Forest policy initiatives in India over the last few years

Introduction

Modern scientific forest management began in 1864 under the British administration with the establishment of the Indian Forest Department. Since then, forest policies have been issued in 1894, 1952 and 1988. Due to the large number of forest-dependent people, Indian forest policies should be based on the concept of sustainability. The latest forest policy was issued in 1988. Primarily it emphasizes stabilizing and restoring the ecological balance and meeting the livelihood needs of around 350 million people who live in and around forest areas. The policy is based on the following principles:

The maintenance of environmental stability through preservation and, where necessary, restoration of the ecological balance that has been affected adversely by serious forest depletion.

Conserving the natural heritage of the country by preserving the remaining natural forests with their vast variety of flora and fauna, which represent the remarkable biological diversity and genetic resources of India.

Reducing soil erosion and denudation in the catchment areas of rivers, lakes and reservoirs for mitigating floods and droughts and for increasing the lifetimes of reservoirs.

Arresting the extension of sanddunes in the desert areas of Rajasthan and along the coastal tracts.

Increasing substantially forest/tree cover through massive afforestation and social forestry programs, especially on all denuded, degraded and unproductive lands.

Meeting rural and tribal population requirements for fuelwood, fodder, non-wood forest products (NWFPs) and small timber.

Increasing the productivity of forests to meet essential national needs.

Encouraging efficient utilization of forest produce and maximizing the substitution of wood. Creating a massive people's movement with the involvement of women, to achieve these objectives and to minimize pressure on existing forests.

Constitutional status

India is one of the few countries in the world where the protection and improvement of the environment, and the safeguarding of forests and wildlife is enshrined under the directive principles of state policy—Article 48 A and 51 A (g), Part IV of the Constitution. The Constitution enjoins citizens to protect nature and stresses forest and wildlife conservation as fundamental duties. The Constitution also provides for forests and wildlife as concurrent subjects under Schedule 8, List III, Entry 17-A and 17-B.

Forestry sector resource scenario

India’s unique phytogeographical and climatic diversity endows it with a rich repository of biological resources. With only 2.4 percent of the total land area of the world, the biological diversity in terms of species richness of plants, animals and micro-organisms, contributes 8 percent of the known global biological diversity. It is one of the 12 mega-biodiversity countries. From about 70 percent of the total geographical area surveyed so far, 49 000 plant and 81 000 animal species representing about 7 percent of the world flora and 6.5 percent of the world fauna have been described by the Botanical Survey of India and Zoological Survey of India, respectively. The rich biological diversity has produced diverse societies ranging from fisherfolk to forest dwellers and hill people. Of the total geographical area of the country, 23 percent is recorded as forests. However, the actual forest cover is only 19.39 percent, which houses 80 percent of the country's recorded biodiversity.

Forests have been classified into 16 forest types ranging from tropical, sub-tropical, temperate, sub-alpine and alpine regions. More than 50 percent of the forests are located in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Maharashtra. Thirty percent of the growing stock is however, in the seven Northeastern States. Traditionally, the forest areas are confined to difficult mountainous terrain and inaccessible areas of the mainland. Their inaccessibility, while posing a challenge to their scientific management, has also helped in maintaining some of the areas in their pristine forms. About 5 percent of the country's forest area (about 15 million ha) is under protective area status through around 600 wildlife national parks and sanctuaries. Some important considerations for forest management are discussed in more detail below.

Forests contribute to around 1.7 percent of the gross domestic product of the country. However, these figures do not include the non-marketed and unrecorded removal of fuelwood, fodder, NWFPs and timber being collected by the people for their livelihood needs. Around 350 million people (including 75 million tribals living within a radius of 5 km to forests in around 170 000 villages, covering a forest area of 32 million ha) are responsible for this removal. They have been removing around Rs.400 billion worth of forest produce annually. This unaccounted removal has remained outside the national accounting system and is a main cause of concern for forest planners. It is pertinent to focus development priorities on villages to reduce their forest dependence.

The recorded productivity of the forests (0.5 m³/ha) is far below the world average and needs to be increased (to around 5 m³/ha on average) through the application of superior technology and management options.

India needs to bring around 109 million ha under forest/tree cover to meet the target set by the National Forest Policy (1988) of one-third of the total land area being under forest or tree cover. Due to forest development and protection of forests, forest cover has remained at around 19 percent during the last 15 years (see Table 1). As of today, around 79 million ha of forests are under the control of forest departments (63 million ha) and the private sector (16 million ha). This means that another 30 million ha of private lands have to be covered by forests and trees. As stated, around 16 million ha of tree growth exists outside the forests on private/common lands. This brings the net forest/tree cover to around 25 percent of the total land area.

Table 1. Comparative forest cover of India (1987 to 1997)

India has raised around 30 million ha of plantations on public and private lands since 1950. Considering a survival factor of 60 percent, around 18 million ha of plantations should remain in the field.

Recent forest policy initiatives

The following forest policy initiatives have been adopted during the last five years. Ownership rights of NWFPs have been transferred to local bodies. Forest policy has emphasized the protection of the customary rights of the forest-dependent people and concessions to tribal communities and other rural people living in and around forest areas. The 73^rd Constitutional Amendment has transferred the ownership right of NWFPs to village-level institutions i.e. "panchayats". This right should go a long way towards the decentralized functioning of village-level institutions.

In recent years, the Government of India (GOI) has set up the following committees for taking policy initiatives:

• Afforestation policy and rehabilitation of degraded forest and review of Joint Forest Management (JFM).
• Review of forest policy options.
• Review of forest working plan preparations.
• Review of NWFP management.

Impact of policy reviews:

Afforestation and JFM policy: After the review, the following initiatives were adopted by the GOI:

a) A JFM Cell was established in the Forest Protection Division of the Ministry of Environment and Forests for monitoring the community-based forest management system. Previously, there was no such focal point and the stakeholders found it difficult to interact with the government and to provide feedback.

b) Forest Development Agencies (FDAs) have been created at the district level as a federation of the village-level JFM committees with representation from government departments who can contribute to the land development activities, local leadership etc. The FDAs ensure the regeneration of forests, employment generation and empowerment of JFM committees. The GOI will transfer funds to the FDAs directly under its National Afforestation Programme. The FDAs will be constituted at the level of territorial/wildlife divisions and 20 states have set up more than 80 FDAs on a pilot basis from 2000-2002. The program will be implemented on a major scale during the 10^th Five-Year Plan.

c) Landmark policy guidelines were issued in February 2000 on JFM. The salient features of these guidelines are:

a) Provision of legal identity to JFM committees.

b) Increased participation of women.

c) Extension of JFM to good quality forests (crown density above 40 percent).

d) Conflict resolution mechanisms.

e) Recognition of self-initiated groups and a better evaluation and monitoring mechanism.

d) A National JFM Network has been established consisting of individuals and organizations representing different stakeholder groups such as the central and state governments, national and grassroot-level NGOs, donor agencies, and research and training organizations. The main objective of the network is to provide a regular mechanism for consultation among various agencies and to obtain constant feedback from different stakeholders on the JFM program for policy formulation. To support the network, a stakeholder forum has also been created as an extended arm of the network for regular interaction among the stakeholders and to provide responsive services including research, meetings and dissemination of decisions made at network meetings.

e) The microplans of JFM areas are the core activities for village-level institutions. Sometimes these run counter to working plan prescriptions. A mechanism has been created for implementing the microplans in harmony with the working plan prescriptions.

f) Explicit provisions have been made for JFM in the draft forest act that will replace the existing Indian Forest Act 1927.

g) For afforestation, specific targets have been assigned for the public and private sectors to achieve the national goal of bringing one-third of the total land area under forest and tree cover. Financial implications have been determined and incorporated in the National Forestry Action Programme (NFAP). Regular meetings are being held with the Planning Commission and various donor agencies for acquiring funds. So far only 25 to 30 percent of the annual financial requirement has been arranged leaving large gaps to be filled.

h) Special efforts are being made to promote high quality private nurseries to meet the demand for improved planting material for afforestation.

The forest policy review stressed that there is no need for a new forest policy as the existing policy provisions need to be implemented fully before any review is considered necessary.

A conscious decision has been made not to lease any forestland to industry. To meet the raw material needs of industry, collaboration with farmers has been suggested.

The Forest Survey of India has been assigned the task of assessing of trees outside forests to ascertain the area covered by trees in the country.

Attempts are being made to harmonize the forest policy with other sectoral policies, especially with regard to mining and industrial policies.

Encroachment on forestland is to be discouraged firmly. With the introduction of JFM, around 38 158 ha of encroached land have been vacated under the JFM program.

Special efforts are being made to evolve rules and regulations for felling trees on private lands. This has been done in view of the Supreme Court’s ruling for managing all types of forests under a working scheme. Already, the Madhya Pradesh Government has taken an initiative in this regard and a few Northeastern States have also taken action.

The working plan code has been modified to meet the emerging forest management options. Funds are being ensured to carry out the working plan prescriptions in the natural forests.

A task force has been set up by the GOI to develop criteria and indicators (C&I) for the sustainable management of forests. The C&I are being fieldtested through a project funded by the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and implemented through the Indian Institute of Forest Management. The C&I will be communicated to all the states for implementation.

Forest fires cause huge losses to forests, especially to their biodiversity. It has been estimated that around 3 million ha of forests are affected annually by forest fires causing a loss of around Rs.4.4 billion annually. National guidelines were prepared for forest fire prevention and control, and funding has been increased under the Central Government plan scheme. A master plan has also been prepared for a period of 10 years for tackling forest fires. One key component of the new forest fire policy is to involve villagers in forest fire prevention and to provide them with a "fire prevention bonus" every year for preventing and controlling forest fires through the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the JFM committees.

A new "integrated forest protection" scheme has been approved for implementation during the 10^th Five-Year Plan to deal holistically with forest protection. This scheme will provide funds for infrastructure development and capacity building of the institutions re sponsible for forest protection.

Several steps have been taken by the various state governments to enact rules for the sharing of NWFP benefits and institutional arrangements are being developed for their collection, marketing and value addition.

India has a great potential for developing herbal medicines. A medicinal plant board has been established by the GOI to oversee the development of the medicinal plant sector in the country. Similarly, medicinal plant boards are being set up in the states.

A large number of people are heavily dependent on bamboo particularly in the Northeastern States. Bamboo development has been declared a thrust area for development. The International Network on Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR) has been encouraged to propose a development strategy for the bamboo sector. INBAR has been sanctioned funds for developing proposals for Tripura and Mizoram.

In order to evolve better relations between the people living in areas adjoining national parks and sanctuaries, the concept of ecodevelopment has been initiated successfully. Forest protection infrastructure is also being strengthened to prevent poaching. Ecotourism has great potential because of India’s rich flora and fauna and cultural diversity. Ecotourism has been declared a thrust area by the Ministry of Environment and Forests.

Future action points

The Ministry of Environment and Forests will target its future activities on:

• Implementation of the national forestry action program.
  
  
• Strengthening of the JFM program and other community-based systems.
  
  
• Development of strategies for meeting the conflicting demands of society on forests at the local, regional, national and international levels.
  
  
• Operationalization of C&I for sustainable forest management and development of an effective institutional mechanism for monitoring.
  
  
• Creation of sound forest management information systems for decision making.