adaptive capacity.
(x)
(xi) (xii)
(xiii)
Institutional Measures: A National Action Plan for Operationalizing CDM

The Planning Commission with a "National Action Plan for Operationalizing CDM in India prepared by the Government of India has taken a number of steps, the most important being the setting up of a Designated National Authority discussed below (MoEF 2004). The National Action Plan (NAP) has also recommended that three expert Panels may be constituted to guide the DNA on technical matters, on aggressively marketing India as an attractive destination for Foreign Direct Investment under CDM and on promoting investments within the country in Unilateral CDM projects. These panels are expected to help the DNA avoid bias, promote environmental integrity, transparency, enhance investors' confidence, streamline procedures and reduce transaction costs. The NAP requires that in order to cut the transaction costs special efforts need to be made to streamline the process, providing easy access to the information, bundling of projects, capacity building of local consultants and addressing the taxation policy. The state forest departments shall also provide free technical advice to community based projects with the objective of cutting the transaction costs for them significantly. The NAP has also recommended the publication of a CDM Investor's Guide, which would contain all necessary information and advice to the potential investors to attract larger amount of funding. A climate technology bazaar is proposed to be held to exhibit our wares to the potential investors. It is also proposed to set up a CDM Cell in the MoEF to perform
administrative and regulatory roles investments under CDM.
and
CDM
promotion Agency to facilitate
Constitution of DNA
In April, 2004, the Government of India appointed a designated national authority for CDM which is called the National Clean Development Mechanism Authority under the subsections (1) and (3) of the Section 3 of the Environmental Protection Act, 1986, that enable the central government to constitute an authority for the purpose of protecting and improving the quality of the environment and preventing, controlling and abating environmental pollution. The authority created under the chairmanship of the Secretary, Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF), has been empowered to issue directions to all concerned including the state governments in matters of research and investigation relating to problems of global warming and establish or recognize laboratories and institutes for this purpose, collect and disseminate information in this respect, prepare manuals, code and guidelines for the purpose of inspection and examination of premises, equipment or processes. The Authority has been specifically empowered to evaluate and approve CDM projects in accordance with the guidelines issued by the CDM_EB and the decisions of the UNFCCC and KP. The evaluation process would include an assessment of the probability of eventual successful implementation of CDM projects and the extent to which projects meet the sustainable development objectives. Final host country approvals can be issued only after clearances from environmental and forestry under the Environmental Protection Act and the Forest Conservation Act. The Authority can also recommend additional requirements to ensure that the CDM projects meet national sustainable developmental priorities and comply with the national, provincial and local legal framework as also to ensure that the projects are compatible with the local priorities and the stakeholders' concerns. The Authority is expected to ensure that the projects that compete with the same source for investment financing the projects with higher expectations of success and that are likely to bring higher sustainable benefits are accorded higher priority. The Authority shall undertake a financial review of the project proposal to ensure that it does not entail the diversion of ODA and that there is no deliberate under valuation of CERs particularly for externally aided projects which would result on reverse subsidization of mitigation costs of global warming. The Authority shall maintain a registry of CDM projects, their CER potential and record the progressive realization of this potential. The Authority is also required to collect, compile and publish technical and statistical data relating to the CDM that would be useful for preparing project proposals, construct baselines, help test the additionality of the projects, assess the leakages, help in carrying out validation, monitoring and verification of the projects in India. The Authority is headed by the Secretary of the Ministry of Environment & Forests of Government of India. Besides Secretaries of various Ministries with External Affairs, Finance, Industrial Policy and Promotion, Power and Non-Conventional Energy are its members. It can also use the services of technical and financial experts as the need arises.
Designated Operational Entities

Independent audit of the projects has to be carried out by a designated operational entity (DOE). As on today there is no such entity in India but soon the Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education is likely to be able to provide the services of a DOE.
Technical Advisory Committee

The NAP has recommended the setting up of a Technical Advisory Committee in the MoEF for final screening of the projects to ensure that the project meets the mandatory technical requirements. This committee would get the details of the project examined through prominent forestry research organizations in the country. Its work shall be time bound.
Nodal State Forest Department Functionary

The NAP has proposed to designate a senior forestry official in each province to function as the Nodal Authority for both promotional and regulatory functions and to advise on the technical suitability of the lands for such projects. This Nodal Functionary shall also be responsible for deciding on the eligibility of the lands proposed by the project proponents for forestry projects in the light of the Kyoto Protocol definitions and the cut-off dates and function as a 'Project Clearing House' at the state level.
Processing Fee
The NAP has proposed the constitution of a CDM fund so as to enable the DNA to self-sustain itself. The projects generating CERs up to 50000 tons of C shall not be required to pay any processing fee, those between 50000 to 100000 tons would pay 1% of the CER sale proceeds while the projects generating still higher CERs shall be required to pay 2% of the sale proceeds.
Development of National Eligibility Criteria

The MoEF is in the process of preparing a national eligibility criterion that would decide on a set of easily implementable benchmarks for biodiversity conservation and sustainable development.
Development of Standardized Methods for Assessing Leakages, Establishing Additionality & Constructing Baselines
In order to ease the difficulties that project proponents and the state forest departments are likely to face in assessing leakages, constructing baselines and establishing additionality of the projects the NAP has recommended the development of standardized methods for the purpose.
Choice between Unilateral, Bilateral and Multilateral CDM Projects

No final decision has been taken in this regard but the current debate suggests that while the DNA will consider all types of projects for approval the unilateral projects stand a greater chance. This is because it is felt that as far as possible the CERs should vest with the host company. In any case the CERs should not entirely vest with the bilateral partner or with the funding agency and the host company should have a say in
the sale of CERs. Also the host company should be an Indian company and not a multinational to avoid the possibility of transfer of CERs to its constituents outside India without adequate pricing. The Marrakesh Accord makes it mandatory that there is no reduction in Overseas Development Assistance for funding of a CDM project from a bilateral development partner of India. Thus in cases where the outside investor is an external development partner it needs to be ensured that there are two separate line items in the external development partner's budget providing separately for ODA projects and the CDM projects. The acceptable Internal Rate of Return (IRR) is 12 for CDM projects. And in assessing the IRR the cost of technology or machinery being transferred are to be separately evaluated along with the expected prices of the CERs. Barter trade between the technology transferred and the CERs are to be discouraged. The choice of technology to be employed in a CDM project is to be left to the project proponents. For more than a decade now the Government of India has embarked on liberalization and economic reforms. The New Industrial Policy recognizes the growing importance of foreign direct investment as an instrument of technology transfer, augmentation of foreign exchange reserves and globalization of the Indian economy. Basically, foreign direct investment relates to direct investment in an Indian company either through a joint venture agreement or as a wholly owned subsidiary with management interest but in the case of CDM forestry projects it would only mean a joint venture with an Indian company since agriculture and plantations are listed as prohibited categories for setting up of wholly owned subsidiaries.
Key Stakeholders
The key stakeholders in the CDM are the national and state governments and the forest departments, traditional tribal authorities, landholders, investors, CER traders, stock exchanges, industry, banks and other financial institutions, insurance companies, Designated Operational Entities, forestry research institutes, and other components of the civil society. Most of these stakeholders do not yet know the challenges and the opportunities that lie before them. A crucial task is to enhance their knowledge and encourage them to build their capacities and provide appropriate forums to network among them and with the DNA. The proposed CDM Promotion Agency shall be charged with this task. The MoEF has already begun the training programs for forest officials working in the states at the field level. The Nodal State Forest Department Functionaries in all the states in India shall organize extension services for the landholders and others soon. A CDM forestry sector manual is under preparation that would be of help for the project proponents. Besides this would ensure that all the stakeholders perform their functions with the minimum possible delay.
Conclusions
With the exceptions of the Trans-Himalayan zone, Desert region and the Indian Islands the rest of the bio-geographic zones in India offer modest to good opportunities for taking up afforestation and reforestation projects under CDM. India also has the requisite human skills necessary to make a success of the opportunity of greening the country through the CDM. With a view to reduce the bottlenecks from conception to implementation stages of the project, the Government of India has initiated a number of steps the most important being the development of a National Action Plan for the
operationalization of CDM in India. A DNA has been set up and become functional; a DOE in the field of forestry projects should become operational soon; a CDM Cell and a CDM Promotional Agency are proposed to be set up for meeting the regulatory and promotional needs; state level 'Project Clearing Houses' are to be established; capacity building work has been planned, needs identified and a beginning has been made in training the state forest officials; guidelines for national eligibility and for land suitability are being developed and specific steps to educe transaction costs have been taken. Soon standardized nationally approved methods for baseline construction, establishing additionality and assessing leakages would be available. Workshops involving different stakeholders are planned and the tasks of publication of booklets, guidelines and information dissemination would soon be undertaken. National and state level institutions of research and training are proposed to be identified and their capacity enhanced by focused investments.
References
Agarwal, A., S. Narain, and A. Sharma, (1999). Global Environmental Negotiations, Vol I. Center for Science & Environment, New Delhi. Datye, K.R., (1997). Banking on biomass: A new strategy for sustainable prosperity based on renewable energy and dispersed industrialization. Center for Environmental Education, Ahmedabad. EU (2001). Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament.on alternative fuels for road transportation and on a set of measures to promote the use of biofuels. COM (2001) 547 (provisional version), Brussels. Forest Survey of India (FSI) (1999). State of Forest Report, 1999, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Dehradun, India, p.7-23. Forest Survey of India (FSI) 2001 State of Forest Report, 1999, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Dehradun, India, p.xi - xii. FSI (2004). Pilot Study on Assessment of Status of Sustainability of Forest Resources in India. Forest Survey of India, Dehradun, India. IEA (2001). Greenhouse gas balances of biomass: answers to ten frequently asked questions about bioenergy, carbon sinks and their role in global climate change. http://www.joanneum.ac.at/iea-bioenergytask38/publication/ task38faq.pdf. Down loaded in October, 2004. IPCC 2000 Land use, Land-use change and Forestry, A Special Report of the IPCC. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. IPCC (2001a). Climate Change 2001, Mitigation, A Contribution of Working Group III to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. IPCC (2001b). Climate Change 2001: Synthesis Report. A Contribution of Working Groups I, II, and III to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. Kant, P. (2004). The Real Cost of Carbon Sink Projects in Tropical Forest Ecosystems of India: An Analysis of their Profitability; Paper to be published in the proceedings of the International Workshop on Environmental Economics and Green Policy, held at Beijing, March 2 - 5, 2004. Kant, P., and Katwal, R.P.S. (2003). Exploring Possibilities of Reforestation of Forests Exposed to Shifting Cultivation and Encroachment in North East India Through Clean Development Mechanism, Proceedings of the National Workshop on Technological Innovations and Research Advancements for Application in Joint Forest Management, ICFRE, New Forest, Dehradun, 2003. Lal, J. (1992). Indias Forests Myth & Reality, Natraj Publishers, Dehradun, p.304 McDougal, R.A. (1999). Clean Development Mechanism: Discussion; Economic Impact of Mitigation Measures, IPCC, 1999, p.117-119. MoEF (2004). India's Initial National Communication to the UNFCCC; Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India, New Delhi, 2004, p. 3-9. NAS (1980). Firewood Crops: Shrub and Tree Species for Energy Production, National Academy of Sciences (NAS), Washington, DC, USA, p.237 Pandey, D. (2002). Fuelwood Studies in India: Myth and Reality. Center for International Forestry Research, Bogor, Indonesia. Planning Commission (2004). Report of the Working Group on National Action Plan for Operationalizing CDM in India, Planning Commission, New Delhi, 2004 The Gazette of India (2004). Ministry of Environment & Forests (Climate Change Division), Government of India, New Delhi, Order dated 16.04.04
BRINGING FOREST ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES INTO THE ECONOMICS OF TREE GROWING IN INDIA
Promode Kant Introduction
Indias major policy objective is to bring one third of geographical area under forest and tree cover. In this densely populated country, with one of the lowest per capita land availability in the world, there is little possibility of extending the forest cover. Only approach left for achieving the policy target is through very large-scale promotion of tree growing on private holdings. There are very large number of small landholdings in the country. Many of these are marginal lands of low agricultural productivity. Further, mismanagement of irrigation as well as excessive application of fertilizer have laid waste significant extent of agricultural lands belonging to small holders who were not always adept at the proper use of the technology. At the same time, adoption of newer technologies by the bigger farmers has resulted in overall steep rise of agricultural production in India in the past two decades to the extent that enormous food surpluses have built up. With supply exceeding demand, the agriculture product prices are not keeping pace with the general inflation resulting in lowered returns to the smallholder even as his cost of production continues to rise. Even in the case of lands of higher agricultural productivity, many smallholders are engaged in more remunerative non-agricultural economic activities for their livelihood. They would rather leave their lands fallow than rent it to others for cultivation because of fear of losing their ownership to the tenant cultivator. Tree growing, which taps nutrients and water at altogether different depths from agricultural crops, may be more appropriate for marginal lands of low productivity. Absentee landowners would also prefer to place their lands under tree cultivation, as this does not require their constant presence leaving them free to pursue other livelihood activities. However, long gestations and accompanying risks- by way of damages by fire, insect attacks or diseases, policy changes and price fluctuations-render tree growing an economically unattractive proposition. The smallholder would be willing to invest in economic activities that increase his income, have low gestation, easy market access and manageable risks. Further, his assets should not get locked for long periods. This paper envisages strategies to enable the smallholder to invest in tree planting.
Approach
Trees provide valuable ecological goods and services like carbon sequestration, soil and water conservation and aesthetic services throughout their life time and if there is a market for these goods and services the owner need not wait for the long rotation period before realizing his profits from tree harvest. There could be an argument that if indeed these are such valuable goods and services, that the mankind is in need of, why markets have not evolved around them? The answer perhaps lies in the nature of these goods and services. Over countless generations we have obtained these services without paying money individually even though societies have been paying for a few of these, namely water and soil conservation, for quite some time now. Communities living in the Himalayas are willing to pay opportunity costs for not using oak forests in their neighborhood for firewood, preferring to walk long distances to obtain it from far, because they value the water conserved by the dense oak forests in the village streams. The sharp rise in populations placing ever increasing demands on the finite natural resources of the earth has changed the environment far beyond its elastic limits. Had there been a market for these goods and services the sharp increase in demand and
limited supplies would have placed a high premium on them resulting in a more efficient demand management. A market is needed but inertia prevents a quick response to the changed situation in which higher prices may have to be paid for these goods. To nudge people out of this inertia A set of policy interventions are required. These policy interventions should result in creation of explicit demands for these goods and services, remove bottlenecks in meeting these demands, provide a market place for the producers and consumers to meet, lead to easier financing for both the producers and the purchasers to increase their respective capacities for production, consumption and thus create more trade opportunities. Production of more goods and services, with increased income would yield higher demands and better prices for these, from Inland, Lowered wait for economic returns would come from production of goods and services that can start yielding early. Risk lowering could come from a long-term certainty about the investment climate, higher allocations for research to control forest diseases and fires and lowered premium on insurances. The problems of asset liquidity will have to be tackled by ensuring that the tax burden on transfer of landholding, on account of tree wealth on the land, does not increase and also by ease of transfer of liabilities of continuance of ecological goods and services to the purchaser of the land.
Creating Demands for Environmental Goods and Services

The fact that forests provide goods and services like water and soil conservation has been known to man for long and societies across the globe have tended to protect forests in the watersheds of rivers and streams important to them. In the recent years the role of forests in sequestration and storage of carbon has been well documented and forests are now recognized as providing a significant opportunity for mitigation of global warming. The crucial importance of biodiversity for the survival and continued prosperity of human beings and the important role that forests play in it have also been studied in details by academics and generally accepted by the civil societies across the world. Ecotourism recognizes the commercial value of aesthetics of forests and has developed as major revenue earners in many countries across the world.
Water Conservation
Global fresh water consumption doubles every 20 years. There is thus a huge ever-increasing demand for fresh water and for quality drinkable water. Forests in the watersheds greatly influence the local water cycle and improve water quality. Water conservation services generated by the tree plantations are universally acknowledged as important but as yet no attempts have been made to establish quantitative links between the tree cover and the amount of water conserved. During non-rainy season the increase in availability of water due to tree plantation in the catchment is measurable in the water flow in streams and depth of water in the wells. The quantum of this increase would depend upon the rainfall, its intensity and spread, gradient, root spread and foliage of the species planted, its spacing and age among other factors. The number of variables in such a computation are too many for a simple model to be developed for all lands, species, spacing, age etc. This would require long-term commitment by forestry research institutions to develop models and to continue to modify them as knowledge and experience expands. In the meanwhile the government would be required to issue notifications of acceptance of specific models developed by research institutions for specific locations and species and to ensure that contributions of water conservation by plantations are measured on the basis of the model notified for the purpose.
In water conservation an important issue is who will pay for the services generated. The ideal thing would of course be for the users to pay. This may, however, not work in developing societies like India where water supply is seen as a duty of the government and user are willing to pay only a small part of the distribution costs involved. The subsidies involved in providing this service are enormous and it would be nave to expect a change in this situation in a hurry. So it would be necessary for the government to pay for the water conservation caused by the private forests / tree plantations in the beginning and then gradually reduce subsidies to transfer the burden to the user. Related to this is the issue of the amount payable for the additional water made available. This would be best calculated on the basis of the current cost of taking water to the site. This would make the amount payable different for different localities and some may view these differences in valuation as undesirable. But what this confers is valuation of the situational advantage of the venture that is an important part of development of new markets.
Soil Conservation
Siltation of ponds and small water bodies is a serious problem as rural communities and governments spend large sums every year to desilt these. Regeneration and protection of watershed forests decreases soil erosion significantly. This decrease in soil erosion is quantifiable and economic benefits from reduced siltation can be calculated. Soil conservation services by planting trees offer a parallel to the water conservation. But unlike water this service should be paid for by the state or the community because quantification of benefits accrued to the individual beneficiaries would be nearly impossible. Measurement of prevented soil losses would require modeling on the same lines as that suggested for water conservation above and similar steps would be required to be undertaken by the state. The price of the services offered could be based on the amount that the state (or the community) is currently spending on prevention of soil losses by raising tree cover in the area under consideration as budgeted by the legislature because this gives a fair measure of what the society is willing to pay for the services generated. Since the state would be expected to have kept before itself a certain target for conserving soil the achievements of the small holder would reduce the task of the state to that extent and the state would owe the cost that it would have incurred in making the same achievement.
Biodiversity Conservation
The international community and most national governments are deeply concerned about the threat to earths bio-diversity. This concern is now being widely shared by the civil societies in general. This concern is exhibited in a number of international treaties and increased allocations for bio-diversity conservation in multilateral, bilateral and national projects. The smallholder plantations, with technical support from the state, can ensure bio-diversity conservation in their areas of operation. Their impact on bio-diversity can be measured only to a limited degree in the current state of knowledge. Since the state would be expected to have kept before itself a certain target for conserving biodiversity as indicated in the budget approved by the legislature the achievements of the small holder would reduce the task of the state to that extent and the state would owe the cost that it would have incurred in making the same achievement.
Aesthetics and Eco-Tourism

Forests enhance aesthetics and may result in increased tourist traffic flows to existing tourism destinations and may even create new destinations. Increased earnings could be quantified and shared in an appropriate manner with those responsible for creating these aesthetic values. As in the case of the soil and biodiversity conservation the state allocates certain funds for promotion of tourism as an economic activity expecting to meet certain physical targets. The smallholders would achieve part of the target and the state would have to spend an equivalent amount less in tourism promotion. It is this amount that the state would owe to the smallholder planters. It may also not be paid directly but spent in providing services to the smallholder to facilitate his trade as has already been discussed in relation to soil and biodiversity conservation.
Asset Liquidity
The liquidity of assets is a serious concern to the smallholder. There are two ways in which the liquidity is affected. One is that the contracts entered by the tree planter for providing ecological services may not be transferable to the purchaser of the assets. The other is the taxation on assets transferred by sale may be charged on not only the value of the land but also the value of the new assets of the trees and thus the increased taxation at the time of asset transfer may become so high as to inhibit transfer. The first problem could be addressed by designing the contract format for ecological services to have an inbuilt provision for a composite ownership transfer that would transfer the ownership of land with all the attendant liabilities for servicing the contract conditions. The second issue of taxation on asset transfer has already been tackled in India where on transfer of lands by sale the value of tree crop is excluded from the valuation for the purpose of calculating tax.
Networking to Enhance Collective Bargaining Power

In new ventures of this kind with a high degree of scientific, technological, and business uncertainties and lack of clarity in policy it is necessary for the small ventures to form networks to enhance their bargaining power in the emerging markets. Network is a voluntary and cooperative arrangement between individuals or institutions to carry out jointly certain specified activities for the purpose of direct exchange of relevant technologies, experience and information to address a common problem. A competent system of networking, informal or formal, can reduce costs and lead to a more efficient use of resources. Important features of networks are (a) focus on specific issue, (b) a well-defined manner of cooperation among (c) a distinct membership. The network would be expected to disseminate information, organize seminars, study tours, maintain database and share information on likely policy changes and their effect on the members (IUFRO, 1998). In the beginning the state will have to take the responsibility of helping create such networks and this can best be done by equipping one of its existing department like the forest department with the necessary expertise and authority.
Developing Markets
What is required is the creation of new markets for these new goods and services. New markets grow organically over long periods of time through errors and course corrections. This organic growth can also be speeded up by an appropriate research and development strategy to broaden the base of forest goods and services. These are optimization of production of these goods and services, measurement of goods and services delivered, economic valuation of these goods and services and determining the
key players in the market. Production optimization would require research to establish ecologically sound models for optimizing the product mix to give greatest economic satisfaction to the planters for all bio-geographic zones and plantation sizes. Research is also needed to make appropriate choices of forest species and maximizing their production at least cost. Another important area of research is on working plan prescriptions for managing forests to produce these results. The smallholders would be able to enter the market with greater confidence if they have access to data on the true economic values of the goods and services that they produce. There is a general lack of a wide base of knowledge for these products and, therefore, research on economic valuation of all these goods and services and their various combinations is an urgent requirement.
Risk Coverage
Trees, being long term crops, are exposed to a variety of risks like theft, pest, fires, diseases, floods, droughts and cyclones. Sharp turns in policies can also result in severe drop in demand and, consequently, of the prices. These risks are a great dampener on the enthusiasm of the smallholder to invest in this venture. There is thus a need to have a comprehensive risk management strategy to minimize the losses and to cover the losses by appropriate insurance instruments. There is also a need to understand the sharing of responsibility between the state and individuals in reducing the risks. For example, fire in smallholder plantation is most likely to come from outside sources over which the individual owner may have little control. He can only be expected to take fire control measures like removal of incendiary material from his plantation and to lay and maintain firelines around the plantation. Similarly, theft prevention is a law and order problem and should lie within the sovereign duties of the state. The state should not only make efforts to reduce the instances of theft but also pay for insurance cover against theft. On the other hand the risks against diseases and pest attacks, drought, floods and cyclones and drop in demand on account of changes in consumer preferences should lie in the domain of the grower and he should pay for the insurance cover against these risks. Investment in science and technology to provide information about potential impacts and make better evaluation of risks is the responsibility of the state. Such an approach would encourage larger number of entrepreneurs to enter this field as it would make it possible to plan against risks with greater economic efficiency.
Subsidies and Minimum Support Prices

Fear of prices crashing down, twenty years or more down the line, acts as a strong deterrent on long term investments. But since growing of long-term tree crops is in the interest of the society on account of the environmental benefits it should be the states endeavor to encourage those who may invest in longer rotation crops. This encouragement could be in the form of financial benefits linked to length of the rotation to reflect the environmental value of the enterprise. Subsidies are a standard tool of economic and fiscal policies of the state given specifically for promoting a particular course of action or for employing specific factors of production. Differential grants may also aim at promoting a particular form of forestry like planting native species, bringing larger areas under endangered species and long rotation crops etc (Price, 1989). But the scale at which these subsidies would need to be provided to make a meaningful impact on the production of environmental services would be so large and the system of assessing and making subsidies payment so complicated that subsidies might not be a workable proposition.
Minimum support prices can also be utilized to reduce the fear of falling prices. In the case of crops with rotation longer than 25 years the minimum support price will, however, benefit only the harvester of the crop who might be different from the individual making the long-term investment today. This may, therefore, not be a sufficient motivation for investment.
Conclusions
The developing countries have a very large number of small landholdings in which tree planting may fetch better economic returns to the owners. The expectation of smallholder tree planter would be that his incomes should be high, waiting period reasonable, access to market easy, the risks manageable and that his asset liquidity should not be lower than what it would be under agriculture. Enhancement of income would result from production of more goods and services like carbon sequestration, soil and water conservation and aesthetic services that can start yielding early and increased demands and better prices for these products. Policy interventions should result in creation of explicit demands for these goods and services, remove bottlenecks in meeting these demands, lead to easier financing for both the growers and the purchasers and create carbon trade opportunities. The market for these forestry services has to be developed through the tool of appropriate state policies that should aim at Recognizing water conservation benefits through measurement and payment of services rendered tree plantations and enabling
Recognizing soil conservation, bio-diversity conservation and ecotourism benefits to the society through tree planting, enabling measurement of their contributions and investing the amount owed to for the services generated in creating infrastructure for the smallholders Ensuring asset liquidity of smallholder plantations through appropriate fiscal and legal policies Enabling networking among smallholders to enhance their collective bargaining powers and reducing undercutting Risk lowering could come from a long-term certainty about the investment climate, sharing of responsibility by the state for losses on account of illegal felling and encroachments, higher allocations for research in control of forest diseases and fires and lowered premium on insurances. The problem of asset liquidity will have to be tackled by ensuring that the tax burden on transfer of landholding on account of tree wealth on the land does not increase and also by ease of transfer of liabilities for providing ecological goods and services to the purchaser of the assets.
References and Bibliography

Adamowicz, W.L., White, W. & Phillips, W.E. (Eds) (1993). Forestry and the Environment: Economic Perspectives. C A B International, Wallingford, Oxon, UK, 304 pp. IUFRO (1998). Proceedings of the International Consultation on Research & Information Systems in Forestry, An Austrian and Indonesian initiative in Support of the Programme of Work of the Intergovernmental Forum on Forests, Edited by IUFRO, Vienna, pages 161 MoEF (1999). National Forestry Action Programme India, volume I, published by the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF), Government of India, New Delhi, pages 180 Nautiyal, J.C. (1988). Forest Economics, Principles and Applications. Natraj Publishers, Dehradun, India, 580 pp. Price, C. (1989). The Theory and Application of Forest Economics, Basil Blackwell Ltd., Oxford, UK, 401 pp.
NATIONAL STATUS REPORT FORESTRY DATA BASE, TIMBER, NTFP & SWP
Arun K. Bansal, IFS Addl. PCCF & Project Director OFSDP
1.
INTRODUCTION
With only 2.47 per cent of Worlds geographical area India supports more than 16 per cent of worlds human population and 18 percent of worlds cattle population. Forest is the second largest land use in India after agriculture. India is one of the 12 mega diversity countries that collectively account for about 65 percent of the global biodiversity packed in only 1 per cent of worlds forests4. Indias huge human population, coupled with more than 500 million of livestock, exerts immense pressure on its natural resources, including the forests. The pressure on the biodiversity of forests is further increased due to improving standards of living resulting in higher demand for timber and Non-timber forest products. Added to these, is the unplanned/un-regulated exploitation of Non-timber forest products (NTFP) & medicinal plants, unauthorized removal of fuel wood, poles and timber by the forest dependent communities, living in and around forests not only for livelihood, in the absence of other alternatives, but also at the behest of unscrupulous traders and manufacturers. In addition to the various products, forests also provide environmental services carbon sinks, water and soil conservation etc. which are called intangibles and have been non marketable. Historically, forests like other similar renewable natural resources, have been considered inexhaustible and are not given due importance both with regard to their management and investments. Due to this, the resources have been used beyond their regeneration capacity resulting in degradation of the resource base. However, in recent years, there has been tremendous global appreciation and awakening about the environmental and ecological services of forests. Notwithstanding this, the per capita loss of forest in India is lower compared to many tropical countries. India is the only country in the South Asia with increase in forest cover during 1990s and increasing trend is continuing. Indian forests continuing to be a source of livelihood subsistence for a sizable proportion of its population living in the vicinity of forests. A recent World Bank study5 reports that roughly 275 million poor rural people in India, about 27% of the total population, depend on forests for at least part of their subsistence and cash livelihood, which they earn from fuel wood, fodder, poles, and a range of non-timber forest products, such as fruits, flowers, and medicinal plants. Seventy percent of Indias rural population depends on fuel wood to meet domestic energy needs. In spite of the fact that forests comprise 22 percent of the total land area of the country and are unique natural renewable resource yielding variety of products and services, investment in the sector, guided mainly by their contribution to
Indian biodiversity wealth is of the order of more than 80, 000 known species of animals and 45,000 species of plants, of which 15,000 are known to be of medicinal value. Almost 3,200 wild relatives of agricultural crops and 131 wild relatives of domesticated animals are found in India. Our stakes also cover those animals and plants that are found only in small areas and not elsewhere. These endemic species include 5,150 species of the plant kingdom and 1,837 species of the animal kingdom.
5
World Bank, 2006, India - Unlocking Opportunities for Forest Dependent Communities, 96p.
the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP), has been abysmally low6. The National Forest Commission (MoEF, GOI 2006) in its report have mentioned that the strict definition of GDP underestimates the total economic value of forests in India. More importantly, those informal economic activities that dominate the livelihoods of the rural poor are hardly captured in any economic assessment at the national or State level. For example, subsistence non-timber forest produce (NTFP), fuel wood, and vital local and distant ecological service functions such as farm nutrition and irrigation, disease and storm protection, maintenance of aquifers and hydrology of the area, carbon sequestration, aesthetic values, soil stability on steep slopes, etc., even though occurring at enormous scales, are hardly ever measured, let alone included in the GDP assessment. If one only makes a guess estimate of the fuel wood trade alone at conservative price, its annual turnover is around Rs. 76,500 crores and is a source of livelihood for over 11 million people, making it the largest employer (formal and informal) in the Indian energy sector. Estimates have been made for ecotourism and carbon sequestration in forest areas, which increases the national GDP share from forests from 1.07 to 2.4 per cent. Observing these factors the National Statistical Commission has recommended for establishment of appropriate statistical unit/cells in the State Forest Departments (SFD) to oversee collection and compilation of forestry statistics from diverse sources on forest products, including timber and NTFPs, and use of information technology for their storage and speedy transmission.
2.
FORESTRY STATISTICS7:
2.1 Evolution: An in depth analysis of the current situation of wood product statistics was done as a part of Pre Project Review of Indian Timber Market8. The analysis revealed that realizing the importance of forestry statistics in India the Indian Board of Forestry decided as early as in 1925 for conducting an economic survey of forest resources in all provinces. Formats were designed for collection of information and the Forest Research Institute (FRI) at Dehra Dun carried out compilation of an All India view. The British Indian Government collected such forest sector statistics periodically till 1947. The coverage was gradually extended to include forests located in the former princely states after independence. The Directorate of Economics and Statistics (DES) in the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation standardized State forestry statistics collection formats in 1958-59, and
6 The GDP includes only goods traded in formal markets. This excludes many goods and services such as subsistence NTFPs, fuel wood, carbon sequestration, aesthetic values, prevention of soil erosion, water conservation etc. In 2002-03, forests contributed Rs.27,013 crore to Indias GDP at the current prices, which was 1.2 % of the GDP. The contribution of forests to Indias GDP has varied from 1.0 to 1.5 per cent during the nine-year period from 1993-94 to 2002-03. Similarly, the contribution of forestry and logging to Indias Net Domestic Product also varied from 1.6 per cent to 1.3 per cent during the same period. However, these figures exclude contribution of the forest-based industries, which are included under the "manufacturing sector". More importantly, these figures are based only on recorded removals from forests, which are only a fraction of actual removals, and do not take into account the environmental services provided by the forests. Contribution of many farm foresters is also perhaps recorded under agriculture rather than forestry.
Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations on Forestry Information needs: More and improved information is needed on the status and value economic, environmental and social of the worlds forests. It will serve as a basis for policy and management decisions in response to socio-economic, technological and political changes Assessments of forest cover, condition and productivity, biological diversity, and the supply and demand for wood and non-wood forest products and services will be important to guide decisions and measure progress towards achieving sustainable forest management. Maharaj Muthoo, 2003, Pre Project Review of Indian Timber Market September (ITTO - PPD 49/02). Present author was a member of the Review team.
8
began compiling national level data, though the accuracy of data and its timely collection and compilation were limited. Several SFDs did not have a unit or staff member devoted to collecting or compiling statistics. A Central Forestry Commission (CFC) was set up in the Ministry of Agriculture in 19659, with the objective of collecting, compiling and publishing standardized forestry statistics. The CFC revised the DES formats and started collecting standardized statistics with inputs from the States. There were, however, many limitations for prompt collection, compilation and analysis, as was foreworded in the first formal Digest of Forest Statistics published in the country with data regarding production, prices, market and trade of timber and other forest produce from State forests (Muthoo, M. K. and R. K. Khushoo, 1966). Following the creation of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) in 1982, the CFC was reconstituted into separate Statistics and Utilization Divisions. During this period the FRI collected basic timber price information through its Forest Utilization Wing, and also compiled selected forestry statistics that were published by the MoEF as Indias Forests. Consequent to the abolition of the post of Forest Utilization Officer in FRI, these activities were also discontinued and several agencies in India collected and stored data on different aspects of forestry without any consolidation at the national level. With the World Bank aided Forestry Research, Extension and Education Project (FREEP), an attempt was made to develop a forest information data base and subsequently a Division of Statistics was created in the Indian Council Forest Research and Education (ICFRE) to collect, collate, process, publish and circulate data covering all aspects of forestry at the national level. 2.2 Current Situation: Forest product information is currently collected and collated by the public sector SFDs using standard formats reviewed at the FORSTAT96 national workshop organized by the FRIs Directorate of Statistics in 1996 at ICFRE. The format has remained unchanged despite several policy shifts about the role of the forest sector in the process of an emerging economy with greater private sector participation, on the one hand, and heightened awareness about global environmental concerns, on the other hand. Data from forest ranges -the lowest data collection unit, are determined through a chain of custody system. Information from different field offices is compiled at Divisional level and transmitted annually to the SFD headquarters, where statewide statistics are expected to be collated and consolidated. The SFDs are required to send data in the standard format to ICFRE where, after analysis and discussion with SFDs, the data is compiled for the country as a whole. The validity of data is supposed to be checked at State level with the help of ICFRE. ICFRE, however, compiles data only on forest production. Even so, the time lag is usually long and beyond ICFREs control, for it depends on the State organs for timely reporting. One reason for the delay and incompleteness is that several SFDs are unable to adhere to the prescribed formats and timeframe due primarily to lack of efficient statistical data collection and compilation system. Furthermore, consequent to enactment of Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act 1996, many states have liberalized collection of MFPs through the Panchayati Raj Institutions10. As a result there is virtually no information about production/collection of such MFPs, which was hitherto available through transit permits issued by Forest Officials. In addition to data provided by the SFDs, industry association also compile production data. The Federation of Indian Plywood and Panel Industries (FIPPI) collects data on decorative veneers, particleboard, hardboard and medium density fibre board from the member manufacturing units. Given the tendency for tax evasion in many
9
10
In the Government of India, Forestry was a Division in the Ministry of Agriculture till 1981. For example, Orissa under the 2000 Policy of procurement and trade of Non-timber forest produce, has transferred regulation of 68 Minor Forest Produces items, other than the specified Items Kendu Leaves and Bamboo, to the Gram Panchayats. These items are now regulated under the Orissa Grama panchayats (Minor Forest Produce Administration) Rules 2000. Recently, sal seed has also been added to this list.
cases, this may lead to under reporting; actual production and consumption may be at a higher level, but there seems no option under the existing circumstances. It has also been observed that data are missing for several large states, such as Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, which account for about 50 per cent of the total forest cover of the state. CSO maintains the price data of the various commodities including forest/wood products in the form of Wholesale Price Index (WPI) which shed some light on price movement, otherwise unavailable from any other forest sector statistics. In addition, the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) is the principal source of industrial statistics in India. It provides statistical information to assess and evaluate, objectively and realistically, the changes in the growth, composition and structure of organised manufacturing sector comprising activities related to manufacturing processes. The Survey is conducted annually under the statutory provisions of the Collection of Statistics Act 1953, and the Rules framed there-under in 1959, except in the State of Jammu & Kashmir where it is conducted under the State Collection of Statistics Act, 1961 and the rules framed thereunder in 1964. The data on international trade are maintained by the Ministry of Commerce and Industries through the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCIS). The primary source of these data is the daily trade reports and custom clearance records of import and export of Forest Products collated by the Department of Customs and Central Excise. The DCGIS publishes export and import data in its Monthly Statistics of Foreign Trade following the World Customs Organisations Harmonised System of classification of commodities. Data are available in hard copy as well in electronic form (Export Import Data Bank). In adequacies in these data have been clearly brought out in the Pre Project Review of Indian Timber Market September (ITTO - PPD 49/02). The Division of Statistics (ICFRE) gathers data on production and trade of forest products from the State Forest Departments, Federal Ministry of Commerce, National Planning Commission, Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF), and the Central Statistical Organisation (Annual Survey of Industries - ASI) and trade associations. Till date, data have been published for the years 1988-94, 1995, 1996, 2000 and 2004. The statistical information collected and compiled by the Division of Statistics is stored in a database with a report published bi-annually in hard copy and on the Internet (http://www.icfre.org). The report is sent to all the SFDs, State Forest Corporations, concerned Government of India Ministries and other users who request such information from ICFRE. Needless to say that the basic source of such information are the usually collated data from SFDs and other such sources, which are reassessed through desk studies in distant offices, without direct access to original data. In spite of all these efforts, there are continuing specific data gaps are forest resource stocks and exploitation, change in forest stock, time series data on ecosystem services provided by forests and biodiversity, encroachment, resources drawn from forests by industries and intermediate consumption by different stakeholder groups. In addition to the forest products data, the Forest Survey of India (FSI) is estimating forest cover on a two year cycle based on visual/digital analysis satellite data. Started in the year 1987, the latest State of Forest Report has been published during 2003. In addition to the Forest Cover assessment, estimation of tree cover (trees outside forests) was started during 2001, and reports also include information on growing stock of wood at national and regional levels.
The inadequacy of the statistical data11 on practically all aspect of forestry has already been realized by the MoEF, GOI. Observing that the national picture about various aspects of forestry remain unclear, and that contribution of forestry products, timber, poles, fuel wood, and NTFPs including medicinal plants, to GDP, remain unaddressed, the MoEF has in 2005 embarked upon an integrated National Forestry Database Management System (NFDMS) with a view to strengthen the data collection, compilation and dissemination mechanism. Under this initiative, it is proposed to (i) Carry out information need analysis for development of NFDMS, (ii) Functional requirement study at various levels, and (iii) capacity building at various levels based upon functional requirement study and creation of necessary infrastructure including statistical cells at circle and state levels
3.
TIMBER & NTFPS VALUE ADDITION & INDUSTRIES
Traditionally timber has been regarded to be the most important of all forest products due primarily to the fact that wood logs forms the most important and widely traded/marketed product from forests. However, in recent years, NTFPs12are gaining significance.
3.1
Timber
Despite industrial and technological advances in the development of new generation materials and products, wood continues to be an indispensable material for several economically important end uses. A sustainable supply of wood can be maintained with much less effort than that is required for producing the wood substitutes, such as steel and plastics that are non-renewable and high energy consuming. This is particularly important in view of the chronic deficiency of power in the country and huge outflow of precious foreign exchange on fossil fuel imports. Undoubtedly, in total life cycle analysis, wood is the most environment friendly of all its modern alternates and the best substitute of itself. Growing production of more trees and procuring increased volume of wood is probably the most rational option in view of its highly favourable impact on environmental stability and socio-economic security, e.g., vis--vis energy usage and conservation, as depicted in the following table. Table: Energy for Production
Material Steel Timber Concrete Source: Compiled by Bansal A. K13.
11
Energy for Production per unit of stress in normal use (M J/m2) (N/mm2) 1,500 80 240
So much so, that India is the only major producer country from Asia besides a few from Africa, which has not responded to the Joint Forest Questionnaire of ITTO/FAO/ECE in the recent years, or else its response is incredibly inconsistent and inordinately delayed. Somewhat similar seems to be the situation about reporting to UN COMTRADE, which has indicated some severe data gaps. Despite much discussion there appears to be no agreement on the terminology to describe NTFS. Other terms in usage are Non Wood Forest Products (term used by FAO), Minor Forest Produce. The term NWFP differs from NTFP in excluding all wood while NTFP includes wood for uses other than for timber. However, there are many gray areas most prominent being bamboos. The National Forest Commission (2006) have recommended bamboos to be included under MFPs under the Indian Forest Act. Based on the Report of Sub-Committee on Detailed Studies of Comparative Advantages of Wood, Reconstituted Timber vis--vis Plastics, Aluminum and Steel, of the Reconstituted Development Panel Committee Constituted by the Planning Commission of India 1992.
12
13
India is one of the major users of wood in the Asia-Pacific region. The country had, till recently, the privilege of having fairly abundant quantity of wood from several tropical hard wood species including teak and rosewood. Utilization of these species for different end-uses was, by and large, based on practical experience rather than scientifically developed product development and application technologies. Moreover, these species with excellent desirable inherent characteristics are generally a ready-touse natural raw material that requires little processing effort. A comprehensive review of Indian consumption patterns undertaken in the course of the by the Pre Project Review of Indian Timber Market (ITTO - PPD 49/02), 2003 through an intensive national survey of timber consumption in the last six years in 15 urban centers Using these and other primary and secondary data, the study projects the likely demand in the forthcoming ten years for various types of timber and the potential sources of supply. In addition, a rapid rural appraisal of consumption has been conducted in six diverse districts to validate the estimates of current consumption and the future needs of the vast rural population, which is largely dependent on domestic production from forests and ToF. The study indicated a net increase in total timber consumption both in urban and rural areas. The major requirement of timber is in housing/construction and transport sectors. Other areas of use of timber include fishing boats, tools, sports goods, match sticks, toys etc., upon which depends lively hood of a large number of people concentrated in different localities. Declining supplies of traditional/well known timber species focus has resulted in import and greater use of farm grown fast growing species with appropriate technologies for their processing, and development of timber substitutes from renewable materials. 3.1.1 Value Addition: The major need for value addition to such rapid growth plantation timber, either alone or in combination with imported timber, is the appropriate processing technologies for production of durable sawn timber, layered or particle composites. Enhancing service life of products made from plantation timber which generally have low natural durability is absolutely necessary. On an average, preservative treatment increases the service life by about 4 times and is a very low cost approach to reduce demand or alternatively, increasing wood production for which techniques are available. All over the world, the use of preservative treatment is well established as a major element in efficient utilization of wood. Unfortunately, in India most wood products are not treated. It is therefore necessary that treatment of timber and other wood products, particularly of plantation origin, be either made mandatory or a system of incentives and disincentives be evolved. Sawmiling, being the most important primary wood processing industry needs to be organized as a professional industrial sector with technology input. The present sawmills are not suitable for conversion of small girth plantation logs. However, recovery can be increased by at least 5 percent along with quality improvement by adopting simple improvement with little investment. A prototype developed in the eighties under an FAO funded project at IPIRTI for processing small girth logs has been found to be highly productive, cost effective and efficient and it needs to be commercial adopted. Moreover, considering the small girth and short length of logs likely to be available from agro forestry finger/scarf jointing and laminating techniques can play an important role in enhancing the utilization of agro forestry timber. Through appropriate processing technology low girth, low durability plantation wood may be converted into durable, strong and structurally stable panel material of higher dimensions. Use of new technology for adhesives, machines and industrial
processes and process control, can make the composites move beyond dependence upon the species related issues of solid wood. The panel industry is already using several plantation timbers, such as rubber wood, poplar, eucalyptus etc. for making plywood and block boards, there is need for continued R&D support for enhancing consumer confidence. Particle composites are characterized by almost 100% wood recovery and the world trend is for higher production of particle composites. In India PB and FB industries were started about four decades back, the consumer acceptability of particle composite is not low mainly due to their poor performance. Innovative attempts have been initiated for production of overlaid particle composites to better their performance. R & D inputs are needed in processing technology itself to improve the product quality and also in application techniques to popularize the materials for fullest utilization of wood, wood residues and other lignocellulosic materials. There are a number of other natural fibers that will be available from agro forestry production system including rice husk, bagasse, cotton stalks, wheat straws that can be used for production of particle boards. Studies have indicated high potential for utilization of such materials for value added products. RHPB technology has not been harnessed properly due to inadequate attention on the fact that successful adoption of technology for any new material requires continuous R&D support to make it viable commercially and to develop application techniques to enhance consumer acceptance. 3.1.2 Technology Adoption: Wood products industry serves the purpose of converting the round wood produced by growing trees into consumer good, and use of appropriate processes is a sine qua non for the efficient use of wood. In India more than 90% of wood based product are manufactured in private sector. Forest industry in India is scattered, relatively small in scale and with inefficient technology and equipment. This is primarily due to non-use of technology by the industry. So a major initiative is required for effective technology adoption. Specific needs are:
(i)
Establishment of small scale processing units, Common Facility Centers (CFC), close to wood growing areas will help the growers getting better wood products for their own use and the industry in sourcing raw material. The CFCs will also serve as effective links for marketing of forest products and will contribute to reducing migration of rural people to urban centers seeking employment. In addition the employment opportunities created by these units through their mere presence may generate considerable economic activity. Development of technical information describing physical mechanical properties of timbers coming from agro forestry production system and also its processing including drying, treatment and finishing characteristics, appropriate end uses. Promotional literature has to serve dual purpose of providing information to producers/traders about potential applications of manufactured material, and for do it your self type guidance to the users making stable end products. Licensed technical personnel for wood product industry for production of standard material with waste minimization. The existing Standards on wood and wood products are based on the data obtained for conventional timbers and need to be suitably amended in view of the inherent characteristics of plantation timbers. The standards need be either mad e mandatory or a system of incentive and disincentives be evolved for better compliance to prevent manufacture of sub standard material having very low service life.
(ii)
(iii) (iv)
(v)
Networking of Forest/Wood Product Research Organizations to coordinate the efforts at these institute and effective extension of the results of the laboratory to field i.e. factory floor.
3.1.3 Marketing: Marketing is a basic function in any production system and it encompasses several levels of processing in the chain, from forest to final consumers in the case of forestry sector. It holds the key to the future growth and development of any sector. The information technology is altering the role of marketing and strategies due to change in communication with consumers, from one way to two way communication which is being employed by many forest based industries, in the organized sector viz. plywood and panels, paper etc. But marketing of a large portion of forest products including timber logs and sawn, fuel wood, a host of NTFPs, still remain unorganized, and to a great extent unrecorded also. Unlike most other major goods and services in the country, Indian forest product market is dispersed and disorganized and the various distribution channels, entities and customers do not have access to any noteworthy national or regional standard-setting organization/s for ensuring specifications, quality control, innovations and complementarities in production, processing, trading and retailing. There appears to be practically no marketing system for forest products in India and there is an urgent need for evolving an effective marketing mechanism so as to establish direct primary producer-processing industry relation so that the primary producers get remunerative prices for their produce. 3.1.4 Substitution: The 1988 National Forest Policy of India envisages development and use of wood substitutes to meet the gap between demand and supply of wood. However, substitution by materials like metals and plastics has serious adverse environmental implications in the total life cycle analysis (LCA) due to their being derived from unsustainable resources, high energy demands in processing, and non bio-degradable characteristics. Several LCA assessments of wood and its so called substitutes like steel and concrete in housing construction have brought out the ecological advantages of wood as building material and its benefits to the environment including thermal utilization at the end of the product life cycle.14 Wooden windows have been found to be the most favorable product followed by PVC and Aluminum and have lowest environmental burden for all impact categories analyzed. Although, not long ago, the use of wood was discouraged in construction, and materials like steel, aluminum and other products were encouraged. However, in the post UNCED scenario, the UNFCCC, and the Kyoto Protocol signed in 2002, there is an awakening among policy planners for reducing green house gas emissions and encouraging afforestation and reforestation for environmental services. It is therefore necessary that wood substitutes are developed from renewable materials as they ameliorate earths environment during their growth process through carbon sequestration and this carbon remains locked through the entire service life of wood products. The most logical option is to grow more timber yielding trees and use wood derived from them, since trees can be grown on a continuous basis, wood can be derived from them and a sustainable supply can be maintained with lesser efforts than producing non-renewable materials based substitutes. However, as mentioned earlier, since most rapid growth plantation timbers are characterized by small girth at maturity, (i) Environmental and Energy balance of wood products and substitutes by Dr. Mohammad Scharai-Rad and Dr. Johannes Welling, FAO Rome, 2002; and (ii) Life Cycle Analysis, by Dr. Robert Kozak and Dr. Christopher Gaston (paper presented at the Workshop on Climate Change, Carbon and Forestry, Washington, Nov. 13-16, 2001).
14
and low dimensional stability and natural durability their proper use requires use of appropriate processing technologies viz. improved sawing, seasoning and preservative treatment, finger jointing and glu-lamination, and conversion to layered and particle composites.15 In addition, there are several other renewable fiber materials, such as bamboo, coir, and as well as the agro residues, that can be used for manufacturing wood alternates providing environmentally responsible solution to bridge the gap between demand and supply of wood.16 In India wood alternates and other innovative products from bamboo have been developed that are suitable in housing and constructions and for making furniture. An affordable bamboo based building system using bamboo in round/split/composite from along with plantation timbers and other building materials has also been evolved at IPIRTI in collaboration with TRADA Technology of UK. With rich bamboo resources in the country, second only to China, India holds good potential for industrial utilization of bamboo for manufacturing bamboo based composites to meet global demand for eco-friendly alternates to wood products. The Governments all over the world are likely to have policies that encourage use of products based on renewable materials with a view to reduce green house gases in order to comply with international commitments. As a major initiative the Government of India is promoting bamboo products through two National Missions. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the national standardization body has incorporated bamboo based housing and structural uses of bamboo and its composites in the National Building Code. The BIS has also permitted use of wood composites as panel inserts in doors and window shutters. Recently a bamboo enthusiast architect has successfully used bamboo as the most appropriate building material for the Energy Park at Bangalore, the silicon valley of India, where Living with nature in the most unobstructive way is being demonstrated17. 3.1.5 Exports: India continues to be net importer of wood, with wood in logs (HS 4403) constituting more than 90% of the total wood products imports. There has been gradual increase of exports, including re-exports, in respect of secondary processed wood products (wooden furniture, builders joinery, table and kitchenware and inlaid wood works), plywood, panels and other reconstituted wood products. SPWPs, particularly, designer furniture and wood-work of rose wood, shisham, walnut and sandal, which have increasing trend in respect of SPWP, notwithstanding the present low volumes in absolute terms, hold a great potential for enhancing the exports. The decreasing trend in respect of panel products appear to coincide with the changing structure of the plywood industry in the country with the closure of practically all large and medium scale industries and opening up of large number of plywood manufacturing units in the small scale sector based primarily upon plantation grown timber, including poplar in the north India and rubber wood in the southern India. However, considering that there is a vast resource of plantation grown trees and agro residues and industry is seemingly in a comparatively advantageous position due to availability of sizable pool of skilled and semi-skilled workers, this trend could be reversed with Government support through an enabling policy environment for utilization of plantation timber and imported tropical timber, modernization of plants, research Efficient Utilization of Plantation Timbers Challenges and Strategies by Arun K. Bansal, Indian Forester, Vol. 130, No.4, pp. 366-375(2004).
16 15
Bamboo Composite: Material of The Future by Arun K. Bansal & S. S. Zoolagud in Journal of Bamboo And Rattan, Vol. 1, No.2, pp. 119-130 (2002). State Level Energy Park, Bangalore, Karnataka developed as a Public Park for Education + Entertainment =Edutainment, under the aegis of the Karnataka Renewable Energy Development Limited spread over about 6.5 ha. The work was completed in December 2004 and has won National Award. 80 % of the building materials used are either recycled, recyclable or bio-degradable More than 70 % is Bamboo. (file attached)
17
and development, and export promotion. Evolving a revival plan for a sizeable idle infrastructure in the form of closed plywood factories in the northeastern states, particularly in the state of Assam, comprising of relocation of some of the plants and machinery to other suitable places and/or their reopening appears to be an option worth exploring drawing upon wood from diverse sources along with other lingo-cellulosic raw material, such as bamboo, which is abundantly available in the North-East. India does not have any export duties and encourages exports for which it also grants several concessions to the exporters. These concessions are in the nature of exemptions on income tax, and refund of imports duty if exported goods are processed from imported raw materials. 3.1.6 Certification: One aspect that is gaining significance is related to production certification since the importers of Indian Goods have started demanding third party certification as a precondition to imports, as has recently been demanded by importer from Europe in the case of wooden toys from Jodhpur, Rajasthan18. Although Indian has not decided to put in place any such technical barriers, it is obliged to adhere to this in case it wants to continue to export.
3.2
NTFPs
Forestry sector is providing livelihood support to a significant proportion of the population, especially the marginalised and vulnerable groups. Many of these people depend on forests for meeting basic needs of fuel wood, fodder, small timber for agricultural implements and house construction and even food and medicines in the form of NTFPs Sales of fuel wood and NTFP also generate vital cash income for many households. The dependence is greatest among the poor such as landless workers. As per the study commissioned by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (June 1999) it was found that some 50 million tribal people depend on MFP for meeting their subsistence consumption and income needs. According to this study MFP provides 60% of their food and medicinal needs and 60% of their income. According to an estimate by Insight Management Consultants about 1-1.5 Million Tonnes of MFP are traded and are valued at the first point of sale at around Rs. 1000 crores. The trade is virtually unorganized in the hands of private traders and some government agencies. The private traders virtually control the supply of these MFPs and thus dictate the terms of trade to the disadvantage of the primary collectors/producers. As much as 60% of transactions are unaccounted for and include both legally & illegally sourced raw material. Table below gives estimated annual production of some MFP items.
S. No. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
18
Products Wild edible products Myrobalan Sal seeds Mahua seeds Neem seeds Others seeds Essential oils Gum Karaya
Annual Production (Mt) 101200 132250 709700 697600 115000 57500 3160 15000
Relevance of Certification to the Wood Carving Industry in India- WWF-India, 2003, 56p.
S. No. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.
Products Resin from pine Katha Tans and dyes including cutch Bamboo Fibres and Flosses Beedi leaves Lac
Annual Production (Mt) 45000 5750 222900 4716600 15000 360000 30000
Historically NTFPs have been marginalized being termed as MFPs due to forest management focus on timber. Several NTFPs have been substituted by synthetic alternatives and few others have been domesticated. There is a need for specific focus on NTFPs including medicinal plants, in forest management since they constitute very promising group of forest product. They can often be harvested without much damage to the ecosystem and impact of their extraction is minimal compared to logging, mining, or cattle grazing. However, only the commercial extraction of NTFPs, in contrast to extraction for subsistence, has the potential to contribute to the economic development of forest-dependent people. In the early 1990s, NTFPs were hailed as the great new hope for sustainable management and community development, the apparent solution to forest conservation and rural poverty. One of the few NTFPs that are presently managed in organized manner is Kendu Leaves19 which is an important source of livelihood for a large number of primary collectors in the agricultural off-season in several states including Chhattishgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Maharashtra. Phal leaves is the predominant form of production in the country with the exception of Orissa which alone produces processed kendu leaves which includes value addition through gradation of leaves according to ISI quality grades. Considering the importance of kendu leaves production in providing livelihood support to poor rural/tribal people, most of the states have specific laws to regulate its production and trade. The kendu leaves are used in producing bidies which is a very important cottage industry in many regions in West Bengal, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chattishgarh, Kerala.
Value added KL production In the case of processed form of production leaves are graded into standard grades after rejecting leaves unfit for bidi making, and bound into 5 kg bundles, and 12 such bundles are packed to form one bag of 60 Kg each. This value addition provides employment for about 18000 binding workers for 6-7 months every year (starting from Mid-May to October/November). The processed KL is more environment friendly due to avoiding long distance transport of leaves unfit for bidi making inherent in Phal production. The self life of the leaves also increase manifold. The processed KL are also exported to about 40 countries. Bulk of the exports are to Sri Lanka & Pakistan. The KL production is highly labour intensive with about 85% of the cost of production is towards payment to labourers engaged in various operations. In Orissa, the activity generates about 16 million person days every year mostly for the poorest of the poor, majority of whom are women. More than half of the total production cost is towards the purchase of KL from about 1 million primary collectors/pluckers.
19
Leaves of Diospyrous melonoxylon, also
known as Tendu patta.

While serving this social cause, KL trade also generates revenue to the state without virtually any expenditure from the state exchequer since the production cost is provided by the forest corporations against sales. A small portion, about 30000 quintals, is also exported out of the country mainly to Sri Lanka & Pakistan. Although most NTFPs have an ecological potential for commercial extraction, the main obstruction appears to have been primacy of Timber in forest management. With the recent initiatives viz- National Medicinal Plant Board, National Bamboo Missions, and the growing awareness about the role of NTFP is gradually changing the situation. Areas that require specific and planned interventions include development and popularization of technologies for non-destructive harvesting, primary processing with gradation to ensure quality and enhance shelf life, storage facilities, down stream processing commercial value addition, marketing support both for domestic markets & exports. The following is the general Supply Chain of MFP Products
Wholesale Traders
Procurement of
Primary Processing
Secondary Processing
Manufacturers
Retailers
Consumers Exporters / Importers
Although there is a complexity of factors influencing NTFP production, processing and marketing, there is overwhelming evidence that the poorest segments of societies are the populations principally engaged in NTFP extraction. But the NTFP trade continues to remain in unorganized sector due to which the share of income of primary collectors has not increased even in the case of exceptional profits generated during boom periods of rapidly rising prices for certain NTFPs. Poor people engage themselves in NTFP collection/extraction in the absence of alternative income sources. Profits from NTFP extraction and marketing tend to be unequally distributed along the chain from forest to market, with the smallest proportion generally accruing to collectors. To address this perpetuating socio-economic condition there is urgent need to take steps in value addition in these activities and to address the issue related to sustainable nondestructive harvesting, standardization of procedures and products, marketing intelligence and channels, stricter regulation and promotion of exports along with certification.
ORGANIZATIONAL AND INSTITUTIONAL ISSUES WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT
Prof. Dilip K. Bandyopadhyay Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal 1. INTRODUCTION
Forests were so gigantic and novel during Permo-carboniferous period i.e. about 350 million to 225 million years back a period which may be called as golden age of forests in India. History reveals that during the administration of Chandra Gupta Maurya, there was a regular forest department in place. The end of Maurya period was followed by the beginning of East-India company. Upto the middle of 19th century, Indian forests were subject to exploitation on gigantic scale for ship building and railway sleepers. After some time the British rulers started realizing that forests in India are not so extensive as they were earlier. This thought led towards conservation measures and introduction of systematic working (Dwivedi, 1993). The scientific forestry was first introduced in 1864, the forestry legislation and forest policy (1894) reveals that the forests were almost exclusively state property under the then-British rule. The Forest policy document of 1894 was updated in the year 1952. Other supplementary legislations were enacted to explicitly provide for control and regulations covering non-forest resources, wildlife protection and environmental protection, together with other broad directives in substantive areas which have an impact on forestry, including land use. A 10 year Wildlife Action Plan was formulated in 1983 (revised in 1999 for a period up-to 2010), National Conservation Strategy (1992), followed by a National Environmental Action Plan(1993). The first National level planning exercise in the forestry sector took place around three decades ago in 1976 when the National Commission on Agriculture studied the situation in the country and made recommendations. But actions did not have the desired effects on the development of forestry. The National Forest Policy (NFP) 1988 emphasised on conservation and environmental stability. Later on, Union Government prepared a comprehensive National Forestry Action Programme (NFAP 1999) with the aim of addressing the issues underlying the forestry sector as outlined in the NFP 1988. The objective of the NFAP is to enhance the contribution of forestry and tree resources to ecological stability and promote people centred development through qualitative and quantitative improvement in investment on conservation and development of forest resources. The forests and agriculture have been categorized under one Ministry in several countries and same was the case in India till 1984. The logical reason behind keeping the two departments under one Ministry was that both the departments deal with conservation and management of plant and animal species. The agriculture department deals with species of plants and animals that are domesticated while the forest department deals with plants and animals that are wild. It is worthwhile to compare the situation of these sibling departments in India particularly from 1950 onwards when scenario of agriculture sector was very poor. During this period there were no sufficient grains to feed 40 crores population of India and there was dearth of several agriculture produces. The situation of forestry around 1950 was better as compared to todays in respect of the forest area, the standing forest
crop, forest biodiversity, forest productivity for items like timber, fuel wood, bamboo and a number of non-wood forest products such as fodder, medicinal plants, oil yielding plants, food plants and other useful plants. The agriculture sector has developed very well from paucity to plenty, which has resulted in producing all types of agriculture produces to suffice the needs of burgeoning population of more 100 crores with a surplus of about 60 millions of food grain. There might be a number of reasons (including the ownership rights) for these contrasting situations of two sibling departments. One foremost reason appears to be the difference in the fundamental structure and functioning of these two departments. The agriculture department has taken a course of development towards scientific approach (research and development) establishing a number of research institutions even on single species basis such as Soybean Research Institute, Wheat Research Institute, Rice Research Institute, Potato Research Institute, Garlic Research Institute, and for the animals Goat Research Institute, Camel Research Institute, Sheep Research Institute and the likes. There are a number of specialists (scientists) working in these institutes for research and development and also extension from Lab to farm. The concept of sustainable Forest Management (SFM) does not relate exclusively to forests as ecological systems but forests as biological systems under the influence of humans and which are, in many respects, subordinate to the socio-economic environment (Singhal and Parul, 2003). Consequently, the dynamics in forest management relate to ecological and social characteristics, as well as their reciprocal relationships and the SFM can not be looked in isolation. So, sustainable management of forest resources is absolutely necessary to ensure continuous availability of forest goods and services for all times to come and needs to be looked holistically with the over all mandates of the forestry sector. It is claimed that the management of Indian forests over the time has been based on the principle of sustainability which can be explained by the analogy of using the interest and keeping intact the principle amount. The forest working plans are based on this principle. Despite this, the forest resources have reduced in respect of area (forest cover 20.64% of the geographic area as against the policy of 33%-SFR 2003), standing stock (93 t/ha and 74 cmt/ha while the average for developing countries is 169 t/ha and 113 cmt/ha-NFAP1999), productivity (availability of per capita forest biomass in India is 6 t while it is 82 t in the developing world NFAP1999) and the like. Despite the enactment of different legislations, sufficient manpower and infrastructure, there are clear symptoms of degradation and declining capacity of forest to meet up the various needs of the population (particularly rural poor and tribals). Some other countries that were also liberated around 1950 and whose forestry scenario was poor has now considerably improved. For example Korea had almost 0% forest cover at the time of liberation but now they have developed and managed their forest resources in such a manner that they are earning nearly 6 million dollars per year from the export of forest produce. The China had nearly 8% forest cover in 1950 which, through their policy improved to 17% in 2000. As against these countries the Indian forestry scenario has dwindled despite good policy, rules regulations and the infrastructure. The above mentioned comparisons, clearly necessitates a critical review of the over all scenario in the forestry sector of India to effectively carry out the required mandates in the sector. In this write up, an attempt has been made to critically analyse the policy mandates and the Organisational Governance (structure, process and systems, including information systems) to identify different Organizational and Institutional issues/constraints with special reference to Sustainable Management of Forest resources.
2. IMPORTANT POLICY MANDATES

The Indian Forest Policy (1988): The principal aim of this Policy is to ensure environmental stability and maintenance of ecological balance including atmospheric equilibrium which are vital for sustenance of all life forms, human, animal and plant. The derivation of direct economic benefit must be subordinated to this principal aim. The main thrusts of the policy are: Maintaining environmental stability through preservation and, where necessary, restoration of the ecological balance that has been adversely disturbed by serious depletion of the forests of the country. Conserving the natural heritage of the country by preserving the remaining natural forests with the vast variety of flora and fauna, which represent the remarkable biological diversity and genetic resources of the country. Checking soil erosion and denudation in the catchments of rivers, lakes, reservoirs in the "interest of soil and water conservation, for mitigating floods and droughts and for the retardation of siltation of reservoirs. Checking the extension of sand-dunes in the desert areas of Rajasthan and along the coastal tracts. Increasing substantially the forest/tree cover in the country through massive aforestation and social forestry programmes, especially on all denuded, degraded and unproductive lands. Meeting the requirements of fuel-wood, fodder, minor forest produce and small timber of the rural and tribal populations. Increasing the productivity of forests to meet essential national needs. Encouraging efficient utilization of forest produce and maximizing substitution of wood. Creating a massive people's movement with the involvement of women, for achieving these objectives and to minimize pressure on existing forests. Forests should not be looked upon as a source of revenue only but also as renewable natural resource. They are a national asset to be protected and enhanced for the well-being of the people and the nation.
National Forestry Action Programme (1999): The objective of this forestry action programme is to evolve issue based programmes in the line of the provisions of the National Forest Policy, 1988. It would dovetail the forestry development programmes in the country within the framework of National Five Year Plans. This document has identified the need interalia, for controlling deforestation; introducing scientific and sustainable management of forest resources; undertaking intensively managed forest plantation as an investment enterprise; practising appropriate and integrated land use for improving overall sustainable biological productivity; reducing wastage in harvesting and processing of forest products; strengthening the forest based industry sector; improving forestry and forestry products research; arresting ecological degradation and erosion of biodiversity; rehabilitating wildlife and wildlife habitat; improving essential infrastructure for forest resource development; meaningfully involving people, private sector and NGOs in the development of forestry sector, appropriately restructuring the forest sector institutions; improving qualitative and quantitatively human resource for forestry ensuring a multidisciplinary approach and inter-sectoral coordination in forestry matter and translating into action the national commitment to Agenda-21 and Forest Principles made at the Earth Summit (UNCED) in Rio de Janerio, June, 1992.
National Forest Commission (2006): Realising the situation in the forestry sector, Govt. of India appointed a National Commission on Forest in 2003. After lot of deliberations with a large number of stakeholders, analysis and synthesis, it has come out with 360 recommendations on the following important mandates in the forestry sector: Conservation of biological diversity (NFC 11, 46, 109, 115); Wildlife Conservation (Protected Area management (NFC 138); Animal Welfare (NFC 28); Aforestation (Forest Plantations); Non-Wood Forest Products (including Medicinal plants) (NFC 29, 225); Peoples participation in forestry; Agroforestry, Social Forestry and Farm Forestry ( NFC 318,196); Forest soil (NFC 234); Forestry research (including Forest survey and database (NFC 24, 232) ; Genetic improvement and biotechnology (NFC 233, 166, 182); Forestry education; Forest extension; Forest policy and legislation; Financial support for forestry; Forest Pathology and Entomology (NFC 54); Eco-tourism (NFC 89, 90, 129, 131, 134); Wetlands, Mangroves (NFC 79, 81, 83); Water (NFC 47); Coastal/marine resources (NFC 67,71,75); Environment Impact Assessment (NFC 58); Sustainability and sustainable forest management; Forest resource accounting (Economic) (NFC 34,321,331,334); Improved marketing and trade of forest products; Grassland Ecosystem (NFC 66). For the effective functioning of these activities, NFC has emphasised the need for specialisation. A mapping of the recommended specialised service requirement of NFC and the mandate of NFP 1988 & NFAP 1999 is outlined in table 1. Table 1: Commonness in mandates of National Forest Policy (NFP), action points of the National Forestry Action Plan (NFAP) and the recommendations of National Forest Commission (NFC).
Action points of NFAP, 1999 Biological Diversity (Flora and Fauna) Recommendations of NFC, 2006 Remarks specialists) (for
Mandate of NFP, 1988 Biological diversity (Flora, Fauna)
Biodiversity Conservation: (Recom. No. 11, 46, 60, 82, 109, 115)
Wildlife Conservation (Protected Area Management) (Recom. No. 14, 88, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 121, 123, 130, 138, 139, 140, 150, 152, 153, 156, 157, 158, 159, 163, 164, 165, 171, 172, 173, 174, 175, 176, 177, 178, 179, 180, 181, 185, 187, 189, 276) Animal Welfare (Recom. No. 28)
Plant and animal taxonomists
Wildlife conservationProtected Area Management
Wildlife Conservation (Protected Area Management)
Forest officers trained in wildlife management Veterinary doctors Wildlife Biologists Ecologist
Aforestation, Social Forestry and Farm Forestry
Forest Plantations (Aforestation)
Aforestation, Forestry and Forestry
Social Farm
Forest officers Anthropologists Agroforesters
(Recom. No. 31, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 219)
Mandate of NFP, 1988 Fuel wood, fodder and pasture management
Action points of NFAP, 1999 Fuel wood, Fodder
Recommendations of NFC, 2006 Fuel wood, fodder and pasture management (Recom. No. 19, 20, 21, 32, 36) Grassland Ecosystem (Recom. No. 66) Grazing (Recom. No. 15, 16, 17, 18, 28)
Remarks specialists) Forest officers, Agrostologists
(for
Energy Specialists
Minor forest produce (NWFP including medicinal plants) Trees Outside Forests (Trees alongside roads, railway lines, rivers, streams, canals other un-utilised lands) Tribal people and forest-(associate them in protection, regeneration and development of forests) Forest Protection (encroachment, livestock grazing, forest fires) Forest based Industries Agroforestry (agrisilvicultural techniques) Land resources
Non-Wood Products products)
Forest (Bio-
Medicinal Plants (Recom No. 29, 225) Trees Outside Forests (Recom. No. 49, 231, 238)
Forest Officers Specialists in NTFP & Medicinal Plants Horticulturists Forest Officers Agroforesters
Non-forest Tree Crops (Trees Outside Forests)
Peoples participation in forestry (Tribal People& Forest)
Tribal people and forest (Recom. No. 104, 105, 107, 208 )
PGDFM Anthropologists
Forest Protection
Forest Protection (Recom. No. 51, 52, 53, 191, 201, 205)
Forest Police
Forest based Processing Industries Agroforestry
Forest based Industries (Recom. No. 97, 229, 323) Agroforestry (Recom. No. 220, 222, 226, 318, 196) Land use in Forestry (Recom. No. 234, 297, 300, 305, 316, 319, 336, 341) Water resources (Recom No. 47, 358) Coastal/marine resources (Recom No. 67, 68, 69, 70,71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76 ) Wetlands, Mangroves (Recom No. 78, 79, 80, 81, 83, 84, 85, 86) Forest Pathology and Entomology (Recom No. 54)
PGDFM/MBA
PGDFM Agronomists Soil scientists
Land use in Forestry
Water resources
Soil and Water Conservation
Limnologists Marine Biologists
Limnologists Marine Biologists Plant Pathologists, Entomologists
Mandate of NFP, 1988
Action points of NFAP, 1999
Recommendations of NFC, 2006 Genetic improvement and biotechnology: (Recom No. 233, 166, 182)
Remarks specialists) Geneticists,
(for
Biotechnologists
Forestry research
Forestry Research (Technology development)
Forestry Research (Recom No. 24 , 147, 184, 202, 224, 232, 243, 234, 245, 248, 250, 258, 259, 260, 261, 262, 270 ) Forestry Education (Recom No. 215, 271) Forestry Extension Recom No. 35, 62, 92, 95, 98, 120, 136, 190, 216, 227, 228, 313, 314
Scientists
Forestry education Forest extension (training programmes, Public awareness and technology dissemination)
Forestry Education Forestry Extension (Forest Information System, technology dissemination, Public awareness Training Programs)
Professors of Forestry Extension/Communi cation Experts
Shifting cultivation
Shifting cultivation Recom No. 22, 23, 192, 193, 194 Sustainability and Sustainable Forest Management (Monitoring and Evaluation) Economic and social contributions (Demand & Supply) Sustainability and SFM (Monitoring and Evaluation) Recom No. 5, 33, 101, 217, 359 Economic and social contributions (Demand & Supply) (Recom No. 332, 333, 335) Forest Resource Accounting (Recom No. 34, 321, 331, 334) Marketing and Trade of forest products Marketing and Trade of forest products: (Recom. No. 195) Eco-tourism: (Recom. No. 89, 90, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 131,132, 133, 134, 135) Environment Impact Assessmental: (Recom. No. 58)
Forest Officers NRM/Land Management specialists Forest Officers .EIA experts Economists
PGDFM/ Economists
PGDFM-Marketing
PGDFM/MTA
EIA Experts
Mandate of NFP, 1988 Legal support and infrastructure
Action points of NFAP, 1999 Forest Policy Legislation, rules and regulations Financing and budgeting (Financial support for forestry)
Recommendations of NFC, 2006 Legal support (Recom No. 13, 293, 294, 339, 343, 344, 345) Financial support for forestry (Recom No. 48, 57, 102, 103, 145, 170, 326, 347, 348, 349, 351, 352, 353, 354, 355, 356, 357)
Remarks specialists) Law Graduates
(for
Financial support for forestry
Chartered Accountants
The forestry sector in India has been functioning without adequate emphasis on research and development. The most powerful aspect is that an officer in a division is fully empowered and lawfully controls all the land resources within the jurisdiction, but very few officers possess in-depth scientific knowledge about these resources and their functional relationship in the natural ecosystem. There are a few positions of specialists in the department to carry out the mandated functions of the sector as out lined in various documents. At present most of the positions are held by the officers who have similar qualifications, same mode of recruitment and training. More so they are also transferable from one type of job position to another type like from territorial division to wildlife, social forestry, research and the like. Such a situation does not provide the required specialised services which is commensurate to needed development in the sector as in case of other sectors e.g. agriculture. Thus, in order to fully achieve the policy mandates and for appropriate development in the sector, introduction of specialised services is the need of the time, rather it should have been introduced much earlier as was done by the agriculture sector. Considering the mandates of National Forest Policy (1988) and the action points of National Forestry Action Programme (1999), it reveals that there are nearly 20 types of policy mandates that require personnel having specialised type of qualifications for their satisfactory fulfilment. In the recommendation of National Forest Commission (2006), 27 specialised areas in forestry sector were identified (NFC 60, 100, 137,169, 251, 252, 253, 254, 255, 273, 285, 287, 289, 290, 292, 296, 299, 301, 302, 303, 304, 307, 309, 310, 311, 312). The forestry sector requires specialisation to adequately address the issues. As per the synthesis, 21% positions are suited to the forest officers while 79% positions require the services of specialists as depicted in the bar diagram given in Figure 1. This fact justifies the necessity of fundamental reforms in the forestry sector particularly in respect of introduction of specialisation in the sector and the required specialisations need to be identified as per the policy documents. The number of personnel for each type of needed specialisation (to fulfil the policy mandates) at different level of hierarchy should also be identified including their recruitment process. Experience has shown that specialization in real terms can only be achieved by restructuring the personnel setup (process reengineering) and setting up specific subcadres, by changing recruitment rules and by providing the complementary training and cadre management. Four broad areas of specialization for purposes of developing sub-cadres are recommended. They are: a) Forest conservation, including protection, harvesting and sale of forest produce;
b)
Extension forestry, including plantations and nurseries, joint forest management, grassland and watershed management and eco-development outside Reserve Forests; Wildlife management, including management of protected areas and their buffers and corridors; collection of basic data, control of wildlife trade and taxidermy, Biodiversity Management, Ecotourism, implementation of international conventions pertaining to nature conservation; Research, training, working plans, technical support including agro- and farm forestry.
c)
d)
Need of specialists in forestry sector(%)

25 20 15 10 5 0
Ta xo W no ild ed m li fe ic ist in B al io P lan logi st ts ex p PG e DF rts M /M So il S BA c En ient is to t m Bi o lo ot gi ec Pr st hn of es ol og so ist Ve rs-F te or rin es ar try y Do M ct BA -M ors ar ke EI tin A g sp ec ia lis t M ar in CA e Bi ol Fo og re is st t O ffic er s M
Pl an
t/A ni m
al
Need of Specialists in Forestry Sector (% )
21%
Forest Officers Subject Specialists
79%
Figure 1.
3. ORGANISATIONAL GOVERNANCE
Natural resource management has been a great challenge for planners, policy makers and resource managers especially in developing countries owing to the conflict in use and control of depleting resources. This conflict is basically the outcome of limiting resources which promotes the human psyche for immediate micro level benefits rather than sustainable management of resource.
Created Mismatch of human Psyche
For nearly one hundred years, Indian Forest Management was shaped by colonial rulers whose goal was to strengthen government control over resource to ensure their continuous availability and revenue generation. Indian Forest officers were trained to undermine the traditional community rights and indigenous resource use systems (Palit, 1996). Conventional forestry viewed the activities of resident communities as "biotic interference' that must be minimized to protect the forest. The role of foresters essentially remained that of protectors of forests from local people (Shepherd, 1992). In this history beginning from 1947, there was the euphoria of regaining freedom. In order to accelerate the processes of nation building, the country chose to industrialize itself as rapidly as possible and western models were emulated on a large scale. Thus the reality of local experience was rapidly hidden under the false mask of western intellectual rationality. People working in the colonial system were characterized by certain relatively stable personality patterns of bureaucratic system. Such personality traits persisted in them even when India regained freedom and formed its own government. The psychology of Indians in general, are marked with values for sociability, personalised relationships and group working. In short, they want to work in collaborative culture because they are basically affiliative, easy going and expect personal and collegial atmosphere in the place of working. So, whenever the external pressure is enforced on them through bureaucratic system, it inhibits the established equilibrium and energies are channeled in the activities off the common objective of forest management (Parul, 2002). In this process, hostility and distrust which have continued unabated flared up between local communities and government officials (Khan, 1996). The position and power of bureaucracy was consolidated "by increasing their numbers and authority, extending government activities and combining bureaucratic and private economic pursuits (Poffenberger, 1990). Such conflicting priorities and the historical antagonism between local communities and governments were at odds with the values and goals of participatory forest management. Only a decade and half back, foresters and planners have begun to realise that their role of policing India's vast forest areas, was neither responding to the needs of nature nor to the nation's rural communities. The establishment of Joint Forest Management agreements has allowed departmental field staff to redefine their relationship with the village people to regain their trust and alliance. In view of above analysis, it is necessary to spell out various constraints to SFM which can be categorized as structural constraints, process oriented constraints and systemic constraints.
Structural Constraints
One of the major structural constraint as observed in various research studies and detailed above, is organisational structure of forest department which is top down, bureaucratic, hierarchical and mechanistic in nature. Figure 2 depicts the conflicting style of operation of forestry organisation as a spearhead developmental organisation, limiting their efficacy to a considerable extent (Parul, 2004). Existing Structure Bureaucratic , top down organizational structure
FO
SFM demands Organised & Participatory mode of operation to cope with Developmental Mission of SFM for forest conservation and Livelihood security
Organisational Structure- SFM Policy Mismatch causing Complexity of operation
Limited Efficacy
Figure 2. Conflicting Style of Operation of Forestry Organisation

Participatory management has been one of the longest running management trends of this era. Many management jargons like QWL, TQM, MBO, etc. had come and gone but the underlying theme of participatory management is steadily picking momentum. It clarifies the reason that bureaucracy has reached its limits. It blocks the responsiveness and continuous innovation that are the key words of today. However, it is not the only answer to SFM but has its own process to be followed for effectiveness.
Process Oriented Constraints

As there is a massive investment in forestry sector, it is imperative that forest resources are managed efficiently and effectively in terms of economic returns, social good, quality of service and technological advances. The achievement of above requires professionalism to suit the culture and objectives of the forestry organization. Professionalisation of management especially in forestry organization has some critical process issues like: Attitude change in favour of professionalisation has to percolate from the top to the bottom so that positive work attitudes as per McGregors theory Y can be promoted at every level of forestry organisation. Disharmony between preaching and practice.
Unwillingness on the part of forest managers to accept and exercise the delegated authority. Leadership-style not always matching with the policy demands and level of motivation of people being led. Time-lag between conceptualization and implementation. Process of involvement of people is not always from the conceptualization stage which causes motivational problems and attitudinal blocks for local people and field forest staff at implementation stage as they have little belongingness with the whole process of change.
The above process oriented constraints clearly show that professionalisation is a very challenging and demanding task especially when one has to function within the limitations of Government/semi-government system which has limited autonomy, motivation, synergic work culture and is marked with bureaucratic psyche following age old operational styles and processes.
Systemic Constraints
As a result of structural and process constraints, the whole system of forestry organisation may develop the functional pathologies at different levels and shall degenerate the very soul of SFM. Pratima and Jaltan (1999) indicated that commitment of the Forest Department staff was the most crucial factor for the success of JFM, which necessitates reorientation of the Forest Department staff role. The unending cycle of high expectations followed by failure and inevitably frustration on the part of management and cynicism on the part of forest staff may have potential reasons (Parul, 2000). Policy changes fail to alter the fundamental feel of the forestry organization and without changing that feel, changes could not be institutionalized in the structure. More specifically, there was lot of resistance on the part of all the stakeholders. Another reason for this resistance may be that policy changes were not made in consultation with the user or implementers group. It was just the decision of authorities to introduce change which resulted in lack of belongingness. Organisational structure of forest department provides limited freedom to lower staff, as far as their field working is concerned. Until and unless, they are recognized by the superior staff in a significant manner, they can only provide the limited recognition to peoples participation. The gradual shift towards JFM constitutes a major change in the minds of most foresters.....however, hierarchically structured forest departments will need to build now professional and technical expertise, and skills in human interaction (Palit, 1996, 1999)". In view of the changing expectations from forest officers and staff, there is a need for more decentralized structure. Hierarchy has now to give way to networking (Mishra & Verma (1999). On the basis of above analysis, following leadership issues can be identified (Parul, 2002). The coercive influence was found to be unsuitable to the demands of new forest policy and there was a need to shift the leadership style of forest department from coercive to non-coercive as a part of policy demand. Effective leadership style requires that relationship behaviours must change to match the maturity level of the group and the effectiveness of leadership style is contingent on the task and the characteristic of the people being led (Maslow, 1943). This is especially relevant in the case of forestry leadership where as per the ability and willingness level of the people following potential styles of leadership style as depicted in figure 3. can be adopted.
Level of Motivation/ Maturity
Maslows Need Hierarchy
Potential Leadership Styles
Low Survival
Authoritative/ Charismatic
Safe Existence
Nurturant Task
Initiative/Involvement
Pride & Confidence
Participatory
High
Commitment
Autonomous Group
Figure 3. Leadership style requirements as per the ability and willingness level of the people
Under these conditions, jumping on participatory approach and expecting dramatic result was mere impossible. Participatory approach was not being used in a gradual and systematic way as it should be, taking into consideration the maturity and motivation level of people. Participatory style of leadership, which is marked with delegation and empowerment, can not be much successful unless people are mature enough to understand the programme and accept it willingly, i.e. reaching the stage of initiative and involvement. Wherever field forest staff/forest officers develop a Nurturant relationship with people, i.e. express their personal concern and sympathetic understanding like a fatherly figure, they are able to get a much better co-operation of people and effective committees functioning. The same has been confirmed by the study where people have preferred nurturant style of leadership, i.e. supportive relationship with forest department, rather than just participatory (Parul, 2002). However, under the policy pressure, forest officers have indicated that they prefer using participatory leadership to influence people.
Information Systems Constraints

The Indian National Forest Policy (NFP) of 1988 highlighted a national concern on inadequacy of forest resource information and has emphasized on the need for
appropriate information collection and dissemination. In order to initiate and implement SFM programmes, a large quantum of information on specific aspects such as information systems on accurate inventory of natural resources, the classification of lands by capability and function, efficient utilisation and sustained investment etc. must be in place. For the effective implementation of SFM, information which would be critical for SFM programmes are (Prasad et al. 1999): i) ii) iii) iv) v) vi) vii) viii) ix) x) xi) Area, location and percent of forest land having erosion hazard. Area and percent of forestland with diminished or improved biological, chemical and physical components. Stream flow deviations in forest areas from the past. Employment from the forest. Inventory of NWFPs in terms of diversity and yield. Annual removal of NWFPs compared to sustainable yield. Value and volume of wood and non wood products. Recreation and tourism. Economic valuation of goods and services. Harvested area of old growth forests effectively regenerated. Status of forest flora in terms of threatened, rare, vulnerable, endangered or extinct etc.
But looking at the current scenario of major national organizations in India engaged in collection and dissemination of forestry information, it could be stated that there is hardly any credible national level information available on many important aspects of forestry and is at rudimentary stage in developing a holistic National Information System for handling forest data (Ramprasad and Rathore, 2002).
4. CONCLUSIONS AND WAY AHEAD

To achieve the multilevel interface of forestry organisation with local people for sustainable forest management, there was a need for change in top down organisational structure of forest department as well as the attitudes, perceptions and leadership styles of forest managers to fit in the changed role model. It is being addressed since then by explaining the need for delegation of authority and this shift in influence style is the major factor on which the sustainability of forest management was dependent. Following the NFP, 1988 and JFM resolution the forestry sector of India has been experiencing a paradigm shift in forest management from solely State controlled management of forests to management of forest with the involvement of local community. The recent trends in forestry sector are providing opportunities and challenges for specialised forest management. The forestry sector in India is still in the same phase as it was in the colonial period. While the need is for the market economies, globalization, sustainable forestry development, environment stability, socio-cultural and advancement in bio-technology, the present organizational structure of MoEF is not based on the function/work plan structure as per the policy mandates. The mission of an organization are dictated by the policy objectives and related instruments of implementation. It is an established fact that the forests have a long lasting impact and encompasses ecological, economical and socio-cultural aspects. Inclusion of specialist/subject experts in the divisions of MoEF will address the requirements. The state forest department should also adopt the strategy for introduction of specialist in the management. This was also envisioned by the National Forest Commission, 2006.
The analysis provides useful implications for making planned congruent changes in forestry organizations, i.e., developing more and more driving forces about forestry institution and reducing the strength of restraining forces at organizational as well as individual level for sustainable forest management:
Organisational Level
There is a need for development of forestry at organizational level through various structural and cultural changes, which are in line with recent forest policies and principles of sustainable forest management. The structure of the State Forest Departments (SFDs) including the strength of the frontline staff has not undergone adequate changes. The Ministry of Environment and Forests should undertake a detailed review of the structures of various SFDs and issue appropriate guidelines to States in the next two years, for the restructuring of each State/Union Territory State forest department. Managing various forest policy changes in forest department and building capacities requires commitment and sustained efforts through pragmatic HRD plans and their systematic implementation at every stage. It will be possible only when forest department is following the specialist rather than generalist approach and retaining the officers on the same posting for a substantial time so that they can contribute the learning from their specialized trainings. There is a need to issue guidelines to evolve a comprehensive training plan stating future plans of the departments, demands on its officers to meet those plans and identification of training needs to meet the targets. There is a need for incorporation of participatory approach in the training process which should synchronize the broader mandate of MoEF with state forest departments and the training needs and interests of forest officers too. There should be effective balancing of organizational mandate and individual needs and interests. Development of well-knit and approachable system of conflict resolution is also desirable in this regard involving participation of village representatives, local Non Government Organization representatives and Forest Personnel. A national level database dedicated solely for collection, collation and dissemination of Forestry Information in India must be created. The proposed facility will fulfill the following primary objectives (Ramprasad and Rathore, 2002): Create a systematic focus for information collection and integrate various sources of existing information through a seamless network; Provide a much-needed, single point, forestry information interface; Create a computer network among data collection organizations; Standardize procedures and formats for data collection; and Analyze and regularly disseminate information to policy makers, planners, practitioners, training institutions and the public.
Individual Level
Besides, forest managers should also ensure to provide judicious and justified benefits of forest resource to local people, region and nation at large. Interdepartmental co-ordination from local to state to national level will be required in this regard to ensure its implementation.
It is possible only when a humane institutional network of forest managers is established which personally takes interest in promoting genuine stakeholders participation in decision making and forest management. Well planned training in current requirements of forestry leadership at institutional and departmental level and promoting realistic participation of all the categories of local people and other stakeholders by providing them the atmosphere of trust, openness and encouragement. There is a need to fill the policy-psyche gap and this needs 'handling with a human touch' on the part of forest personnel and other stakeholders. Creating a suitable climate and culture for sustainable organisational change can remix Indian bureaucratic psychology and participative management approach. Only then, the intended results in the form of high individual and organisational effectiveness can be obtained. The establishment of sustainable Forest Management agreements has allowed departmental field staff to redefine their relationship with the village people to regain their trust and alliance. There is a strong likelihood that incorporation of above functional/process changes in forestry organisations will continue to further improve the effectiveness and acceptability of SFM programme which may ultimately lead to the accomplishment of common goal of stabilising forest ecosystems through collaborative effort. Hierarchy has now to give way to networking and active participation by the people and community ownership of natural resources with Nurturant leadership by forest officials as facilitator is the solution. Indonesia, Bolivia China, Mexico etc. are gradually moving towards this direction and have been getting very encouraging results towards Sustainable Management of Forests.
Acknowledgement
The inputs provided by Prof. P.C. Kotwal and Dr. Parul Rishi of Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal in preparing this document are highly acknowledged.
5. REFERENCES
Dwivedi, A.P. (1993). Forestry in India. Surya publication, Dehradun, Uttaranchal, India. Khan N.A. (1996). A political economic of Forest Resource Use: Case Studies of social forestry in Bangladesh, Ph.D. thesis university off Wales, Swansea. Maslow, A.H. (1943). A theory of human motivation, Psychological Review, 50, 370-396 Misra, A.P. and Verma, A.K. (1999). Paradigm & Perspective Changes in Indian Forestry, Indian Forester V 125 (No.1). National Forest Policy (1988). Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India. National Forestry Action Programme (1999). Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India. National Forest Commission, (2006). Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India., Ref. http://www.envfor.nic.in/mef/divisions.html Palit, S. (1996). Indian Forest Departments to translations, In Village Voices Forest Choices ed. Profenberger, M. New Delhi, Oxford. Palit, S. (1999). Structural Changes in Forests Department, Policy and Joint Management Series: 2, Published by WWF, New Delhi. Parul Rishi (2003). What Actors think of Joint Forest Management: A Perceptual Analysis, International Forestry Review, 5 (1): 53-57. Parul Rishi, (2002a). Leading JFM through Nurturance, International Forestry Review 4 (2): 143-148, UK. Parul Rishi, (2002b). Joint Forest Management at Village Level: A Cognitive Analysis, Indian Forester, 128 (5): 539-544. Parul Rishi (2000). Joint Forest Management after a Decade: A Behavioural analysis of foresters and local people- 1999-2000. A Research Report.
Poffenberger, M. (ed) (1990). Keepers of the forest: Land Management alternatives/in Southeast, Asia, Kumarian Press, West Hartford, Connecticut Prasad, R., S. Raghavan, B.R. Phukan and B. Joshi (Eds.) (1999). Proceedings of the National Technical Workshop on evolving C & I for SFM in India, 21-23 January, Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal, India. Pratima, A. and Jattan, S. S. (1999). Participatory Forest Management to meet basic needs of forest dependent communities, Indian Forester, 125, 895-901. Ramprasad and Rathore, C.S. (2002). Country paper: Status of National Forestry Information System in India, FAO Corporate Document Repository, Forestry Information Processing, Workshop. Shaphered, G. (1992a). Forest Policies and Forest Politics. In Shaphered G. (ed.), 1992. Shaphered G. (ed) (1992b). Forest Policies, Forest Politics, Agricultural occasional paper 13, overseas development institute, London. Singhal, R. and Parul Rishi (2003b). Conflicts in Organisational development: A Case of Joint Forest Management in India. Forests, Trees and Livelihoods, UK, 13 (3) pp.261-270.
INSTITUTIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUES, ROLE OF NATIONAL AND STATE GOVERNMENT LOCAL AUTHORITIES AND CIVIL SOCIETY IN FORESTRY AND SFM; ROLE OF FOREST DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION/PRIVATE SECTOR IN FORESTRY AND SFM
B.K.P. Sinha Director Amity School of Natural Resources and Sustainable Development Amity University Campus, Sector-125, Noida INTRODUCTION
Forestry sector has been defined in various ways, but one on which there is a general agreement is --- embraces all those industries, activities and human resources, actual or potential, dependent on a national forest estate, both public and private, legally constituted for the production of goods and services in perpetuity. To govern and implement the policies, following key institutions, being the major stakeholders in the forestry sector exist in the country: Forest departments (Central and State Forest Departments including Forest Development Corporations) Local institutions Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) Forest based Industries Important international organizations with stakes in forestry International funding agencies
INSTITUTIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUES IN FORESTRY SECTOR

Forest department has been traditionally recognized to manage the regeneration and maintenance of forests, the harvesting, processing and marketing of forest produce, the maintenance and improvement of soils and water resources, and the establishment and maintenance of amenity areas. The range of expertise required is wide and forest service does prepare trained personnel in quite diverse fields. Why is it that forestry institution in India is regarded as being poorly organized, lacking in political support and do not enjoy the confidence of local communities? Why non-foresters are making many of the forestry decisions? The answers lie in a complex social, economic and political changes related to policies, policy instruments and factors, which have occurred as a result of changing scenario at both local and international level. Demographics, economics inappropriate policies, external pressures, opportunistic and corrupted practices have created challenges for which the forestry department is not adequately prepared at this stage. We first examine the status of forestry institutions in India and the existing structure and function of the FD.
The thrust of the Forest Department in India has been changing with changes in the forest policy form time to time, as can be seen below: Table 1: Administrative focus and the forest policy.
S.No. 1. Period British Period of Forest Administration Goal of the Policy Preference for Agriculture whenever competing demand for change in land use was there. Administrative Focus Survey, demarcation, utilization, documentation, maximization of revenue, procurement of timber for railways and Royal Navy Revenue maximization and encouragement of commercial operations. Soil conservation revenue generation. and
2.
Policy of 1894
Forest was to be sub-servient to agriculture. Recognized as a vital need for checking denudation of mountainous areas and river banks. Forest to be classified into protected, national, village forests and treelands Zamindari abolition and conversion of private forests to national forests.
3.
Policy after Independence Policy of 1952
4.
Policy between 19481960
Creation of administrative units, rapid recruitment and promotion, working plan secondary role and delay in their preparations and decrease in efficiency. Creation of afforestation divisions and circles, emphasis on planning and evaluation, lesser emphasis on protection and regulatory functions. Establishment of Forest Corporations in the states, increase in area under clear felling and planting, commercial plantations of rubber, teak, coffee etc. Collaboration with foreign funding agencies and NGOs, greater interaction with development institutions and village panchayats, heavy recruitment into the IFS and rapid promotions. The plan outlay did not keep pace with the requirement particularly for protection and maintenance of forests. Focus on training and capacity building, institutional support, management of protected areas, decline of social forestry on village lands.
5.
Policy between 19601973
Mobilization of resources to fund the plans, increase in afforestation targets and advent of monoculture plantations.
6.
Policy between 1974 to 1980
Acceptance of the report of the National Commission of Agriculture
7.
Policy Between 1976 1990
Emphasis on social forestry
8.
Policy 1990 onwards
JFM
Management of forests primarily for the interest of the community and environmental protection was triggered by local CHIPKO MOVEMENT that became a
national environmental movement; ultimately resulted into a radically different, Forest Policy of 1988.
FOREST POLICY OF 1988

Promulgations and directions as a sequel to the 1988 forest policy issued by Government of India have necessitated strategies based on process change to improve the management of the sector, basically in three ways. (a) (b) (c) Changing the approach of the forest department for improvement in managerial effectiveness; Developing the required knowledge, skill, attitude and overall capability of the forestry personnel in brief Human Resource Development (HRD); Decentralization and devolution of the planning and control to ensure that programmes and activities are linked to the needs of local communities. In context of above, pertinent questions in respect of forestry department are: 1. Whether forest department in India is in a position to discharge the duties in the changed context and if so what other changes and measures are required to modify and strengthen this structure? Which additional responsibilities can be transferred to public sector institutions like educational institutions, scientific institutions, other departments of government and public sector? What responsibilities and functions can be transferred to private sector, local communities and NGOs? Is there a need to create entirely new institution(s) to serve some newly arisen need in the forestry sector?
2.
3. 4.
Competent forestry institutions should be able to perform the following key functions in the changed scenario: Picking up signals: Sensing and anticipating problems from the social and geographic fringes of society. Balancing interests: Mobilizing dispersed interests of various stakeholders and providing forums in which all parties can express their interests, assess options and strategies, and work out mutually acceptable bargains. In some cases the agreements need to be crafted so as to have winners compensate losers and to provide insurance for risk-averse actors. Executing agreements: Following through on what has been decided as an agreed agenda, requires commitment, accountability, and learning.
In this sequel, Joint Forest Management and other forms of participatory management have emerged as new institutions with both promises and pitfalls, which need to be carefully handled, nurtured and monitored. We shall be dwelling upon the institutional aspects of these newly created participatory institutions, but first let us examine the forestry organization.
FOREST DEPARTMENTS (Under Central Government)

At the Central level within the Ministry of Environment and Forests, national level forestry issues are mainly looked after by Director General (DG) of Forests since 1864.
This has since been upgraded to the level of Special Secretary to the Government of India, directly reporting to the Union Minister of Forests with mandate; keep updated the Union Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forests on the development of the sector, supported by two Additional Director General of Forests. There are four zonal offices for Wildlife Protection and for CITES under Additional Director General of Forests (Wildlife) and seven regional offices for Land Transfer Cases, Environmental Clearances and for looking after the cases under Forest Conservation Act. Indian Forest Service Officers are mainly on deputation to state cadres for a specified period.
FOREST DEPARTMENTS (Under State Governments)

In the states, there is a full-fledged State Forest Department headed by a Principal Chief Conservator of Forest incharge of both the technical and the administrative functions with top down approach. Forestry organization in the state still suffers from colonial legacy and orders from headquarters are implemented without much opportunity for interaction with headquarters.
(a)
National Forestry Institutions for Research and Training
For training and research purposes Government of India has established the following important forestry institutions: 1. Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy, Dehradun - Staff college for Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers, conducts training programmes for direct recruits, mid-service and promoted officers. Directorate of Forest Education, Dehradun - Basically deals with forestry education of non- IFS officers like state forest service officers/ forest rangers etc. Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), Dehradun - Now granted status of Deemed University, it is an umbrella organization dealing with forestry research and education. Indian Institute of Forest management (IIFM), Bhopal Autonomous Management Institute for training personnel for forest based enterprises. Indian Plywood Industries Research and Training Institute (IPIRTI), Bangalore Primarily caters to the research and training requirement of panel wood based industries. Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun Primarily to address research and training needs of wildlife management. Forest Survey of India (FSI), Dehradun - The main mandate is to keep updating and monitoring the forestry stock cover of the country for national and state level planning and to support the inventory work of the state forest departments.
2. 3.
4. 5.
6. 7.
The sphere of their activities, range of functions, perceived weaknesses and constraints have been comprehensively covered in National Forest Commission Report 2006 (pages 217-222). But here it needs to be reiterated that in India forestry research and training have become a second grade set-up and poor cousin of the main forestry administrative stream. The main areas of concern are: lack of motivation, resulting from non-recognition and reward for meritorious and good services; lack of openings for committed and competent persons at all levels, absence of mechanism for prompt redressal of grievances and inadequate infrastructural facilities and finance for research. All these are reflection of non-integration of forestry research with forest operations. Currently, forestry research has so far been narrowly focused. It must instead take active role because of change in policy of sector itself. The training institutes also by and large need reorientation in their focus by updating their curriculum to meet the changed
requirement of society (i.e. more emphasis on environmental concerns for forestry influences, integrating rural development with forestry and for NTFP in general).
(b)
1.
Forestry Institutions at the State Level

State Forest Training Schools, Academies, and Institutes: Twenty-six SFDs are having training schools/academies for imparting induction as well refresher training courses to the frontline staff (Forest Guards, Foresters and deputy rangers). Forest Development Corporations (FDCs): Based on the recommendations of the National Commission on Agriculture in 1976 to cater to the needs of forest based industries, to take care of marketing strategies, and to undertake agroforestry, the State Governments established FDCs with varying objectives. At present 24 states have FDCs State Forest Research Institutes (SFRIs): Only seven States namely Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Uttaranchal have established their own forest research institutes which carry out research on local specific forestry and wildlife issues.
2.
3.
The perceived weaknesses and the constraints of the above organizations have been dealt adequately in NFC Report of 2006.
FOREST ADMINISTRATION Indian Forest Service (IFS)

The Indian Forest Service is the main administrative service of the forestry sector supported by State Forest Service Officers/Subordinate Executive Services men (i.e. forest rangers, foresters and forest guards). IFS officers are the main policy formulating organ in the hierarchy of the forest administration. The service has a long and checkered history, starting from 1867 to 1938 and again revived in 1966 with newly introduced constitutional provisions/support. Selection and recruitment to the IFS is done by the Central government, but each State has a separate cadre. Joint cadres also exist in Union Territories and some States. There are at present 2751 IFS Officers mainly from two sources: (a) Direct recruits: 1917 (66.33%); (b) by promotion: 834 (33.33%).
Functions of Forest Administration

Forest administration handles protection, management and utilization of forest resources (land, forests, wildlife, water, etc.) to produce various goods and services to meet ever-increasing and at times conflicting demands from a shrinking resource base subjected to constant increasing biotic pressures. Functions of the forest administration are many in view of its variety of postings, and linkages of forestry sector to various concerns and interests of the large section of society. However, the broad existing functions are: (i) Forest protection; (ii) Silviculture and management; (iii) Survey, demarcation and Working Plans; (iv) Harvesting, transport, processing and marketing; (v) Supervision, budgeting, policy formulation and legislation; (vi) Research, training and extension; (vii) Wildlife management; (viii) Social forestry; (ix) Joint forest management; (x) Watershed management, including soil and water conservation; and (xi) Collection and marketing of non-wood forest produce.
Constraints
National forestry commission report has flagged main constraints and weaknesses of forest administration being as under. The changed policy priorities of forest management require quick and flexible responses in the technical expertise, attitude and outlook of the field staff. Unfortunately, the forest administrative staff is not well equipped technically, mentally and emotionally to address these. Pervasive corruption and politicization particularly at field level distorts priorities in favour of risk free enforcement related to other challenging assignments. Environment wing rather than the forestry wing maintains some of the important issues like the biosphere reserves, medicinal plants, wetlands, mangroves etc. Normally, IFS officers have inherent added advantage over other service officers as they deal with these environmental issues in their respective cadre states and possess relatively more knowledge on these matters. Ironically, neither the expertise nor the knowledge of the IFS officers in the ministry is utilized for handling the jobs related to the above mentioned issues. Similarly tribal welfare is being looked after by different ministries, lacking complete required integration.their policies and programmes at times running counter to sustainable management programme of the forestry sector. The study of the budgetry allocation to the forest wing for the past 9 successive plans indicates that the outlay is of the order of less than 1%, though the management of forestry accounts for 23% of the geographical area and National Forest Policy aims to increase the tree cover to 33% of the geographical area. (NFC Report 2006 recommends an increase of allocation to 2.5%)
Table 2: Out lay for forest sector in the past five year plans.
Plan Period Total public sector (crores) Out lay for forests and wild life (crores) 7.64 21.21 45.85 41.93 89.42 208.84 68.33 692.49 1859.10 1413.00 4081.87 8189.09 % of plan out lay
First Second third Post third Fourth Fifth Annual Sixth Seventh Post Seventh Eighth Ninth
1951-56 1956-61 1961-66 1966-69 1969-74 1974-79 1979-80 1980-85 1985-90 1990-92 1992-97 1997-04
2069 4800 7500 6687 15901 38853 12550 97500 180000 139197 434100 859200
0.37 0.44 0.61 0.63 0.56 0.53 0.54 0.71 1.03 1.01 0.94 0.95
Source: planning commission report
Forest Department at the Field level is awfully under staffed and miserably looked after. In most of the states the new recruitment of lower staff has not taken place for a long time primarily due to general ban on recruitment in most of the states
leading to a large number of vacancies in the field staff. The bleak promotional avenues coupled with absence of new recruitment have increased the average age of field foresters. They are left with no enthusiasm for adapting to new approaches of sustainable forest management. The field staffing figures in the forest department of Assam, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh (Table 1) indicate the gaps in the category of foresters and forest guards being as high as 34% in case of Jharkhand and 10% in Assam. Lack of fresh recruitments, poor opportunities for career advancement and little improvement in technical and managerial skills have contributed to low morale with passive attitude. With the change in policy priorities, the forest administration functions are getting diversified. There is many-fold increase in the magnitude of work, but the staffs at field level have not been increased accordingly. This again is a symptom of weak institution which has not been able to project its dire necessity of required strength at field level in view of forestry operations being unique (location specific diffused operations spread over large areas requiring close supervision, unlike engineering operations which are concentrated) and diversified. Table 3: Showing strength of field staff in Assam, Jharkhand and M.P.
Item Number of field staff Recorded forest (million hectares) Field staff vacancy rate (percent) Forest area per staff (ha) Assam 5,089 2.6 10 511 Jharkhand 950 2.3 34 2,421 453 Madhya Pradesh 16,550 7.5
Source: India-unlocking opportunities for forest dependent people-world bank report-2006
There has been considerable increase in the number of higher posts in the forest departments but the increased number of posts at lower levels has not followed it. For example, the average size of the beat has remained about 15-20 sq. km since British period. The lower level staff is neither technically sound nor equipped properly to meet the many faceted new responsibilities. The whole system requires restructuring, decentralizing and devolution.
Department Functioning: Critical Review with Special Reference to Historical Legacy

The forest department is the oldest major institution in the forestry sector and naturally has its deep roots in the past with colonial administration in India, controlling over 77 million ha or approximately about one fifth of the countrys land areas. It is being staffed by over 1,50,000 regular employees besides almost five times more persons working on daily basis. Yet, in 125 years of its existence this institution has been the most reviled arm of the Indian states (Guha, 1994). Tables below summarize the results of SWOT analysis of these organizations and provide summary of desired and prevailing attitudinal changes amongst its personnel. The mandate, present structure and functions at different hierarchical level of the forest department are also provided.
Table 4: State forest department hierarchy and job profile.

S. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Levels of hierarchy Principal Forests Chief Conservator of Job roles State level policy strategies State or regional level networking/coordination Monitoring at sub-regional levels District level planning, execution, supervision and fund monitoring Sub-division level supervision, suggestive Range level progress execution, disbursement, reporting
Chief Conservator of Forests Conservator of Forests Deputy Conservator of Forests Assistant Conservator of Forests Range Officer Deputy Range Officer Forester Forest Guard
Sub-range level planning and execution Sub-range level planning and execution of works Beat level execution, organizing labour and work
Table 5: SWOT Analysis of forest departments

S. No. 1 2 3 4 5 Strengths Disciplined organization, staff Long history, tradition, and culture Technically sound, well trained personnel Operational even in remote, isolated areas Well laid out forest policy, legislative support, rules and regulations Opportunities 1 2 3 4 5 Increased public involvement in forestry and environment Funding agencies by international, national Weaknesses Short tenure, lack of continuity of staff Poor motivation, no incentives for doing good work Use of obsolete technology, poor application of research to field Work in isolation, poor communication skills, lack of publicity Inadequate funds, investment Threats Increasing human, livestock, biotic pressure on forests Encroachment encroaches on forest, regularization of
Access to modern technologies to better manage the resource Growth of agro-forestry, farm forestry Work with other agencies, sectors
Low government priority to forestry Political interference Conflicting policies of other sectors
Source: DSilva, 1995a
Gopa Pandey has aptly summarized the desired changes in the attitude of the forestry personnel and the present prevailing scenario. Quote: This is a period of great transition for the forest department and the situation has been succinctly summarized in the table provided below unquote:
Table 6: The desired changes expected in the attitude of forestry personnel.

S. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Present attitude Resource saviors Resource developers Alone responsible Know the best science Top down planning Weak communication skills Programme oriented Regulatory roles delivered Expected attitude Sharing protection Sharing development Sharing responsibility Incorporate local knowledge Bottom up planning Strengthen communication Process oriented Facilitators role required
HISTORY OF THE FOREST DEPARTMENT

In order to understand the present orientation of the forest department, it becomes necessary to have a peep in its historical perspective. In the year 1864, Brandis laid foundation of forest management in India on principles borrowed from Germany, France and UK. The concept of sustainable management of forest resources through strong institutions of forest departments were observed by Brandis - If Indian forestry is permitted to continue its progress without any retrograde movement, it will from small beginning, grow into a large institution, which will strengthen the position of government and will promote the prosperity of the people. However, after independence with the changing philosophy of forest management in India, the forestry institution has been changing its mandate from time to time particularly after the Chipko movement. In the context of Chipko movement, the following questions are often debated: a. Why forest service took so long to accommodate the demands of the local community? Is it because it had commodity traditions and not oriented towards various clients? b. c. d. Whether due to pragmatic and budgetary focus?
Was it adapted so well to the old order? Was it due to cohesiveness, right commitment to its mission and organization; self-image of stewardship; scientific forestry?
To such a proud professional, the monoculture, the inter-disciplinary public power sharing was a direct rebuke. Forest service had its focus for managing multiple uses all along. Difficulty arose when there were problems with multiple users. Discontentment about forest management arose because of the FD divergence from the general public. In brief, it was about forest practices, which neglected NTFP and environmental services. The present structure of the forest department is being criticized that its evolution is a typical example of the most sustained efforts by both colonial and nationalist governments to establish direct state control over an important natural resource (K. Sivaramakrishnan, Modern Forests) and needs to be abolished in the interest of the sustainable management of forest resources. JFM and participatory process in the forestry sector have emerged as possible solution to address the problem. Thus, the central thrust of the changed Indian forests policy 1988 and government strategies for meeting the forest conservation and sustainability goals have seen the adoption of JFM model of partnership with communities. Various international/national experiences and
researches suggest that when communities are empowered with greater rights and responsibilities, there is overall improvement in forest conservation and rural livelihood. On the other hand, there are also views that the forests management model in the pre-British era by the people and community is not relevant in the present context because that was basically (a) hunter and gatherer society with strong village and community institutions, (b) less consumption and abundant resources, (c) no village level politics, (d) less population pressure etc. As such, three sets of questions arise in context of forest department: a. What evidence is there that the forest department is willing to make necessary changes in structures, procedures, attitude, capabilities in their relationship with other agencies particularly with the villages? What kind of relationship has developed between NGOs and forest department staff? To what extent are NGOs capable of contributing to the implementation of JFM and participatory management of forests?
b. c.
Professional forestry in a country like India needs more radical change. India has adopted not only the forestry objectives but also forestry institutional models from the first world, either left behind by colonial powers or shown to them by past development assistance. With the above background let us examine the main driving factors affecting the institutions for sustainable forest management. Policy and legal frame which supports the forestry institution and gives direction to management process Planning and management process itself Development of Human Resource (HR) Research and Development, which guides and gives, expanded alternatives and expertise to deliver goods and capacity of the human resource to deal with the different situations. (R&D being a subject matter of another resource person, is not intended to be discussed in this paper.)
ISSUES AND MANAGEMENT
CONSTRAINTS
UNDERPINNING
FOREST
Policy and Legal Frame which Supports the Forestry Institution and Gives Direction to Management Process
In India following policy framework exists for management of forests: Forest is in concurrent list: Realizing the importance of forest and wildlife the subject has now been transferred to list III Concurrent list, by section 57 of the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act 1976, with effect from 3 January 1977. (i) The Constitution of India provides guidelines for protection of forests and wildlife. The Directive Principles of State Policy has assigned duties for the States and citizens through Articles 48-A and 51-A (g). In 1966, the Indian Forest Service was revived to ensure coordinated professional management of forests.
(ii)
(iii)
In 1976, the subject Forest was transferred from the State List to the Concurrent List of the Constitution of India to ensure uniform policy and management. In 1980, the Forest Conservation Act was enacted which was later amended in 1988. It provides that areas recorded as forests in government records cannot be transferred for non-forestry use without the prior approval of the Government of India. Moreover, this diversion now requires compensatory afforestation on an equivalent area of non-forest land or double the area on degraded forestlands. In a recent judgment the apex court has decided that in addition to compensatory afforestation, the NPV (Net Present Value) of the area deforested shall have to be payable by the party concerned. Apex Court took up several issues related to sustainable forest management. The Supreme Court of India for the first time dealt with issues of forest conservation in a comprehensive manner in their various judgments on a PIL (Public Interest Litigation), Goda Barman versus Union of India, 1996. Numerous issues pertaining to forest management and conservation were dealt in great depth and solutions attempted. Suffice to mention: (a) on 12.12.1996, the court held that the word forest must be understood as per dictionary meaning; (b) provision of FCA must apply to all forests irrespective of ownership and classification; (c) No felling outside provision of working plan, without ensuring funds for regeneration operations. FCA 1980 was passed to protect and safeguard the forest. It does not prohibit any eco-friendly activities. FCA has an in-built mechanism to check irregularity committed, if any, by the officials.
(iv)
(v)
(vi)
Sarkaria Commission
The above commission constituted for the purpose of taking up issues related to centre state relationship under the Chairmanship of Justice Sarkaria, made the following recommendations having bearing on the Conservation Act, 1980. a. b. Old closed cases referred under Section 2 of the Forest Conservation Act 1980, to be re-examined for identifying reasons for follow up by the state governments. Powers should be delegated to the States to divert, to a small extent say not exceeding 5 ha, of reserved forestland, which are urgently required for specific public purpose. Pending cases in respect of conservation and improvement of forest resources should be handled in consultation with each State government concerned. This occasion should be utilized for reviewing sanctions by virtue of powers recommended by us, to be delegated to the Union Government. In the case of large projects involving significant extent of submersion of reserved forests or their diversion to non-forest uses, clearance under Section 2 of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 should be given as far as possible simultaneously with the project clearance by the Union Government.
c.
d.
Paras a b & c, have been accepted by the central government. Recommendations and actions have been initiated to implement them. As for the recommendation in Para d, MoEF has examined and needs consultation with the Ministry of Law. (vii) A new forest policy is in place which gives special emphasis to conserving the natural heritage, preserving flora and fauna, meeting fuel, fodder, non-wood forest produce and small timber requirements of the rural and tribal population, and increasing forest area and productivity to meet local and national needs. This
is to be achieved through a massive peoples movement for afforestation and protection with the involvement especially of women and encouraging forestbased industries to develop direct linkages with the rural people for their raw material requirements. The national goal of the policy is to have a minimum of one-third (two-third in hills) of the total land area of the country under forest or tree cover. Since independence, various State governments have amended the Indian Forest Act of 1927 to suit their requirements. However, in view of the directive contained in the forest policy of 1988, there is urgent need for the revision of the Indian Forest Act so that State governments implement the new forest policy on a uniform basis. At present Indian Forest Act, 1927 is under revision.
PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT PROCESS

For sustainable forest management operations a management plan, with clearly defined objectives for all those involved to achieve the same end results, is a must. Most of the Reserve Forest in India is traditionally managed under a working plan/management scheme approved by the government of India (Working Plan is periodically revised every 10 years). Working plan is a robust institution. If properly funded, technologically updated it can fulfil most of the indicators of sustainability such as stock maps, compartment histories, control forms, divisional history notebooks, treatment maps, deviation statements, etc. Recent introduction of objectives of SFM in National Working Plan Code 2004, and directions from MoEF to State Governments for identification of nodal officers in the states for SFM have further strengthened the institution of working plan. However, due to various reasons, which shall be discussed in succeeding paras, these are being prepared in a perfunctory manner, inadequately implemented, improperly monitored, deviation cases not followed up. Thus, at present it has become a crude tool to manage and monitor the forests strictly on sustainable basis. Reasons for this sorry state of affairs being: i. Research, education, monitoring and working plan wing of the forest department have generally become a dumping ground for those (a) who are inefficient, (b) known to be corrupt, (c) who are to be taught a lesson, (d) new entrants, whereas, this challenging assignment in the present context demands just the opposite. Inadequate availability of managerial, financial and technical resources at the disposal of WPO coupled with frequent transfer of staff resulting in low quality inputs. Absence of authentic and reliable primary data - collected by de-motivated and demoralized field staff - for effective analysis and creation of information bank. This institution has also not evolved with changed requirements. The traditional working plan document has no arrangement for preparation of micro-plans and for environmental impact analysis, partly because necessary skill, knowledge and institutional memory are not available with the forest department for these purposes. This is an inherent important shortcoming of this document in the present context. Experience database and Internet administration supported by facility for remote sensing and GIS not in place in majority of the states. No regular arrangement to monitor degradation as also the growing stock in a compartment, except at the time of revision of the Working Plan.
ii.
iii. iv.
v. vi.
Though, Forest Survey of India (FSI) provides State of Forest Report (SFR) every alternate year and gives data mostly about tree cover, it has also recently started giving a figure for average growing stock per ha of recorded forest area. Yet, the FSI report does not give any information regarding degradation of forests above 40 per cent density classes. It also does not provide precisely the division, district and legal / management classification-wise status of forest resources and growing stock.
The French Resource Accounting Approach is intended ultimately to economic growth to the quantities of natural resources that have to be used or imported to make economic growth possible. The French approach requires that a comprehensive physical inventory system be in place before any change can be proposed in national accounting methods --- environmental accounting in physical terms is essential because data collected should indicate the speed with which the quantity and quality of natural resources are changing and the direction of change. Environmental and Natural Resource Accounting Salah El; Serafy and Ernst Lvtz
Maslekar Committee, constituted for the purpose of giving new orientation and for refining the Forest Working Plan in the country, has made important recommendations. These have formed part of the report of the National Forest Commission and are being provided in Annexure-I.
DEBATED ISSUES FOR PREPARATION OF WORKING PLANS

Working plan preparation involves classification of areas broadly into working circles, and then into compartment/sub-compartment for uniform prescription of treatment. One of the main controversial issues regarding management of forests in India is that there are almost no unpopulated forest areas. Therefore, broad classification of forest management objectives and division of area (classification into national parks, protection working circle, etc.) for meeting these objectives is not forthcoming. The description of National parks as a paper park is an example. It is being argued that compartmentalizing mentality of map-making; for purpose of forestry conservation (for management of protected areas), production forestry (associated with production of commercial timber), and social forestry (for meeting the subsistence needs) influencing the lives of million of forest dependent people into the classes will not work (Nandni Sunder et al. 2001). It is being debated that competing objectives are not necessarily antagonistic to each other, and can be mutually supporting even within any given area. Well-regulated extraction both for subsistence and commerce is possible in certain areas. However, strengthening and institutionalizing such group activities is a big challenge. The other emerging aspect of forest management is the need to combine silvicultural strategies to cater to the needs of different stakeholders. Management for Non-timber Forest Produce (NTFPs) has become the new slogan among NGOs who are not only powerful but also quite influential both at national and international level having good alliances among them. Some of the silvicultural proposals being discussed in the micro-plans are location specific: like management for natural regeneration, more individual manipulations of plantation within a participatory framework, etc. (Rathore and Cambell, 1996). This is another challenge and brings us to the topic of preparation of micro-plans under participatory forest management processes.
Participatory Forest Management (JFM, Eco-Development, etc.) and Preparation of Micro-Plans

JFM and Participatory system of forest management has shown promise for sustainable management of forests and micro-plan is its soul. JFM has made the task of
forest protection easier for the forest department and has given new recognition to the forestry personnel at field level but a few thorny issues need to be sorted out.
Micro Plan
The preparation of participatory process critically depends on the quality of location specific micro-plans. Micro-planning process is a concept of participatory and bottom up approach so as to involve the local people in the management of areas site specific planning for JFM and eco-development areas. In its preparation and implementation, site-specific details like demographical, geographical and socio-economic aspects of the areas are considered. Concept of micro planning has also formed the basis for execution of industrial plantation, Joint Forest Management, Sal assisted natural regeneration and eco-development programmes in national parks and sanctuaries. The parameters of each micro-plan are generally: Basic information, demographic data, Stock Map, Management map etc. Resource assessment. Action plan, with specific emphasis on: Protection plan Regeneration of existing rootstock Plantation, soil moisture conservation measures, fencing and demarcation Silvicultural operations Arrangements for distribution of forest produce Processing and sale of Forest produce, sharing mechanism
Annual Progress Report, with a schedule of operations, to be compiled by the department, the village people and combined.
But here again often the micro-plans are exact replica and are seldom thoroughly scrutinized at higher level. Inputs from higher level are lacking. Strengthening of this arrangement is also a factor in success or failure of JFM/eco-development or other participatory process.
According to a study carried out in the field, forestry field personnel did not feel that these exercises are serious, and thus, most information was gathered from secondary sources. Besides, despite the fact that micro-plan affects every one a full turn out of the villagers during exercise is rare. Benefits are seldom explained to the stakeholders properly. Following description of a division-level workshop for JFM brings out the cut and dried manner in which benefits are correlated to the availability of government funds: The RFO declared the training session of the day closed. Before winding up he asked the participants to review the progress of the work for JFM. However, he did not wait for the response and said that before the end of March 1996 (financial year) all the pending work had to be completed. He said money is there and the FD has to spend Rs.50,000 for each new VSS. He directed the members of the newly formed VSSs to start construction of the meeting places immediately before 24th March, based on a sketch model supplied by him. One person said that it was difficult to get timber for the construction. The RFO responded that if the timber was not available in the village, they could collect it from the forest so long as they gave a list of the trees being cut. Source: Branching out Nandani Sundar
A second feature about execution of micro-plan must ensure that reform FDs address following issues Employ significant numbers of women and social scientists and put some of them in positions of influence. Offer career development opportunities at all levels, based on radically new performance criteria. Base forest-working plans on participatory assessment of priorities, which would incorporate JFM micro-plans supported by appropriate financial allocations with devolved financial decision-making and accountability. Set in motion a rethinking of several of the basic premises of Scientific Forestry and conduct significant participatory research on how to do this. Formulate new roles of FD staff, to develop utterly different perceptions of their business, and to see themselves as facilitators, partners, and regulators rather than as technical masters with policing roles over discrete territories.
Source: Nandani Sunder
Eco-Development Plan
Like JFM, it is a programme of targeted intervention to conserve biodiversity. It is an experimental demonstration project. If its conservation and development strategy is effective, the government will expand it to cover other protected areas. It has two thrust areas: (a) improvement of habitat of protected area (b) providing incentive and involving people in management of PAs. Several questions are being raised like: (i) inadequacy of staff and infrastructure. Who will do it? Does the present staffing level have the capability to effectively spend twice the average annual budgeted amount? To what level the forest department can sub-contract? Are not existing staffs overloaded?
Integration of Micro Plans, Micro Enterprise and Broader Economic Process

If federation of VFCs is linked and integrated with a federated micro enterprise at district and state level to industrial cooperatives of entrepreneurs based on raw material supplied from VFCs, then a new successful model of decentralized integrated model of management might emerge. This will necessarily involve an exercise of very careful planning and preparation of micro plans.
In India we do not have at present any basic model of participatory forest management that has been applied in other parts of world. This model is localized community management of forest resources (usually) degraded scrubland with support from NGOs or state agencies. It is also being experienced at some places that small plots of land under control of JFM Committees are often tempted to manage it largely as a resource to be exploited rather than a source of ecological benefit. A study with an objective to scrutinize a few cases of successful management of forest through village level committees in JFM in states of AP, MP and Orissa brings out a few pertinent facts: a. b. The key elements (form of participation, areas under management and chances of success) vary from village to village. However, this is a pointer that states government, NGOs and foresters can bring out a successful model of forest management, which is not only local specific, but also bottom up approach. Dense valuable and rich forest with fragile areas having scattered population may be managed in consultation with other group of civil societies, scientists, environmental experts, wildlife activists, etc.
c.
d.
We have now a successful model of forest management, which is between state management and village community management. It has a positive connotation of democratization of civil society.
Source: Branching Out Nandani Sunder
Thus, it can be concluded that JFM and participatory system of management emerging as potential for sustainable management needs to be watched and nurtured. There may be a number of models to suit different settings in the country. It is also possible to fine-tune the present system of management plan to integrate it with the micro-plans linking it with forest-based micro-enterprises.
ISSUES RELATED TO HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

i. Constraints originating from policy: As indicated earlier because of various directions from Supreme Court and linkage of the sector with other departments and private organization the responsibility of the forestry personnel has multiplied manifold in view of ecological crisis. Several gaps due to absence of policies impacting the forestry sector, thus directly or indirectly influence the performance of the forestry personnel. For example, inadequate inputs and unsustainable demands imposed on the forestry capital of the country from other sectors without compensatory investment are making protection and maintenance a difficult job. The policy part of the report takes care of this. Lack of vision, goal and clear mandate: At present most of the states have neither a policy nor vision statement based on reality at ground. It has prevented the emergence of clear mandate for the department and for most of the personnel at various levels. A possible better structure with functions is shown in the table below:
ii.
Table 7: Possible functions at different levels of Hierarchy.

Level State Unit Policy Action takers APCCF + CCF + Specialists DCF + ACF + RO + FG RO + DRO + FR + FG FG Decision makers PCCF APCCF CCF + CF DFO SDO RO + FR + + Service supporter Ministerial and Specialist Staff Ministerial and Specialist Staff Ministerial and Specialist Staff Office Clark and Field Worker Stakeholder partners State level partners District level partners Block level partners Village level partners Key focus Goals
Circle Division Range
Strategic Tactical Operational
Means Actors Activities
iii.
Low allocation and inadequate investment in forestry sector resulting from market failure (Distortion and Imperfection, non consideration of externalities, improper consideration of ecological & subsistence needs of the marginalized people, multiplier effects of forestry operations, employment objectives) are reflection of a weak institution, but these are important because they affect the morale and performance of personnel. Shortage of field level staff & Ageing of Foresters: As stated earlier, due to acute shortage of staff at field level, the quality of work has deteriorated considerably.
iv.
Besides, due to general ban on recruitment in most of the states, ageing of foresters is a common feature. Table below depicts the prevailing situation in Madhya Pradesh. This is also an indirect reflection of a weak institution, because stronger institutions like the Police and Health, declared as essential services, are exempted from the general ban on recruitment.
Age of Forest Guards

No.
3500 3000 2500 2000 1543 1500 1000 500 0 21-25 26-30 31-35 36-40 41-45 46-50 51-55 56-60
Age Classes Average Age 50 Years Last Recruitment 1980
2
Age of Foresters
No.
1400 1200 1160 1231
3070 2290
2211
1000 800 736
1074 851 392 134
600 400 200 0 31-35

Average Age 55 years
217 20 86 36-40 41-45 46-50 51-55 56-60

3
Age Classes
Last Recruitment 1980
Fig. 1: Average Age of Forest Field Staff (Courtesy: Dr. Ram Prasad) v. Target fixation: Undue emphasis on annual unrealistic target fixation results into insufficient planning and lack of cost effectiveness which often prevents the department to manage and protect the forests for carrying out necessary silvicultural operations. This is particularly true for non-plan budget, which goes for essential operations of implementation of working plan prescription including the essential items on maintenance of boundaries, etc. to prevent encroachment. Training: The Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy, Dehradun and the Rangers Colleges in the states, continue to teach a curriculum that has not much changed over the years. Revenue raising as an objective is still paramount consideration for the State Forest Departments. Though the Central Government 1988 Policy does not give this objective any priority, it is still ingrained in the minds of the staff due to old traditions and in actual practice. Therefore these institutions should modify their curriculum to incorporate social skills, changing silvicultural and evolving administrative concepts. Lack of Specialization: National Forest Commission in its report has recommended, the following subject areas for specialization. The training arrangement at various levels should consider these. (a) (b) Forest conservation (including protection, harvesting and sale of forest produce); Extension forestry (including plantations and nurseries), JFM, grassland and watershed management and eco-development outside of reserve forests; Wildlife management (including management of PAs and their buffers and corridors, collection of basic data, control of wildlife trade and taxidermy, implementation of international conventions, etc.); Research, Training, Working Plans, Technical support to Agro- and Farm Forestry.
vi.
vii.
(c)
(d) viii.
Financial Sanction Procedures: There are many problem areas like: a. b. Timely allocation of funds from the government Inadequate financial delegation
c. d.
Unrealistic schedule of rates Varying unit level cost for different schemes There is a need to revamp the whole financial procedure to orient and gear it up for speedy quality operations.
ix.
The Need for Change in HRD Policy: Recognizing the arduous nature of duties performed by staff in remote or and often inhospitable places. The National Forest Policy of 1988 emphasizes the importance to be given to HRD in the following thrust areas: Development of professional competence amongst forest staff; Attracting talented and specialized people to the forest profession; Enhancing the performance and status of staff; Retaining qualified and motivated personnel in forest departments;
To achieve reasonable success for effective HRD functions following approaches be adopted: Manpower planning and utilization: Future manpower requirements must be related to the role and structure of the organization based on fulfilment of different functions, in different locations. There are many ways in which rationalization, reorganization and right sizing can be initiated to improve the performance of the sector. An effective structure with focus is being shown below: Role definition: Roles as evolutionary concepts, unlike job descriptions are purely functional and duty-based. Training needs assessment: Assessment of training needs is one of the basic building blocks of HRD. It is based on a comparison of the competencies required to fulfil an identified role, and those held by the individual or groups required to undertake the role. Training needs assessment should be undertaken by trainers, superiors and peers as an organized group activity. Competency-based training: Competencies are skill clusters, derived from training needs assessment, and hence closely linked to functionary performance. Competency-based training reaches beyond simple skill development by ensuring that, in the course of the training programme, trainees reach pre-determined and accepted performance levels.
As the conditions of forests in every state vary considerably there is an urgent need to conduct studies on each of these areas for different states or group of states to assess the status and the comprehensive strategy and action programme.
ROLE OF NATIONAL AND STATE GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES AND CIVIL SOCIETY IN FORESTRY AND SFM
LOCAL
As stated earlier MoEF at central level headed by Director General of Forests is the main forestry advisor to Government of India. DG (Forests) is only of the rank of Special Secretary to the GoI, though forests constitute about 23 per cent of the geographical area of the country and potential role of trees in economic and rural development. The quality impact of policies and its acceptance for management of forests and trees outside forests affect not only the ecological quality of all developmental sectors of the country but livelihood of the poor and marginalized section of Indian societies. The limitation of the official stature of Director General of Forests has resulted in preventing the overarching functions of the ministry and also prevented in its
evolution as an instrument and think tank for providing integrated sound land use policy at the national level. The secondary importance of forestry institutions primarily forest department has resulted into (a) narrow perspectives of forestry personnel; (b) nonrealization of potential role of trees; and (c) in evolution of broader concepts of forestry. A case in point to support the above is being given as tangential reference where absence of sound policy analysis has resulted into considerable drain of forestry capital without compensatory inputs/investments from the steel sector (Annexure-II). Needless to mention that in India credibility and acceptability of the person at the national policy framing level in government goes by and large by bureaucratic hierarchy. Therefore, there is a need for strengthening and upgrading the post of Director General of Forests. Similarly, the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests in most of the states has no say in framing the policies of the land using department or the rural development department. This has made the forestry organization an inward looking institution with no effort or capacity to perform as an effective instrument for policy analysis. Another dimension related to this top post in forestry sector is short tenure of DG. After independence there have been 65 IG (F)/DG (F) in 60 years whereas there were only 31 DG/IG (F) in the pre-independence era (over 80 years). Short tenure at the top level affects taking long-term measures for steering this sector. Needed durable reform in the forestry department for community based forestry model will be very difficult, given the competing interests in the forestry sector (Khare et.al., 2000). Therefore, in addition to the political commitment for sustainable management of forests, a powerful and an able administrative leader in forestry is a dire necessity. The other important HRD related factors affecting the sustainable management of forests in India are: i. Lack of political commitment and their impact on functions of institution: Though, Constitution of India and various path- breaking judgments of the Supreme Court have provided support for protection, conservation and sustainable management of forests but the management of forests is greatly influenced by the decisions taken largely at state/local level politicians and bureaucrats. The conservation and sustainable management of forests is not in the priority list for most of these politicians at least for all practical purposes. It has not even appeared in manifesto of the major political parties in India like in many other developed countries. The critical research and policy question then becomes Why do formal institutions dealing in forestry fail to pursue the objectives of sustainable forest management? Why do short-term political and economic concerns overwhelm the objective of forest management? There are at least three explanations: (a) Governments in the states feel that they cannot rely to provide sufficient resources for their development projects. The state government then often turns to mobilize internal sources of revenue to fund these projects. Thus liquidating or decreasing the forestry resource base which ironically reduces the state revenue base. As the amount of forestland decreases, so does the state tax base. Forest department in the states are in a state of perplexity. On one hand legislative language and ministerial rhetoric emphasizes for conservation of forests, on the other hand decisions or direction on individual cases emphasize the revenue generation and social development at the cost of forest resource base. Thus State governments in practice deemphasize the need for sustainable management of forest. Non-market benefits of forests are not considered beyond the language of the legislation and for rhetoric.
(b)
(c)
Mixed loyalties of the bureaucracies may make it difficult for institutions to pursue the different objectives like social development, environmental protection and revenue generation, etc. with objectivity and clarity. The only institution whose first loyalty to forest itself is FD but it is not on equal footing with several other powerful institutions like IAS, IPS, Health, engineering departments etc.
ii.
Administrative Issues a. Lack of specialization: Specialization particularly in tribal welfare, antipoverty programmes, social implication of technological option in forestry and such other aspects of forestry, which impacts human interests, is lacking (N.C. Saxena, 1995). Workload: Considerable scope for re-distribution of work to make the field officers more productive exists and requires in-depth reforms. Short tenure: In absence of transfer policy, there is a pressure and counter pressure for more visible, otherwise attractive posting at all levels. Mechanism for immediate removal of genuine grievances at various levels: Currently this procedure is time consuming, circuitous and cumbersome. At least in some cases, with delegation of power immediate redressal of grievances is possible. Correct sizing & Transfer of responsibilities: Manpower planning, reorganization of beats, sections, ranges, sub-division with corresponding analysis of various sanctioned posts or additional posts from time to time is necessary. Related to this, theres an urgent need to understand, what functions can be transferred to public sector, private sector, NGOs and other organizations.
b. c. d.
e.
iii.
Other miscellaneous factors which need close analysis and correction are rationalized Target Fixation, Schedule of rates, Budgeting.
ISSUE RELATED TO GENERAL GOVERNANCE THAT AFFECTS THE MORALE AND FUNCTIONING OF THE FOREST DEPARTMENT
Naxalite factor is another big problem with the field staff who supervises and executes the management plans to protect the forests. This factor is about general governance of the country but needs special mention because of its enormity. The best description of naxalite areas are provided from the book Abuse of Nature Madhav Gadgil and Ram Chandra Guha.
Many forest areas of central and south India are facing the problem of naxalism. The largest segment of Indias population, the tribals feel that the regions prospering at their cost have concentrations of those who wield economic and political clout, in metropolitan centers like Bombay and Delhi. The largest concentrations of Indias tribal populations occur in the northeastern hills and in the so-called Jharkhand tracts extending over Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh in central India. These tribal areas are rich in natural forest resources; northeast has oil and the central Indian tracts have coal and iron ore. The state government controls the forests, whereas minerals are controlled by the central government. Although these areas generate enormous revenues, almost all of it flows out, leaving behind poorly paid wage earner environments devastated by logging and mining. These inequities have fuelled numerous local separatist movements, be they the armed insurgencies of the Nagas, Mizos or Bodos, the Assam students agitation or the Jharkhand Maoists Command Movement. These movements demand more control over local resources and a greater share in the profits from their use a demand vehemently opposed by omnivores sitting in Patna or Delhi (Gadgil and Guha, 2003). For instance 55 per cent of the area in Baster district has been declared as naxalite affected areas in Chhatisgarh. It has not only affected forest works but has also broken the moral of the field official. Forest department personnel can contribute in confining or reducing this problem to a
great extent if proper inputs and integrated plans for development of such areas to provide jobs and income opportunities are drawn out. Source: Madhav Gadgil and Ram Chandra Guha
Transborder Issues: There are forest areas bordering other countries (Nepal, Burma, Bangladesh) where the protection and management of forests have become increasingly more complex due to various factors beyond the control of the forest department. Proper mechanism at national/international level for redressal of local problems of these areas must be in place. Lack of Public Support: The forest department in general carries a reputation of land grabbers. They have generally been accused of ignoring press, politicians and the people.
Monitoring and Evaluation

The present situation is such that most of the budget comes from the planning process while implementation and monitoring of the working plans is curtailed. There is no financial co-relation between the requirement of funds for management and availability of funds from various plan schemes, resulting into total mismatch between planning and management wing of the forest department of most of the states. Financial planning is thus totally divorced from physical area planning (N.C. Saxena, 1995).
REPORTING REQUIREMENT, PREPARATION OF VOLUMINOUS REPORTS AND FREQUENCY OF MEETING AT HEADQUARTER

A great deal of time is devoted in collecting and submitting the information that are seldom used or analyzed at higher level. According to a study (N.C. Saxena) Range Officers devoted only 6 per cent of time on extension works against a fixed target of 40 per cent for eco-development and JFM ranges in U.P. The reasons attributed were preoccupation with administrative matters and meeting at headquarters. It results into nonavailability of feedback figures about different schemes as to how it has served its purpose in meeting the objective of providing the targeted groups and whether it has resulted in making any dent in the lives of the marginalized people. Duplicate reporting of same information and absence of clarity in designing the Performa is evident at many places. Seasonality also plays an important influence on forestry operations. Forestry works being seasonal, timely operations are critical. Non-availability of timely release of funds, affects the quality of growth and output. During monsoons there is not much work in the natural forests and the only source of income for poor people living in and around forest areas is to resort to head loading, making protection and management of forests a difficult task.
FOREST DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION/FOREST CORPORATION

Following the recommendations of National Commission of Agriculture (NCA) in 1976, forest corporations were formed in almost all the states of India as public, autonomous, semi-independent entities. The responsibility of the development corporations was to convert existing miscellaneous forests of low economic value into high value forests (e.g. teak, bamboo, sal, khair etc.) to help meet wood requirements of forest industries and local people excepting a few like U.P. Forest Corporation which was created under local bodies act to provide efficient corruption free harvesting of
timber and certain NTFPs. There are at present 26 FDC being managed as a government department (Annexure-III). The total plantation area with the FDCs is 1.24 m ha (Chaturvedi, 1991). In view of new forest policy and changed direction of forest management the working of the FDCs needs critical examination in following areas: (a) (b) FDCs mandate needs revisions to get a vision, value and mission for their personnel; Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh experiences indicate that in absence of cooperation from community protection of long rotation, high market value is not feasible; Constraints such as: (i) Corporation being treated as hunting ground for corrupt elements in higher echelon of policies and bureaucracy; (ii) interference and non performance by the managerial cadre; (iii) inefficient, de-motivated, politicized and corrupt lower level staff must be removed for managing corporation as a profit making organization.
(c)
It is high time that working and structure of this set up be reviewed and analyzed for revamping or be abolished or merged with the SFD; however this should be based on in-depth study of various FDCs. Few of the points of reference for such study could be: Identify the FDCs role in marketing timber and non-timber forest products. Describe the marketing mechanisms used, reviewing conflicts and competition from other government and private sector agencies. Assess the FDCs share of forest products at local, state and national level in the market. Examine the efficiency and costs of FDCs operations, including harvesting, transport and marketing in comparison of model developed from the costs and productivity of similar operations in India and elsewhere. Analyze pricing structure for products sold to compare with general market conditions, within the state, and on a national and international level. Examine any other commercial business undertaken by FDCs. Analyze the financial structure and profitability of the corporation. Evaluate strategic operational and business plans of FDCs, with particular reference to potential markets and customers. Describe and evaluate the managerial and organizational structure of FDCs in the light of present activities and future business plans. Recommend modifications to the corporate structure and management practices of FDCs, and if necessary, linkages with the Forest Department, so that the Corporation can be more fully integrated into the management of the forest sector.
NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS (NGOs)

Civil society has become more prominent in forest policy debates since the 1970s. There are about 34000 NGOs working in the field of forestry (Source: www.ngoindia.com). MoEF circular (1988, 1990) provides the following potential roles for NGOs:
1. 2.
Need for committed intermediaries to bridge the gap and promote trust and understanding between public administration and peoples organization. NGOs are expected to motivate and organize the villagers. NGO roles are envisaged at the local and pragmatic level, rather than at higher levels, affecting policy and structural relations.
Following these policy statements, each state has outlined the roles of NGOs, along with those of the FD, and the village forest protection committees basically for purpose of participatory management. The state resolutions obviously share many common themes, but also display some significant differences. Since the publication of the above circulars, there has been spate of NGOs in the forestry sector. Many are professionally strong, well managed and have strong say both at the center and state level but many more are small, scattered, unprofessional working at village or block level. In between them, there are various shades and types. NGOs may be hastily created in order to take advantage of new opportunities offered by the policy, or that NGOs without appropriate expertise may try to play a part. Both smaller and bigger NGOs are required. The smaller NGOs can work effectively as bridge between VFC (Village Forest Committee) and the beat or range level. Bigger NGOs can provide the role of an umbrella NGO to guide and support the smaller NGOs. Till date, however, the evolution of an effective model is generally not forthcoming. The following categories can be distinguished in terms of their organizational goals: 1. 2. 3. Non-party peoples movements engaged in mobilizing peoples opinion; NGOs engaged in upliftment of target groups within the established development paradigm; Support groups, which carry out documentation and research (Sethi, 1993).
National and state-level NGOs and NGO networks were also influential in bringing about JFM. Most notable among these were the Society for the Promotion of Wastelands Development (SPWD) and the Ford Foundation, which promoted JFM models at national level. The experiences of the Aga Khan Rural Support programme (AKRSP) in facilitating community watershed management in Gujarat were an influential success story, and its leader Anil Shah, along with Mr. Eswaran the then Executive Director of SPWD, were in the small panel that drafted the 1988 policy. With support from the Ford Foundation, SPWD established a National Support Group (NSG) for JFM in 1992. This includes both NGO and FD representatives and academics that have run regular workshops at district, state and national levels besides serving as a pressure group on national policy and state resolutions. Source: Nandani Sunder
Constraints in Collaboration
The FD by and large emphasizes the role of its own staff in extending a hand to villagers and bringing about a change in relations. By contrast, NGOs, activists (and several academics) all lay more stress on the role of popular action outside the FD, in allowing villagers to gain some degree of control over forest management. But large differences persist in their views on the extent to which community management can be an alternative to state management. Some tend to see community involvement as one step in the long struggle by local communities to regain control over their proximate natural resources control that was robbed from them by the colonial and post-colonial state. Others make a distinction between community forest management and JFM, with the latter being seen as a compromise with the state, or even a sell-out. More
enthusiastic supporters, however, see JFM as a harbinger of new social reforms and modes of collective action (Poffenberger and McGean, 1996). NGOs play a significant role in helping to ensure that JFM is more firmly rooted in the FDs, but not necessarily in the ways originally envisaged by forest managers.
A study report on functioning of NGOs in forestry sector in MP and AP reveals --- NGOs are rarely important at the village level, because the FDs are better organized and hold the purse-strings. Only in a few states (Gujarat being one) can NGOs provide long-term support to individual forest committees, implement JFM themselves, or take over roles and responsibilities from the FD all possibilities that FDs tend to resist, more or less strenuously. NGOs are most active in supporting federations of villagers, and acting as coordinators to push for reforms in how JFM is being implemented at the state or national level. The common thread linking NGO activities is their attempt to move towards greater control by the people (variously described) or institutions of civil society, rather than the state. But such moves are inevitably compromised. The boundaries between the state and civil society are not as neat as these terms suggest, and as NGOs (and, indeed, forest protection committees) become more involved in managing JFM, so they are themselves also at risk of being slowly transformed into arms of the state. Source: Nandani Sunder
There is also pressure on NGOs from below to maintain their own transparency, accountability and responsibility to local people rather than to the state may not be strong enough to counter the attractions of more secure career paths, recognition and the other rewards that might come from allowing themselves to be incorporated into mainstream governmental activities. The World Bank requirement from NGOs was to seek assistance of NGOs to resolve problems and strengthen informed participation of beneficiaries, particularly women and tribals, in JFM, as well as in community forestry (World Bank, 1993).
ROLE OF LOCAL INSTITUTIONS Role of Panchayats

73rd amendment of Constitution of India has made it mandatory for all states to decentralize governance through a three-tier structure. Issues related to forestry management are social forestry, fuelwood plantation and NTFP. Ownership of NTFP vests with the tribal and indigenous communities living in the vicinity of forest area under extension and Schedule Area Act. At places this provision is at variance with the provision made under JFM rules. The matter is still under judicial consideration in Punjab. Thus, the conflict among village institutions at policy level creates conflicting role at cutting edge levels in forest department. Constitutional amendments are only a beginning of a long journey in the direction of decentralization and peoples empowerment. However, in backward far-flung forested areas like MP and Chhattisgarh, etc. it generally means the consolidation of local political elite. A World Bank study has shown that introduction of panchayati raj institution in India has increased leakage and polarised groups. Need for transparency and honesty in execution of development programme is sadly missing. Sarpanchas who exercise large corpus of funds often indulge in irregularities. Manipulation of muster rolls, non-payment of minimum wages, nepotism of selection of beneficiaries in programme by sarpanch is often being questioned. The Panchayati Raj initiative is, therefore, quite clearly stymied by the nature of pre-existing power structure in rural India.
One understands pillars of democracy being: PRIs, NGOs, professionals academics, intellectuals, media, bureaucracy and judiciary. They all exercise to a greater or lesser degree corrective influence on corruptive tendencies.
The Mobilizational Role of NGOs in Functioning of Panchayats --- Over the years, especially non-tribal, rich farmers on the upstream side had constructed underground channels (naardas) from the naala to their wells. This way they ensured a permanent, continuous drawal of water from the bed of the naala. Farmers also used electric pumpsets and diesel engines to draw water from the naala surface. In this manner, a quick depletion of naala flows had occurred in recent years, so that the water would not even reach the part of the naala where the downstream farmers had their lands. The naala would dry up soon after the monsoon was over. An additional feature of the Neemkheda watershed, aggravating the inequity of the situation, is that while the upstream farmers lands are in a geological zone, which is rich in groundwater, the opposite is the case for the downstream farmers, who are all tribals and among the poorest in the village. When we started work in the village in 1992, there was a great deal of agitation over the issue among the people. The village was river with a number of conflicts, but the division was essentially between the rest of the village and a small coterie led by the richest non-tribal farmermoneylender and a highly influential tribal panchayat leader (the sarpanch of the village panchayat till 1994 and since then the Vice-President of the Bagli Janpad Panchayat). This coterie, constituting just 10 per cent of the population, had traditionally ruled the village as decisionmakers, employers, moneylenders, an axis of influence, dispensing favours in dealings with the world outside the forest and revenue bureaucracy, the police, the courts, cooperative societies, mandis, etc. Since we were taking up a number of works in respect of catchment of the naala and its flow, we were particularly concerned that a rich, upstream minority should not corner its benefits. A large majority of the villagers displayed a very fine understanding of the intricate ecological relationship between the water of the naala and the village groundwater. Our organization had used government funds under various schemes to excavate, deepen or repair wells of virtually every farmer in the village. The people of the village were quick to sense that this increased extraction of groundwater could have an adverse impact on naala water flows. But they also saw that there was now a reduced need to depend directly on the surface water of the naala. At the same time, works on the naala, which impounded and slowed down its flow, would help recharge the wells and maintain the balance of groundwater. Thus, in their view, it was imperative that all farmers who had constructed naardas should permanently shut them down. Most importantly, this would enable their groundwater-deprived, poorest brethren downstream, to use the naala water to grow irrigated crops for the first time in the their lives. After concerted efforts over a period of nearly three years, a historic agreement was forged in October 1995, which was signed by 99 per cent of the co-riparian of the naala. The agreement ran as follows: All farmers will shut their naardas leading from the Neemkheda main naala. All farmers who own wells will also not use electric pumpsets or diesel engines to draw water from the naala. Only those farmers who do not have well will be allowed to take water from the naala for irrigation. Even this drawal will be undertaken turn by turn, in limited quantities only, and in strict accordance with collectively agreed upon rules. Each year, from the date when the flow in the naala stops, no one will be allowed to draw water, which will be kept reserved exclusively for the cattle of the village Source: Mihir Shah et. al., 1998
Unfortunately, these other PRIs are dormant at the local levels, especially as one moves into the remoter areas. For realizing full potential of panchayati raj institution in JFM two vital inputs are required: (a) (b) presence of a powerful pro-poor grass root level NGO or similar alliances strong thrust towards technical capability enhancement to effectively empower PRIs to shoulder responsibility. It is in the area of technical capability that the
state forest personnel can play a crucial role because of their strong presence, experience and expertise. In context of the forestry sector the following thorny issues need to be addressed a) Clarity in relationship between JFM committees and PRI, b) Earmarking of land and financial resources for tree cover, c) Scope for creating competition among service providers, like quality seedlings, capacity building. It is not difficult to provide funds with resource users and allow them to buy in services. (Source: DIFID study on institutional issues of watersheds)
Role of Municipality and Metropolitan Bodies

12th schedule of the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, states: Urban forestry is out of 18 tasks assigned to Municipal bodies. The municipal inaction and breach of its constitutional duty to protect and improve the environmental management, including sanctuary deforestation related to mining activities and felling of trees have been viewed seriously by the Apex Court. Thus, municipalities legislation has the basic framework for protecting the tree cover. But vast potential of urban forestry, re-creation forestry, remain at its rudimentary level in absence of: a) organizational set-up, b) proper legislation and innovative mechanism to make this useful activity financially and technically viable, c) coordination between various departments, NGOs, etc., and d) effort to establish religious, emotional bonding of trees with general masses. Urban forestry can take various useful activities like protection of municipal watersheds, landscape design, recycling of municipal wastes, tree care in general and as a source of fuelwood supply for urban poor.
Experience of urban forestry under UP Forestry Project: Under World Bank Forestry Project, seven cities of Uttar Pradesh were selected with an objective to encourage tree planting in urban areas through innovative financial arrangements which could be sustained beyond the project period. After few years this component of the project could not continue. Mid-term review (World Bank Mission) observations; Although there has been some limited success with tree planting in a few situations with in this component, there has been no progress towards developing and testing new or innovative systems for promoting and implementing urban forestry programmes. It is unclear why this component has failed to make any real progress, although it appears that the level of interest amongst urban NGOs has not been as high as was anticipated. It is also evident that urban forestry has been implemented as a target-driven tree-planting programme by UPFD rather than as a means of stimulating awareness and seeking our new funding opportunities amongst the public. A consultancy is under progress to define new mechanisms for participatory urban forestry. Source: Project Completion Report, UP Forestry Project, July 2003
ROLE OF PRIVATE SECTOR

Changing role of Private sector: With the appearance of NCA report (1976), social forestry programme aiming at producing fuelwood, fodder and small timber re-emerged as great activity for the private sector. However, its performance has so far not matched its potentialities due to a number of social, technological and institutional factors. It is impossible to give an exact figure of the total wood supply provided by the private sector. Yet, estimates of wood produced by non-forest, private sources range from 30 per cent to over 90 per cent in different States with an average of about 50 per cent for India. The average production of timber (logs) from non-forest sources amounts to about 14 million cu. m/year.
Table 8: Demand and supply of wood (in million cu. m)

Particulars Wood demand for domestic furniture, agriculture, industries Output from forests Output from plantations, production, social, farm forestry Deficit Source: Ganpathy (1997); Saxena (1990) 1985 50 24 26 1996 64 12 41 11 2001 73 12 47 14 2006 82 12 53 17
In order to build more effective and flexible institutions to support sustainable forestry, the following approaches may be considered, either in the long, medium and short term, depending on their nature and urgency prevailing in the states concerned. New approaches for attracting investment from private sector in wood production, wood conversion and utilization is needed. A whole range of options exist if participatory institutions are to be made durable, responsive, flexible, efficient with government support. MoEF should have strong and better linkages with rural development ministry. Division of land resources in the Ministry of Rural Development can play a crucial function in this respect as a policy framer. More specifically, easy availability of technical, managerial and financial inputs, credit facilities, insurance facilities and removal of restrictive policies for felling and transport may go a long way. A study of farm forestry in UP and Uttaranchal has brought out that in order of priority farmers have identified six handicaps being: (i) restrictive rules and regulations for felling and transport; (ii) proper technical advice; (iii) investable funds; (iv) proper choice of species; (v) gestation period; and (vi) damage from animals.
The tree farming for commercial use is being adopted by relatively rich farmers, (as apposed to subsistence) who have good land, information, credit facility and who are willing to take risk. Poor farmers in subsistence areas (Rainfed tribal belt) adopt low intensity tree growing strategies for home consumption. Source: Arnolodo Contreras Hermosilla Forestry Policies in India
In addition to growing trees, a number of additional functions can be transferred to the private sector to allow the forest department to work in a focused manner, for formulation of policies and to work as a watch dog for regulatory mechanism. Table 9: Functions of the Forest Department and Potential of the Private Sector to shoulder responsibility
S. No. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Functions Planning R&D Protection Management and Exploitation Biodiversity Conservation Management of NTFPs Farm Forestry Urban Forestry Private Sector + + + + + + Local Community & NGOs + + + + + + +
SHIFTING OF TECHNICAL AND MANAGERIAL RESPONSIBILITY Involvement of the Private Sector under UP Forestry Project 1. A low cost high model for nursery was developed by UPFD with support from a private consultancy firm FORTECH, New Zealand at a cost of Rs.50,000 for modern nursery technology. With an incentive of Rs.1.00 lac in shape of materials and video production study reinforced by buy back guarantee of at least 30000 seedlings, the programme proved to be great success in Western UP where large number of nurseries have come up now and supplying seedling of Popular and Eucalyptus. To manage the foreign training of forestry personnel, FAO was hired under the project. The experience has not been very encouraging. Fixation of tour programme were taken not very seriously, resulting in disruption of journey and training programme in a few cases. The services of Administrative Staff College of UP at Nainital was engaged for providing support to NGO in implementation of JFM programme from 14.01.1999 to 31.03.2001. There was an overall satisfaction.
2.
3.
Conclusion: Experience gained on the whole has been encouraging but there was wide spread complaint that the financial implication has been quite substantial, yet the quality of work had also improved. However, this is rarely contrasted with the high overhead of the public sector. At present the cost is high due to limited number of capable agencies in the private sector regarding management of Natural Resources; however if encouraged and allowed to grow, the costs can be competitive.
FOREST INDUSTRIES
It is indeed a matter of research that despite the great economic linkages, flexibility (for capital, technology) and diversity of forest resources, forest based industries have not proven as engines of growth in the rural and remote areas. Various categories of forest based industries suffer from sets of problems, but Timber processing industry needs special mention because of its pervasiveness and potentiality. These are generally characterized by insufficient profit, low technology, sub-normal wage rates, wasteful inefficient operations, Supreme Court restrictions on establishment of new saw mills, low availability of skilled labour and enterprise. Forest based industries, largely set up between 1956-76 are facing acute shortage of raw-material supply. Since the moratorium imposed on green fellings in most of the timber producing states, and due to increase in area of protected network in the country, the sustained timber yield and supply has been interrupted. Although the impact of timber and import licensing policy has fed industrial raw material demand, yet private growers and farm forestry interventions, largely encouraged after NCA Report (1976), are losing market and profit. The initial spurt in growth has tapered off. The improvement in processing machines has increased efficient use of timber to meet market demand for the finished product. The forestry development through the eighties and nineties has grossly undermined both intention and effort in meeting the industrial supply from state forests. An increase in royalty of timber supply to industry has improved the supply of revenue to the state, but it is largely used for meeting other public investment obligations, with little impact on forest management. The availability of wastelands outside forest areas can be a land resource to be undertaken by industry in meeting its own raw material supply. It will make units self reliant besides providing necessary environmental and social services. The profit values used to plough back as investment to ensure raw material supply will be a cyclic and sustained effort of commercial entrepreneurship. But caution is required. An experiment in growing raw material in forest areas in the Philippines, with the Industrial Forest Management Agreement has devastated the pristine natural forests (Speechly and
Upton, 1996). The proposal to divert degraded forests to be undertaken by industrial captive plantations in India may meet a similar set back. Learning lessons from past experience, the focus should be on improving productivity of land under forests under the concept of zonation. Production forestry should be encouraged in good forest stands, as it will also increase the usufructory shares of local community under JFM. Another opportunity for industries is to take up wastelands outside forest areas for block planting. Subsidies may be extended to industries, which come forward with sound technical and economic packages to raise plants for their own needs on wastelands. This will instill a sense of security for raw material and guaranteed industrial growth. Table 10: Information on wood based factories.
Description Number of Factories Factories in Operation Fixed Capital (in crores) Total Output (in crores) Materials Consumed (in crores) Net Value added (in crores) Income (in crores) Profit (in crores) Source: C.S.O. Kolkata Year 2000-2001 3227 2823 83094 223406 144500 29790 19449 2659 Year 2001 2002 3161 2821 84823 34337 200655 35140 23741 2691
Table 11: Secondary Forest Industries in India.

Sub Sector Pulp & Paper, Paperboard Wood Based Panel Saw Mills Matches Doors Wood Working Plants No. of Production Units 406 506 23000 12000 98 Capacity share of small scale plants (% of production) 66 80-90 82 82 95
IMPORTANT INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS WITH STAKES IN FORESTRY

The rising global environmental awareness of prospects and consequences of tree felling, rehabilitation of degraded forests, environmental pollution and biodiversity conservation have brought together civil society around the world. There are legal and non-legal bindings at the international level. The international conventions on biodiversity conservation, combating desertification, climate change and disposal of hazardous substance have attracted institutions like ITTO, IUCN, WWF, UNDP, FAO, SIDA, WB, IDRC, JICA, etc. to work together for conservation ethics worldwide. The concerns of the developed world to introduce checks and balances to the pace of development in developing countries are successful to some extent. However, an element of resistance to the policy, which denies the diversion of forest areas to development projects, is cropping up due to low GDP and constraints in economic development.
INTERNATIONAL FUNDING AGENCIES

A number of donor agencies are assisting forestry development in India through, biodiversity conservation, sustainable livelihood and productivity enhancement projects. The financial assistance is not reflected as an addition, but a replacement in the state plan budget only. Currently out of the annual available financial resources for forestry sector of Rs.990 crores, external assistance financing alone is about Rs.300 crores. As the main focal areas addressed by donor assistance are confined to certain spheres like policy, legal and institutional issues, strengthening of livelihood support for communities participatory management of natural resources, capacity building, technology up gradation, research and extension, development of GIS, MIS, the amount of plan budget, used for maintaining well-stocked forest, becomes unavailable. The main institutional issue has been that states are not making adequate provision to continue their investment in normal forestry activities and to even cover the requirements of externally funded projects. Therefore, the overall supervision and productivity has suffered a setback. Poverty alleviation has remained a central theme in almost all the projects funded by World Bank, Department for International Development (UK), Swedish International Development Authority, United Nations Development Programme, Global Environment Facility, International Tropical Timber Organization and Japanese International Cooperation Agency. The people residing in and around forest areas specially have been deprived of the assistance by DRDA because they are situated in remote areas. The lack of amenities in these areas has led to the destruction of marginal forests by the fringe area communities to meet their livelihoods. Entry point or community development activities catering to their basic needs are required in order to win over their confidence in favour of forest protection. Some examples of successful cooperation of these communities in JFM may be quoted from West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Orissa where forestry project interventions have left a positive impact. However, it is difficult to retain the same level of interest after project funds dry up as the village resource development programmes in these remote areas come to a halt. The review reports of most of these projects are discouraging agencies from further investments due to a slow visible impact on regeneration of forests because the project period is usually three to five years. It is apparently too short a period to expect measurable changes in forest cover and biomass as a result of collaborator management of these forests. The SFDs have to approach a different donor agency to work in the same area, which very often takes a year or two to decide financial assistance. Strategic planning of donor agencies may be based on a philosophy of sustained effort, building up the infrastructure and capacity with a commitment from SFDs to retain the impetus. Perhaps, preparation of withdrawal strategy might have helped. The informal experience gathered from most of these foreign donor agencies revealed that due to complexity of various factors (diffused nature of forestry, multiplicity of stakeholders and interest groups, visibility, long gestation periods, issues related to land tenure, etc., displacement) on the ground, the results are not visible in the short run and often creates media controversies on the role of the donor agencies. The general approach is to extend help and assistance for those areas where the results can be easily visible in the short run without much controversy. But, in the interest of global environmental crisis resulting from climate change, to desertification to biodiversity loss has again forced them to think in terms of forestry aid to India.
Experiences of World Bank Project in Forestry Sector

Various states have basically often received setbacks from not properly anticipating the institutional difficulties in advance, for example, world bank forestry project in West Bengal (WB) suffered from a critical delay in implementing the organizational reform, the date set for completing the task January 31, 1994 was
unrealistic. Maharashtra forestry project suffered due to large disbursement lags primarily due to outdated financial procedure, delayed technical assistance, reinforced by discontinuity of staff, which made it difficult to build commitment. Multi-locational difficulty of Project Director, Principal Chief Conservator of Forest and Managing Director, Forest Development Corporation Maharashtra at Pune and Nagpur was another difficulty. Improperly design of monitoring and evaluation indictors vis--vis project objectives emerged as principal shortcoming in UP Forestry Project. Though bank project can be credited with providing support for system of forest inventory and development tools but it required a careful designing, simplification of procedures for fruitful delivery. Short duration of project for an old organization with multi-stakeholders requires long sustained support.
RECOMMENDATIONS
One of the main terms of reference of the National Forest Commission is to examine the current status of forest administration and the forestry institutions both at the National and State level to meet the emerging needs of the civil society. The commission has submitted its report in 2006. Its various recommendations are being endorsed and provided in Annexure IV. However, since conditions vary from state to state, it is proposed that to ensure and bring in line the institutional structure and management processes of the forestry sector with the requirement of meeting the criteria and indicators of sustainability, following main suggestions can be considered: 1. Vision, value and mission statement of forest department in the states based on conditions prevailing therein, may be prepared in consultation with various stakeholders and interest groups. This will ensure a clear mandate for the forest department to work in the direction of sustainable management. Establishment of separate department for forests and wild life with DG as the secretary directly reporting to the minister, would facilitate autonomous function of the present wing without inflicting any interference. All the matters related to mangrove management, combating desertification, wetland management, biosphere management etc need to be transferred to forestry wing. In the states apart from forestry and wild life, IFS officers also handle all these issues as a part of their duties. So, the expertise of these officers could be utilised in the centre also. A high power committee for civil services reforms under the chairmanship of the Chief Secretary be established to monitor and guide the CSIR reforms in the department. This reform will also suggest the issues of re-structuring and reorganizing the department on functional basis. Anti-corruption strategy should be in place. A multi-disciplinary policy analysis unit should be set up both at the centre and also in the state to continuously monitor and evaluate: Management procedures, intra-sectoral linkages, impact of various policies and laws of the department within and outside the sector (impacting the management of forestry sector). Man power planning unit be set up in each state to enable: right sizing the organization, redeployment of employees, checking skill gap for its future requirement, etc. Restructuring of clerical cadres in view of gradual introduction of computers in various states through amendment of service rules be introduced. A core group be set up to frame main recommendations on deregulation and decentralization in the department.
2.
3.
4. 5.
6.
7. 8.
9.
The forest staff working in hostile and dangerous conditions be given protection under CrPC section 197 in discharging their duties as police and paramilitary forces. Mechanisms need to be evolved to safeguard them against false and fabricated cases. Joint inspection and survey of the forest areas at regular intervals involving the revenue and forest staff be made a routine practice in districts. In each problematic division, one sub-divisional officer can be deputed to look into the matters of mutation, forest record up-dating, etc. Sustainability in context of forestry on public lands has several difficult dimensions to address (a) social sustainability that refers to acceptability of any forestry related activities in the village environment. If the village as a whole does not accept any activity, the risk is high as the disadvantage groups, - be they poor or better off, - will destroy the efforts to create assets for the benefit of all villagers. Similarly, if one village benefits from the project while others in the vicinity are left out, the latter may destroy plantations, intentionally or by indifference. (b) Economic sustainability could refer to unit costs. If plantations are too expensive to establish, these will never be viable/replicable without heavy subsidies by the Government and/or foreign donors. Such an investment may not be forthcoming in subsequent years. It could also refer to marketing possibilities: forests raised by regeneration or plantation and their produce have a value that can be maximized only if a market exists. (c) Technical sustainability refers to a wide range of aspects; soil preparation, choice of appropriate species, and fencing belong to this category. (d) organizational sustainability could refer both to the Governments administration and the village level establishment. If the wing executing the project is weak, if other departments are uncooperative, VFCs/FPCs are lethargic, then the scope for sustained forest development is very-very limited indeed. To increase the investment in the forestry sector, the input/output economic table (Dr. N. Chatterjee) prepared, a few years ago showing the necessary contribution of forestry products in different sectors of the Indian economy for an average increase by Rs.1/- should be updated and brought to the notice of the Planning Commission. A reference has been made in this paper in earlier para also. It will probably be difficult to bring the entire management of the forestry sector of the nation to measure it against criteria and indicators of sustainable management for the time being but a few selected divisions in the country can be tried on a pilot basis. Required inputs, etc. can be worked out for certification process. Criteria and indicators for division unit level will be influenced by factors such as forest type and topography in addition to social and economic consideration. Criteria and indictors developed for national and for local management unit level do differ in concept and substance but, those developed at a national level can assist in identifying for use at forest management unit level. Arrangements for GIS/MIS supported by remote sensing maps to be installed at regional level to increase the capacity of the forest department for constantly assessing the forest resources and to monitor. Similar arrangements may be required at state level to monitor and assess the resources. Necessary infrastructure at field level needs immediate improvement to make the staff efficient, motivated and technologically updated. Private insurance companies are not forthcoming for the forestry sector unless duly supported through government policy measures. There is a need to support and establish a national network of good educational institutions in the country for policy research on sustainable development.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15. 16. 17.
18. 19. 20.
A new legislation and creation of a cell in the MoEF for most of the FDCs/FC. Research to be completely integrated with the main forest department. Shedding functions to be private sector: Some of the functions particularly in areas of support for R & D, dissemination of resource information (GIS and remote sensing facilities), organizing marketing strategies, capacity building, inhouse training programmes, public information can be immediately transferred to the private sector and NGOs depending on the local situation. State Governments should be persuaded to make available resources for maintenance of the assets created from externally added funds. Preparation of withdrawal strategy should be a part of the project for external assistance.
21.
REFERENCES
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. Forestry Commission Report (2006). Biswas S.K., Forest Administration in India. Indias Forests Beyond (2000). India Alleviating Poverty through Forest Development (2000). Evaluation Country Case Study Series, The World Bank, Washington. UP Forestry Project Completion Report (2003). Uttar Pradesh Forestry Project (1997). Project Implementation Plan. Shah, Mihir; Banerji, Debashis, Vijashankar, P.S. and Ambasta Pramathesh (1998). Indias Drylands: Tribal Societies and Development through Environmental Regeneration. Ramachandra Guha, Madhav Gadgil (1989). State Forests and social conflicts in British india- Past and present, No: 123, pg: 141-177. Angana P.Chaterji -Acrtique of forest governance in Eastern India Bhaskar, Vira (1995). Institutional changes in Indias Forest sector, 1976-1994: Reflection of state policy, OCEES, research paper no: 5. Schug D.M. (2000). The Bureaucratisation of Forest Management in India, History, Volume 6, Number 2, pp. 229-242 (14). Environment and
World Bank Report (2006). India-Unlocking oportunities for forest Dependent people, Oxford press. World Bank, OED Report (2000). India, Alleviating poverty through forest development. Singh, A.K. (1997). Land use, Environment, Economic Growth in India, New Delhi, National Land Use and Conservation Board. M.D. publications. Asia Pacific Forestry Commission, Secretariat Note, Dehra Dun (2006). Financing Sustainable Forest management Who is responsible? Franz Schmithusen, - Human Resource Formation: the weak link in Forestry development, www.fao.org/docrep/q4030e/q4030e08.htm. F.F. Kortin, NGOs and the Forestry http://www.fao.org/docrep/u7760e/u7760e03.htm. Sector-A Over view,
T.R. Ramanathan, Institutional strengthening of local NGOs involved in forestry: a challenge for innovation, http://www.fao.org/docrep/u7760e/u7760e0a.htm. Sharmishta Bose and Sushil Saigal, Winrock International India, Thinking big about small scale enterprises, ITTO tropical forest update 14/1, 2004. Status paper on -India: Private sector strategy for the world http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTINDIA/Resources/Annexure7. bank group,
India Unlocking Opportunities for Forest Dependent People (2006). National Forestry Action Programme-India (1999). Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India
Annexure-I
Maslekar Committee constituted for the purpose of giving new orientation and for refining the Forest Working Plan in the country has made the following important recommendations: A Central Working Plan Code should be formulated for the entire forests of the country and notified in the Gazette of India to make it legally enforceable. Working Plans should be prepared taking revenue administrative division i.e. district as a unit covering all forests of that district irrespective of classification and ownership thereof. There should be no clear felling in natural forests and in plantation areas also it should be restricted and considered only on merits. Altitude should not be exclusive criteria to ban all fellings in critical areas for which strategy should be to scientifically manage and/or afforest them. Working Plan Officer should conduct socioeconomic surveys for assessment of biotic pressures as well as to elicit willingness of people for joint forest management in problem areas. Such surveys should also be computerized for regular updating. Final Working Plan should be submitted by every State/UT Government by a Committee headed by PCCF (WP) having amongst others a representative of the concerned Regional Office of the Ministry, not below the rank of a Conservator of Forest. No deviations should normally be allowed from the prescriptions of an approved Working Plan. Latest technologies of remote sensing, aerial photo-interpretation and GIS etc. should be gainfully utilized in the preparation of Working Plans to make them dynamic and to improve their quality. The minimum period of posting of a WPO should be three years or till the completion of works of preparation/revision of Working Plan, as the case may be. In the event of promotion of a WPO to a next higher post/grade, the post of WPO should be temporarily upgraded to ensure continuity of works. No new areas for any kind of harvesting should be taken up unless funds for its regeneration during subsequent period are assured. JFM-oriented micro-plan should be prepared by the concerned territorial DFOs being an administrative exercise, within the broad outline of silvicultural system prescribed for a given area in its Working Plan. The Ministry should consider launching of a Centrally-sponsored Scheme to provide for preparation of Working Plan of all the forests of the country irrespective of classification and ownership thereof. A Working Plan Cell (as existing during eighties) should be revived in the Ministry.
Annexure-II The Role of Forestry in the Indian Economy

Domestic production (in Rupees) required from the forestry for one rupee worth of output delivered to final demand by the producing sectors.
ISI Sector No. Production sector Wood products1 Timber Forestry sector Wood others2 Other forest products3 0.015127 0.000566 Paper and products 0.000180 0.007233 Total
1 2
Construction Electrical equipments Nonelectrical equipment Transport equipment Metal product Iron steel Iron ore Cement Non-ferrous metals and
0.026444 0.014163
0.053081 0.003434
0.001126 0.000211
0.095958 0.025607
0.003859
0.011655
0.000453
0.000170
0.002065
0.018002
0.006734
0.010561
0.001270
0.000131
0.000132
0.017665
0.003188
0.001088
0.000295
0.000155
0.009710
0.005697
0.000037
0.000236
0.000018
0.000027
0.000146
0.000464
7 8 9
0.000102 0.000039 0.000076
0.000024 0.001152 0.000889
0.000013 0.000024 0.000083
0.000005 0.000028 0.000550
0.000057 0.000123 0.007738
0.000501 0.001366 0.009336
75 Cocal code Matches Printing and publishing Total and 0.000121 0.000041 0.000011 0.000006 0.000037 0.000216
76 77
0.090172 0.004685
0.021017 0.001095
0.069902 0.000800
0.004479 0.015940
0.064636 0.253065
0.250206 0.275585
1.545867
1.430673
1.283016
1.209721
1.690500
7.159800
Note: 1. Includes wood products such as plywood, 2. Includes Sawn Timber, 3. Includes minor forest products
HYPOTHETICAL FIGURE
1. 2.
Production of steel 12 mtpa (Million Tons Per Annum) Sale Price Rs.25000 Per Metric Ton = = 12 x 106 x 25 x 103 300 x 109
Total Value of Steel Produced
Under Production Sector Sr. Nos. 6 and 7 Iron and Steel/Iron ore You would please observe Requirement of various forest produce required for one Rupee worth out put as 0.000464 + 0.000501 = Re.0.000965 = 0.001 i.e. 1/1000 of Re of forest produce is required Thus for above example of output at 300 billion rupees Forest produce required = 300 x 106 = 30 crores I observe that 80,000 seedlings/saplings were planted during the year 2003-04 I am taking a cost of Rs.100/- per sapling for raising and maintenance in 2003-04 = 80,000 x 100 = Rs.80,00,000/i.e. Amount spent comes to about less than one crore
Annexure-III List of Forest Development Corporation

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra Ltd. Andhra Pradesh Forest Development Corporation Ltd. Uttranchal Forest Development Corporation Orissa Forest Development Corporation Gujarat State Forest Development Corporation Ltd. (India) Madhya Pradesh State Forest Development Corporation Ltd. Tripura Forest Development and Plantation Corporation Ltd. Punjab State Forest Development Corporation Ltd. Karnataka State Forest Plantation Corporation Bihar State Forest Development Corporation Andaman Nicobar Islands Forests and Plantation Development Corporation Ltd. West Bengal Forest Development Corporation Uttar Pradesh Forest Corporation Himachal Pradesh State Forest Development Corporation Forest Development Corporation of Meghalaya Ltd. Haryana Forest Development Corporation Tamil Nadu Forest Plantation Corporation Ltd. Chhatisgarh Forest Development Corporation Kerala Forest Development Corporation Arunchal Pradesh Forest Development Corporation Jharkhand State Forest Development Corporation Jammu and Kashmir Forest Corporation Goa Forest Development Agency Forest Development Corporation, Mizoram
Annexure-IV Recommendations of Report of the National Forest Commission on Forestry Institutions

1. Appointment of faculty should be done through a constant interaction with the State officials. A committee consisting of the director, Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy (IGNFA), one professor, and a representative of the Ministry of Environment and Forests should screen the officers and draw up a list. The officers who have put in a minimum of ten years service and having a very good service record, aptitude and a competence in teaching should only be eligible for appointment. Since there is a dearth of young and willing officers at the level of DCF in the cadres, the faculty positions in the IGNFA should be made flexible and filled up at the level of DCF or Conservator of Forests, depending on the suitability and availability of officers or by getting suitable persons from outside the service. The criteria of selection should not be seniority of service or plain experience, but a combination of experience and aptitude with a greater emphasis on the letter. A detailed guideline of such a selection process should be worked out by the IGNFA in consultation with Ministry of Environment and Forests. Only those members of Indian Forest Service/State Forest Service should be eligible for selection for a faculty position in IGNFA or training colleges/schools, who must have had at least 10 years service and should have annual reports of not lower than very good good, besides having an aptitude for teaching. Seniority should also not be the only criteria for selection of director of the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy. The Ministry of Environment and Forests should ensure that the officer selected is suitable for this very important post and delivers what is expected of him as the had of the premier forest academy of the country. The recruitment of the faculty, their assessment and tenure of deputation for the faculties of the Directorate of Forest Education, should be on the same lines as recommended in the case of the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy. Keeping in view the low intake at the level of State Forest Service and Forest Range Officers by the State Governments, there is need to review the mandate of the Directorate of Forest Education, the utilization of the existing infrastructure and of the upgradation of the post of the Director, Forest Education. The Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) should be granted autonomy on the pattern of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research and the DG, ICFRE should be made Chairman of the Board of Governors, ICFRE. The post of the DG, ICFRE should be made equivalent to the level of Secretary, Government of India. Since the major clients for forestry research are the State Forest Department which do not have funds to sponsor paid research projects and there is not much scope for the ICFRE to generate its own financial resources except for a few externally aided projects, the MoEF must increase the plan and non-plan allocation to the ICFRE Plan. At least five per cent of the revenue from forests should be earmarked for forestry research. The States must increase the allocation to the SFRI, and other research units for carrying out research. There is an urgent need to review the mandate of the institutes and fix research priorities for each institute/advanced centre, based on themes and regional research needs, to maintain focus on critical forestry issues. An Expert Committee may be constituted to critically examine and recommend the
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
revamping and refocusing of forestry research in the country and which should be need based applied research. 8. 9. More emphasis should be given on field oriented applied research. Certain glaring omissions in the field of applied research remain. This was shown, for example, by the sal-borer infestation in Madhya Pradesh. The know-how to deal with this periodically recurring menace to one of the most widespread and valuable biomes in the countrys forests, has made no progress since what was advocated in the 1940s. There needs to be much greater attention given to research to achieve biological control over exotic weeds like eupatorium, Mikenia, Strobilanthes, lantana, mimosa and parthenium, which are a serious threat to the regeneration of natural forests. The non-plan component of grants-in-aid must be increased to meet the establishment expenses, so that the plan funds could be utilized for only research activities. For attending to the States specific problems and research needs, there should be a separate SFRI in each state with autonomy on the pattern of the Kerala Forest Research Institute and these must undertake field oriented research in close coordination with the SFD. This can be done through recognizing the Silvicultural Wing of the SFD. The institute should be manned by competent officers and scientists. The useful findings should be widely disseminated. ICFRE should avoid du7plication in their own research work. Strong linkages must be ensued between SFRI, ICFRE institutes and agricultural universities undertaking forestry research in the same State. Networking of scientists working in these research organizations on common problems, should be done. There has to be an in-built system of dissemination of research results to the SFD, other stakeholders, trainees in forest academy/colleges/schools etc. through conduct of refresher courses, seminars, workshops, electronic and print media. Effective linkages should be established between all the research institutes and the beneficiaries of research. The MoEF may devise mechanisms for quick transfer of research results to the stakeholders and receive feedback from them. Detailed procedures for selection of IFS officers and scientists on research and training posts should be formulated. The officers with adequate aptitude, experience and real interest in the areas of responsibilities of a particular post should only be appointed. The IFS officers who are not performing must be given one years time to perform. If they fail to do so, they should be repatriated to their cadres. The working of the Indian Institute of Forest Management should be reviewed and the curricula of various courses being organized by the Institute should be suitably modified. The perspective plan for the faculty must be completed on a priority basis and action taken for filling up all the vacant posts. The an Institute of Forest Management should publicize its achievements and strengths in the field of forest management, education and training, to improve its image and attract consultancies and projects. The problems with the staff at the an Institute of Forest Management need to be sorted out. The Indian Plywood Industries Research and Training Institute must have a detailed vision paper for the next 20 years. The Institute must have constant interaction with industries and other stakeholders for deciding research priorities and other activities to be taken up. Adequate grants-in-aid should be made
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18. 19.
available to carry on with research and extension activities and for facilitating the work of the institute. 20. Assessment of research needs of the Wildlife Institute of India should be carried out in consonance with the current wildlife strategy/action plans and policies of the Government of India. The Institute must lay more emphasis on applied research on field related problems pertaining to management of wildlife, especially those related to the reduction and non-animal conflict and to develop methodologies and applications for the capture, translocation and rehabilitation of problem animals. The WII must also devise short-term courses for various levels of forest officers (DCF, Conservator of Forest and Chief Conservator of Forest), which can be sponsored by the MoEF. A thorough assessment of role identification of the officers on deputation should be undertaken to utilize the potential of officers in full, to supplement and complement the needs of the WII. Vacancies need to be filled up and the posts allocated to spheres now requiring attention and priority. Trainees receiving long-term training at WII must be posted in the respective wildlife wings in the States. Each manager of a protected area should have received training at WII. There should be an incentive by way of an allowance, to achieve this end. The States must fully utilize the slots of training available to them at WII and indeed, should ask for more than the present quotas. Develop a dynamic database under the geographical information system domain at the WII for monitoring changes in prime wildlife habitats, for facilitating adaptive management. Establish a special laboratory for forensics and conservation genetics at the WII and to disseminate knowledge in this regard to the States. To grant real autonomy to the WII as contained in the Memorandum of Association. The zonal establishments of the FSI should be strengthened with enough budgetary and staff support so that more periodic information on forest resources can be made available to SFDs. Since field verification and interpretation of the data obtained through satellite imagery is very essential and is to be done on a time-bound basis, the staff and budgetary requirements of the zonal officers of the FSI should be properly assessed and they should be provided with adequate finances and essential field staff, which can be kept on a contractual basis. Two more zonal offices, one exclusively for the Northeast and the other for the western region needs to be established. The MoEF must impress upon the State Governments the need to ensure that the forest training institutions are administered and managed properly and the posts are filled with willing and competent officers. Forestry personnel have to be equipped with necessary tools for managing forests according to emerging needs of the civil society and in view of he increasing pressures on the forests. Hence, there is need to regularly review the contents of training being imparted to forestry personnel at various levels, at least once in five years, and the training be modified suitably. The FDCs, in their current mandate and functioning, are redundant. Their existing work can readily be transferred to territorial forest divisions and afforestation wings, if any. Some of the staff of the FDCs may be transferred with the charge the mandate and role of FDCs need to be reviewed and other functions assigned
21.
22.
23. 24. 25. 26.
27. 28. 29.
30.
31.
32.
to them. The FDCs can also be entrusted with the work of fuelwood supply, to extract and supply fuelwood in lieu of the ongoing practice of sale of head load fuelwood in towns and cities and which therefore can be stopped. The people currently extracting and selling fuelwood could be given fuelwood from established depots of the FDCs and they in turn can sell them. But extraction of fuelwood from forests for the purpose of sale must remain the monopoly of the Forest Department. 33. The FDCs should be given the task of extending forestry to grassland/watershed management in government lands outside of forests, as well as to cooperate with agriculture departments in the extension of farm and agro-forestry. The State governments must ensure that all the administrative and scientific posts in these institutes are filled up in time with competent and willing personnel and adequate facilities and incentives are provided so as to attract the best talent for manning these institutions. These posts must not be a preserve of in-service personnel, but should be filled up with recruitment of the best possible talent, within the SFD as well as from universities and from the open market.
34.
Director General of Forest
Additional DG (FC)
Additional DGF (WL)

-
JS (CC-I)
JS (CON-I & NAEB)
IGF (NAEB)
IF S Div. NAEB (Meetings of NAEB and Natinal level Streeing Committee, Eco-Task Force, Indira Priyadarshin i Vriksha Mitra Awards, Policy matters and Cabinet Notes
Region, Delhi (EAP)
Member Secretary CZA & Dir (NZP)
IGF & Dir. (PT)
IGF & Dir. (PE)
IGF & Dir. (WL)
- Central Zoo Authority - NZP, * New Delhi
(PT) -PT & ECODEV.
(PE) - P.E. Div. WL. Institute of India
DIG (WL)
- WL & ROs & Heritage of Parks & EcoDev.
FE Div. (Personal Issues only) and Se rvice matters of SFS, FROs Officers and staff
NAEB Remaining items of work relating to NAEB
IGF (FC) & JFM
IGF (EAP)
North New
DIG (FC)
-Forest Conservatio n (FC)
DIG (FPD) Fire Protection Div. - JFM *** - LULUCF
DIG (SU) Survey & Utilization
DIG (FP)
Forests Policy - NFAP - Coordinate & Compilation information for Forestry & WL Divs.
DIG (RT) Forests Research & Training (RT)
- EAP - NE Cell FIC (except UNFF & APFC)
East Region, Kolkata South Region, Chennai West
North Zone, Chandigarh Central Zone, Lucknow North East Zone, Shillong East Zone, Bhubaneshwar South Zone, Bangalore Eastern Plateau or Upper East, Ranchi
FSI Dehradun A&N Islands Forests Plantation Development Corporation
IGNFA, Dehradun IIFM, Bhopal IPIRTI, Bangalore
ICFRE, Dehradun
Forestry Research Institute, Dehradun Himalayan Forests Research Institute, Shimla Tropical Forests Research Institute, Jabalpur Centre for Social Forestry and Eco-Rehabilitation, Allahabad Centre for Forestry Research and Human Resources Development, Chindwara
Institute of Rain and Moist Deciduous for Research, Jorhat Institute of Forests Productivity, Ranchi Institute of Forests Genetics and Tree Breeding, Coimbatore Institute of Wood Science and Technology, Bangalore Tropical Forests Research Institute, Jodhpur
Fig. Organizational Structure of the Forests and Wildlife Wing in the MoEF
Minister I/C Forests
Secretary (Forests)
PCCF
Administration
Wildlife
Planning and Development
Territorial Forestry
Vigilance
Social Forestry
Working Plans
Research and Training
Joint Forest Management
Fig. State Forest Administrative Structure
BUDGETARY ALLOCATION FOR FORESTRY AND WILDLIFE SECTOR AT NATIONAL LEVEL AND IN TROPICAL STATES OF INDIA
Dr. Bipin Behari & A.K. Joshi Introduction
Forests play an important role in environmental and economic sustainability. They render numerous goods and services, and maintain life-support systems so essential for life on earth. However, forests are consistently and seriously undervalued in economic and social terms. For example, the contribution of the forestry sector to GDP was only 1% in 1996-97 (measured at constant prices of 1980-81). A latest estimate of gross value of goods and services provided by forestry sector fixes its contribution to GDP at 2.37% (Institute of Economic Growth, 2002). GDP estimates currently do not take into account the unrecorded removals which are estimated 10% of major products (comprising of industrial wood and fuel wood) and 5 times of minor products (comprising of bamboo, fodder, lac, honey etc.) as a very conservative estimate. Taking note of this, the contribution of Forestry Sector to GDP with reference to tangible products would be around 1.5%. Further, the GDP estimates do not take note of ecological services rendered by the forestry eco system. Estimates have been made for eco-tourism, carbon sequestration and other ecological services in forestry sector which would increase the national GDP share of the forests by another 1.4%. Thus, the overall GDP from the forestry sector for tangible and non-tangible outputs can be placed at 2.9%. The forest resource of our country is under tremendous pressure. Intensified shifting cultivation, indiscriminate removal of timber, fuel-wood, fodder and other forest produce, forest fire and encroachments are attributed to forest degradation and deforestation. Forests meet nearly 40% of the energy needs and 30% of the fodder needs of the country. It is estimated that about 270 million ton of fuel-wood, 280 million ton of fodder, over 12 million m3 of timber and countless non-wood forest products are removed from forests annually. The future management strategy must, therefore, take into account this compelling need for meeting the requirements of the community. Ministry of Environment and Forests is the nodal agency for planning, promotion, coordination and overseeing the implementation of various forestry programmes in the country. The outlays under the forestry and wildlife sector in state plans are around 1 percent. It includes externally aided projects. Based upon the Zero Based Budgeting Exercise, 12 ongoing schemes of the Forestry Sector in the Ninth Plan have been merged/weeded out to 9 schemes. No new scheme in the Forestry Sector has been incorporated in the Tenth Plan. The major schemes of the Forestry Sector are: (i) Forestry Research, Education and Training a. b. Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education (ICFRE), Dehradun Indian Plywood Bangalore Industries Research & Training Institute (IPIRTI),
Deputy Inspector General of Forests, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India Assistant Inspector General of Forests, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India
c. d. (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii) (viii) (ix) (x) (xi) (xii) (xiii) (xiv)
Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM), Bhopal Forestry Training
Forest Survey of India (FSI) Forest Protection Wildlife Eco-development around National Parks and Sanctuaries - EAP Project Tiger Project Elephant Development of National Parks and Sanctuaries Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun Central Zoo Authority National Afforestation and Eco-development Board (NAEB) National Afforestation Programme Eco-development Forces Animal Welfare
Conclusion:
As per the National Forest Policy, 1988, the National goal is to have a minimum of the one-third of the total land area of the country under forest or tree cover. The 10th Five year Plan mandate is to increase the forest and tree cover from the present 23.68% to 25% by 2007 and 33% by 2012. This target requires additional 9.97% of the total geographical area of the country i.e. 33.60 million hectare to be brought under forest and tree cover. Since almost 85% of the potential lands for additional tree planting would fall outside the notified forestlands, a large scale afforestation drive in non-forest areas is highly inevitable. To facilitate more afforestation in private lands and in nonforest areas, Ministry of Environment & Forests has issued guidelines to relax the felling and transit rules for the tree species grown on non-forest areas and private lands. But this all will require a large sum of funds which is not so much available as can be seen in the total fund allocation to the forestry and wildlife sector in Table 1. Moreover, even in the tropical States of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa and Kerala, the State fund allocation to the forest and wildlife sector (Table 2) is below 1%. Table 1: National Fund allocation for Forestry and Wildlife Sector
(Rs. in Lakhs) S. No. Financial year Fund allocation for Forestry Sector Fund allocation for Wildlife Sector NAEB & Animal Welfare Etc. Total fund allocation for forestry and Wildlife Sector 46,600 50,407 56,988 60,050 69,139 2,83,184 % of Total Plan Outlay
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 Grand total in X

th
12,900 11,850 15,738 12,055 18,120 Plan 70,663
13,600 13,707 13,125 14,010 13,519 67,961
20,100 24,850 28,125 33,985 37,500 1,44,560
0.22 0.20 0.21 0.17 0.16 0.18
The forest rich States in India have been approaching the Planning Commission and the Ministry of Environment & Forests for increased grant of funds to maintain larger areas of forests in their States. And finally, a grant of Rs.1,000 crores spread over the award period of 2005-2010 has been recommended by the 12th Finance Commission for the maintenance of these forests. This would be an additionally over and above what the States would be expending through their forest departments. In spite of these efforts by the Government of India, there is a large scope of plantations especially on degraded, barren and vacant lands and the financial involvement/projects funding to the small entrepreneurs at the Panchayat level which can make a great change not only from the ecological and socio-economic point of view but also by way of increasing the forest and tree cover within the stipulated time period.
*****
Table 2: Fund allocation for Forestry and Wildlife Sector in the Tropical States of India
(Rs. in lakhs) S. No. States 2002-2003 Total fund allocation for Forestry and Wildlife sector Andhra Pradesh Tamil Nadu Maharashtra Karnataka Goa Kerala 14,367.62 19,177.15 6,205.85 22,111.78 1,139.08 6,700.00 % of total state fund allocatio n 2003-2004 Total fund allocation for Forestry and Wildlife sector 2,3760.92 21,645.81 3,318.64 22,453.75 1,133.22 8,100.00 % of total state fund allocatio n 2004-2005 Total fund allocation for Forestry and Wildlife sector % of total state fund allocatio n 2005-2006 Total fund allocation for forestry and wildlife sector 29,491.83 22,485.71 3,457.57 24,576.14 1,623.51 6,655.00 % of total state fund allocation 2006-2007 Total fund allocation for forestry and wildlife sector 20,344.03 28,520.74 5,235.95 31,192.19 1,669.92 6,655.00 % of total state fund allocatio n
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
1.27 0.73 0.56 0.86 0.37 1.66
1.80 0.76 0.26 0.84 0.35 1.83
30,872.23 18,944.94 3,774.82 24,347.46 1,418.73 5,911.00
2.03 0.58 0.19 0.77 0.38 1.23
1.67 0.68 0.31 0.71 0.43 1.06
0.89 0.75 0.35 0.74 0.40 1.03
385
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COMPILATION OF PAPERS FOR PREPARATION OF

NATIONAL STATUS REPORT

Forests and Forestry in India

(Survey and Utilisation Division)

Ministry of Environment & Forests

Amity School of Natural Resources & Sustainable Development

J.P. L. Srivastava J.P. L. Srivastava

Dr. Ram Prasad

Dr. Bipin Behari A.K. Joshi Manomohan Yadav A.K. Mukerji

109-120 121-132 133-139

S. Topics No. 13 Forest Products Trade and Marketing

Author Ashwani Bhat

Ashwani Bhat Ashwani Bhat

Dr. V.K. Bahuguna

Dr. Bipin Behari Dr. S.S. Negi

Author Prof. Dillip K. Bandyopadhyay

Dr. Bipin Behari and A.K. Joshi

THE PRESENT FOREST SCENARIO IN INDIA

1.0 The Present Forest Scenario in India

(Source: FSI-SFR 1987-2003, Dehradun India)

Forest Management Practices

Scientific Forest Management in India

SFM Situation, Monitoring, Evaluation and Assessment

1.4.1 Evolving Concept of SFM

ECONOMIC VALUE OF FORESTS/GREEN ACCOUNTING AND NON MARKET VALUATION OF FORESTS

The Value of Forests including the unrecorded value of Removals

Issues relating to Forest Resources Accounting

Limitations of Existing System of Forest Resource Accounting

AN OVERVIEW OF THE POLICY DEVELOPMENT IN INDIAN FORESTRY FOR SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT

FORESTS OF INDIA Present Status:

Reasons for Degradation

Demand Supply Scenario

Table 1b: Demand-supply scenario of Timber (in million cubic meters).

MANAGEMENT AND POLICY INITIATIVES Pre-Independence

THE NEW APPROACH OF PARTICIPATORY MANAGEMENT OR JOINT FOREST MANAGEMENT

THE WAY AHEAD

CONCLUSION Joint Forest Management: A New Hope For Sustainable Forestry

CONTRIBUTION OF FORESTRY SECTOR TOWARDS GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT OF INDIA

METHODOLOGY FOR ESTIMATION

(iii) (iv) (v)

Estimates at Constant Prices

Quality and Limitation of Database

Assessment by Institute of Economic Growth (IEG)

Source: Institute of Economic Growth, 2002

Table 2: Contribution of Forestry Sector to GDP (Current Assessments by IEG)

2,441.75 14,272.00 4,188.85 3,647.27 1,433.70 25,984.53 2,404.83 23,579.70

Source: Institute of Economic Growth, 2002

Forest Resource Assessment Process.

Estimated Extent of Natural Forests and Degraded Forest Lands

Table 2: Forest Cover as per SFR, 2003 assessment

1989 Forest cover 8,015 7,622 5 206 0 0 0 638,804 19.43

1991 Forest cover 8,015 7,622 5 206 0 0 0 639,364 19.45

1993 Forest cover 8,186 7,624 5 206 0 0 0 639,386 19.45

1995 Forest cover 8,276 7,615 7 204 0 0 0 638,879 19.43

1997 Forest cover 8,349 7,613 7 204 0 0 0 633,397 19.27

1999 Forest cover 8,362 7,606 7 202 0 0 0 637,293 19.39

2001 Forest cover 10,693 6,930 9 219 6 27 36 675,538 20.55

2003 Forest cover 12,343 6,964 15 225 8.34 23 40 678,333 20.64

Daman & Diu Lakshdweep Pondicherry Grand Total Percent (%)

Tree Cover and Trees Outside Forests

(Source: SFR, 2003)

Limitation of Remote Sensing Technology

Comparison of Forest Cover of India with Other Regions and Countries