Social forestry and its rational benefit Indian context

social forestry simply means tree-growing for the purpose of rural development. As
social forestry has a rural development focus and is heavily dependent on the active
participation of people, it is also known as "forestry for local community
development" or "participatory forestry.social forestry project is with the aim of
taking the pressure off the forests and making use of all unused and fallow land.
Trees were to be planted in and around agricultural fields. Plantation of trees along
railway lines and roadsides, and river and canal banks were carried out. They were
planted in village common land, Government wasteland and Panchayat land.Social
forestry also aims at raising plantations by the common man so as to meet the
growing demand for timber, fuel wood, fodder, etc, thereby reducing the pressure
on the traditional forest area.The goal of social forestry intervention should not only
be to provide biomass but also to reverse the processes of negative change through
active participation.Through the social forestry scheme, the government has
involved community participation, as part of a drive towards afforestation, and
rehabilitating the degraded forest and common lands.

NEED - In India, the National Commission on Agriculture (NCA) in 1976

recommended the creation of social forests on common lands and state
forests to provide the local communities fuel wood, small timber and
fodder .Need for a social forestry scheme was felt as India has a dominant
rural population that still depends largely on fuelwood and other biomass for
their cooking and heating. This demand for fuel wood will not come down but
the area under forest will reduce further due to the growing population and
increasing human activities. The government managed the projects for five
years then gave them over to the village panchayats (village council).Social
forestry was originally conceived by the Indian government as a response to
the forestry crisis and to accelerating deforestation in India.
OBJECTIVES AND AIMS
Using the public and common land of the village to produce in a
decentralised manner firewood, fodder and small timber to meet the local
needs (particularly poor people) and also to conserve soil and water.
To increase rural employment, farmer's incomes and opportunities for
participation by landless people.

To increase the forest cover

To strengthen forestry institutions

 Creation of woodlots in the village commonlands, government wastelands

and panchayat lands.
Planting of trees on the sides of roads, canals and railways. This, along with
planting on wastelands is known as extension forestry, increasing the
boundaries of forests
Reducing the pressure on natural forests.
Afforestation of degraded government forests in close proximity to villages,
which have experienced the unauthorised harvesting of biomass.
Planting of trees on and around agricultural boundaries, and on marginal,
private lands, constituting farm forestry, or agro-forestry, in combination with
agricultural crops.

Increase the natural beauty of the landscape; create recreational forests for
the benefit of rural and urban population,

Improve the environment for protecting agriculture from adverse climatic

factors.
Ensuring optimum utilisation of land, water, livestock and human resources.

TYPES OF SOCIAL FORESTRY There are 5 types of social forestry,they are

1)farm forestry - Individual farmers are being encouraged to plant trees on
their own farmland to meet the domestic needs of the family. There are 2
types of farm forestry, they are Commercial and non commercial farm
forestry.It is not always necessary that the farmer grows trees for fuel wood,
but very often they are interested in growing trees without any economic
motive. They may want it to provide shade for the agricultural crops; as wind
shelters; soil conservation or to use wasteland.
2)community forestry - It is the raising of trees on community land and not on
private land as in farm forestry.The government has the responsibility of
providing seedlings, fertilizer but the community has to take responsibility of
protecting the trees.It is a village-level forestry activity, decided on
collectively and implemented on communal land, where local populations
participate in the planning, establishing, managing and harvesting of forest
crops, and so receive a major proportion of the socio-economic and ecological
benefits from the forest.Some communities manage the plantations sensibly
and in a sustainable manner so that the village continues to benefit. Some
others took advantage and sold the timber for a short-term individual profit.
Community forestry is a process of increasing the involvement of and reward

for local people, of seeking balance between outside and community interests
and of increasing local responsibility for the management of the forest
resource
3)agro forestry - Planting of trees on and around agricultural boundaries, and
on marginal, private lands, in combination with agricultural crops is known as
agro-forestry.In a more scientific way agroforestry may be defined as a
sustainable land use system that maintains or increases the total yield by
combing food crop together with forest tree and live stock ranching on the
same unit of land, using management practices that takes care of the social
and culture characteristic of the local people and the economic and ecological
condition of the local area .Biodiversity in agro-forestry systems is typically
higher than in conventional agricultural systems. Agro-forestry also has the
potential to help reduce climate change since trees take up and store carbon
at a faster rate than crop plants.Agro-forestry incorporates at least several
plant species into a given land area and creates a more complex habitat that
can support a wider variety of birds, insects, and other animals. India has
become the first nation in the world to adopt an agroforestry policy.
4)extension forestry - Planting of trees on the sides of roads, canals and
railways, along with planting on wastelands is known as extension forestry,
increasing the boundaries of forests.Under this project there has been
creation a of wood lots in the village common lands, government wastelands
and panchayat lands .
5)scientific forestry - Silviculture is the art and science of controlling the
establishment, growth, composition, health, and quality of forests to meet
diverse needs and values of the many landowners, societies and cultures
over all the parts of the globe that are covered by dry land. Silviculture lays
great stress on replacement and replanting of new crops and trees.
ADVANTAGES 1.Educates the people about the need to protect and
conserve natural forests. 2.Provides them alternate source of firewood and
fodder so that they need not go to the natural forests.
3.Protects the natural forest from grazing animals.
4.Waste land in and around the village will be put to proper use.
5.Involvement of rural people in the social forestry programme would
generate in them a natural interest towards the conservation of natural forests.
6.Provides land laborers an avenue of employment.
DISADVANTAGES as per the Indian national social forestry programme
emphasis was on resource creation through planting fast growing tree species

like acacia and eucalyptus on privately owned lands and waste land. But the
products from these have more value for pulp and paper rather than meeting
the biomass needs to local people. This monoculture created degradation of
soil quality and water table. It failed to actively involve local communities and
rural people.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION SOCIAL FORESTRY IN KERALA.
A regular Social Forestry Wing was constituted in Kerala Forest Department
during the year 1982 with the launch of World Bank aided Social Forestry
Projects. Immediately after the culmination of World Bank Aided Social
Forestry Project in the year 1993, the Social Forestry Wing was entrusted with
a huge task of implementing compensatory afforestation scheme to
rehabilitate degraded forests extending over 57180 ha.
In the recent years, Government of Kerala has launched various ambitious
programmes for improving tree cover of the state outside forest area.Major
programmes among them are: My Tree Programme (2007) joint programme of dept of forest and
education ,where planting of trees with participation of school children from
std 5 to 9.
Greening the Coast Scheme(2007) protecting states coast line from
natural calamities by establishing bio shield of sand binding trees. It is
implemented through theera samrakshana samitis.
Road side Planting of Shade Trees Scheme(2007)
Our Tree Programme(2008) it is an extention of my tree programme .
here tree saplings are planted by plus 2 and college students.
Greening Kerala Scheme(2009) it is a scheme of planting 1 crore
seedling in 2 years in 2 phases during 2009-2010.