Problems Faced by the Indian Forestry

The distribution of forest areas over various states is highly uneven. The proportion of forest land varies from 11 per cent in the north-west to about 44 per cent in the central region.

Forests are most scarce in the areas where they are most needed, as in the densely populated and intensely cultivated Indo-Gangetic Plains. In states with similar conditions, like Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Bihar, the amount of cow-dung used as fuel is probably the highest in India, due to non-availability of fuel-wood.

Inaccessibility of Forests:

Quite a large proportion of Indian forests, though valuable, cannot be utilised properly because of their inaccessibility. That is why, although the forest area is a little less them half of the cultivated area, the contribution of the forestry sector to the net national product is very low compared to the contribution of agriculture.

Low Productivity of Forests:

The annual per hectare productivity of Indian forests is very low.

Reason for Low Productivity of Forests:

India has been unable to properly and suitably exploit its forest resources.

The reasons for this are many and mainly include:

(i) Difficulty in exploitation due to uneven distribution and inaccessibility;

(ii) Uncontrolled felling without regenerating the forest cover through compensatory forestry;

(iv) Lack of proper transport and infrastructure facilities;

(v) Over-utilisation due to unregulated grazing;

(vi) Depletion of forests through fire;

(vii) Poor and unscientific methods of felling, fashioning and seasoning;

(viii) Unscientific economic activities like slash and burn manner of agriculture which destroy the fragile forest cover of slopes;

(ix) Reliance on static conservancy, i.e., natural growth, rather than regenerating through afforestation;

(x) Lack of information on forest resources and inadequate research facilities;

(xi) Degradation of forest covers due to industrial and irrigation projects, illegal felling or ‘poaching’ etc.

Remedies:

Forests are a renewable resource and their conservation needs to be given top priority.

The following measures are suggested for the full utilisation of the forest potential in India without depleting this precious resource:

1. Adoption of intensive development schemes including the planting of quick growing trees on suitable sites and high yielding species— indigenous or exotic—in compact blocks, in suitable locations.

2. Selection of high-yielding areas.

3. Introduction of improved techniques of logging and extraction.

4. Development of forest communications for opening the hitherto inaccessible areas.

5. Increased use of preservative and seasoning processes by establishing preservation plants and seasoning kilns in the heart of the forest area.

6. Linking of forest programmes with the schemes of industrial development.

7. Protecting forests from depleting forces, like forest fires, and adopting quarantine measures, air dusting and spraying.

8. Undertaking a reliable inventory of forest resources, their extent, location, volume, composition, standing wood volume, rate of growth and the quantities of various products, the costs at which these could be procured by the industries, statistics of removal, employment opportunities, trade prospects and consumption of forest products.