SINGHAL, KUMAR AND JEEVA 55

Tropical Ecology 44(1): 55-61, 2003 ISSN 0564-3295 © International Society for Tropical Ecology

Forests and research in

R.M. SINGHAL1, SUDHIR KUMAR2 & V. JEEVA2

133, Sewak Ashram Road, Dehra Dun - 248 001; 2Directorate of Research, Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education, P.O. New , Dehra Dun – 248006

Abstract: This paper in general way deals with problems and prospects of forestry in In- dia. Stressing upon the need for linking the biophysical dimensions of the problem with the so- cial, the paper sets the agenda for an action plan in forestry for the country.

Resumen: Este artículo trata de manera general los problemas y las perspectivas de la forestería en la India. Haciendo énfasis en la necesidad de relacionar las dimensiones biofísicas y sociales del problema, el trabajo establece la agenda para un plan de acción en la forestería del país.

Resumo: Este artigo aborda, de um forma geral, os problemas e prospectos da silvicultura na Índia. Acentuando a necessidade de ligação da dimensão biofisica do problema com a dimen- são social, este artigo fixa a agenda para um plano de acção da silvicultura para o país.

Key words: Forestry, policy, resources, research strategy, status.

Introduction Our have been transformed drastically and radically, and find it is hard to any undistrib- In view of the deteriorating forest resources uted forests as created by Mother Nature. In the and their importance to the national economy and present system, forests are unable to provide an environment, the Government has been emphasiz- intrinsic protection, the production of multiple ing for the sustainable development of forest re- products or environmental and human functions. sources, as well as conservation of ecosystems. The Drastic changes are, therefore, warranted to avert first national level planning exercise in the for- an ecological disaster and the national catastrophe estry sector took place two decades ago when the that would inevitably follow. Clear cutting has National Commission on Agriculture (NCA) stud- turned out to be a dangerous prescription unsuit- ied the situation in the country and made recom- able for tropical forests, not even for the European mendations. But actions did not have the desired forests where it has originated. The tropical forests effect on the development of forestry. The Gov- are inadequately understood at best and misun- ernment revised the National Forest Policy in 1988 derstood at worst; the traditional management and emphasised on conservation and environ- practices are the best suited. Forestry research in mental stability. Later on, it decided to undertake one of the oldest in the tropical world. It the preparation of a National Forestry Action Pro- was not long ago looked upon as a model for other gramme (NFAP) with the aim of addressing the countries in the region. Guidelines for the prepara- issues of the forestry sector in line with the Na- tion of working plans for a wide variety of high and tional Forest Policy (NFP 1988). coppice forest, yield regulations, preparation of

1Corresponding Author: R.M. Singhal; email: [email protected] 56 FORESTS AND FORESTRY IN INDIA yield and volume tables, thinning technologies and tion with the regional and global situations is the like were among the outstanding achieve- given in Table 1. ments. Monumental works such as of A recent study in Kerala has estimated the Indian by Troup, Forest Insect by Benson, current average increments, in the natural ever- Forest Floras by Kanji Lal, Talbot Brandis, green and moist deciduous forests as 1.0 and 0.5 Mooney and others, speak for the high standard of m3 ha-1 yr-1 respectively. Yet another report sug- work of Indian forestry research, which reflects the gests that the average productivity of Sal forests of high degree of dedication. India is at the level of 54.7 million m3 ha-1. In fact figures are often quoted which would give Indian The present situation forest an annual productivity of 0.5 m3 ha-1. If theo- retical potential productivity could be achieved, (i) In India, forests meet nearly 40% of the en- this would increase to about 525 million m3ha-1yr-1. ergy needs of the country, of which more than 80% These estimates are indicative of a lack of proper is utilized in the rural areas, and about 30% of the management. It is to be understood that the result fodder needs of the cattle population. Forest prod- of management lapses is not limited to growth and ucts also play a very important role in the rural yield of timber, but to the survival of critical and tribal economy, as many of the non- for- ecosystems. est products (NWFPs) provide sustenance to the rural poor and its accounts for some 70% of forest Factors influencing productivity products and for some 40% of state forest revenues (Ahmed 1997). For landless families and marginal For a given species or forest type, productivity farmers, forest – related activities often represent is the function of habitat factors i.e. soil, nutrient the primary source of income. status, rainfall and silvicultural management (ii) India’s forests are unable to meet its many practices. Productivity with respect to forests can needs. Ganguli (2000) reported a current round be expressed in term of mean annual increment wood supply gap (excluding fuel wood) of some 26 (MAI). A natural forest, with a continuous cycle of million m3: The gap is expected to remain in future growth grows on the products of its own decay also. (humus) through nutrient recycling. Productivity (iii) It is estimated that about 270 million ton- is influenced by special factors like removal or re- nes of fuel wood, 280 million tonnes of fodder, over tention of litter, status of ground vegetation, den- 12 million m3 of timber and countless non-wood sity of stock on which further growth is to take forest products are removed from the forest annu- place and protection form growth retarding agents. ally. At a conservative level of pricing (Rs. 500 per It is understood that the MAI of natural for- tonne of fuel/fodder) the value of these commodi- ests tend to be lower than those of for- ties will amount to over Rs. 3,00,000 million per ests raised with high level of inputs. However, the annum. potential biological productivity of the natural for- According to FSI (1999), in about 53% of ests of India is definitely higher than the figures natural forests, natural regeneration is either mentioned earlier. Using Patersons index and absent or inadequate. This situation is because of based on rainfall, soil condition and length of overgrazing in forests beyond their carrying ca- growth period, the estimated productivity of these pacity, which has troublesome implications for forests would range from 1.35 m3 ha-1 yr-1 in the future growth. A comparison of the Indian situa- dry regions of India to 7.66 m3 ha-1 yr-1 in the moist

Table 1. Comparison of productivity levels, 1990. Source: NFRP (2000).

Tropical Asia-Pacific Developing Details India World Asia Region Countries Growing stock of wood in natural forests (m3 ha-1) 47 140 125 113 114 in natural forests (t ha-1) 93 181 171 169 131 Available volume of growing stock per capita (m3) 2.85 28.00 18.90 54.90 71.76 Available biomass per capita (t) 5.63 36.27 25.76 81.73 82.37

SINGHAL, KUMAR AND JEEVA 57 and wet regions with most other parts of the coun- sustains 16% of the planet’s human population and try producing around 4 to 5 m3 ha-1 yr-1. 18% of its livestock population. Forestry contribu- tion is 1.7% of nation’s GDP. This does not take Forestry resources of India into account unrecorded withdrawals (NWFP, fuel, wood, fodder etc.). Moreover, the environmental Most of the forest ecosystems of India are frag- benefits of forests also remain to be quantified and ile and reeling under an acute form of degradation. calculated. Each ecosystem has specific problems, which make The forests contribute 1.7% to the GDP of the associated research dimensions vast, complex the country (NFAP 1999 a & b). Due to problems and demanding. The following factors are attrib- associated with the valuation of forests and ser- uted to the present state of forest biocoenosis: vices, unrecorded removals, illegal harvesting, (i) Loss of forest land to agriculture, indus- etc. the exactness of the contribution has not tries and human settlements. been established. A large part of the forest pro- (ii) Loss of forest due to multipurpose projects, duction consisting of fuel, fodder, medicine and construction of roads, erection of transmission food are removed without payment and without lines, quarrying, slashing for any record by the rural and tribal people. Ac- and clearing for encroachments for minerals etc. cording to Ahmed (1997), the total annual value (iii) Degradation due to illicit , lopping of India’s harvest of all is esti- for fodder and fuel wood, overgrazing, forest litter mated to be Rs. 300,000 millions (compared to removal, forest fires, over felling, etc. the investment of Rs. 8000 in the sector). The (iv) Human and cattle population explosion low estimate of contribution to the GDP resulted around forest land. in low priority for forestry investments in five- The forests of India have a growing stock of year plans. Efforts are needed for monitoring the 4,741 million m3 with an annual increment of services provided by the forests so as to appreci- 87.62 million m3. Since 78% of the forest area is ate their contribution to human well being. Over subjected to grazing, coupled with heavy removal 50% of the revenue earned by the forest depart- of forest products and 51% subjected to occasional ments comes from NWFPs. Their growth is fire, the productivity of these forests is low. The generally 40% higher than timber (MOEF 2000). performance of , in terms of survival, Nearly 350 million people living in and around growth and yield is also poor because of inade- forests in India depend on NWFPs for their sus- quate site selection, improper site species match- tenance and supplemental income which is ing, poor quality planting stock, lack of post estab- worth Rs.400 billion annually (Tewari 1994). lishment protection and lack of timely silvicultural Studies in Orissa, , Himachal operations. The average MAI for plantations of the Pradesh and Bihar have indicated that over 80% fast growing species under social forestry pro- of forest dwellers depend entirely on NWFPs. gramme is only 4 m3 ha-1 yr-1 against the expected Similarly 17% landless depend on daily wages 10 m3 ha-1 yr-1. According to a study of IIPA (1989), related to the collection of NWFPs. 39% people the average survival percentage in five Indian are, however, involved in NWFPs collection as a states was 66 per cent. Lack of plantation inven- subsidiary occupation. It has been estimated tory, absence of yield improvement plans and rota- that many village communities derive as much tion cycle and lack of post establishment manage- as 17-35% of their annual household income ment systems were some of the reasons. Yields from the sale of NWFPs (Tewari 1994). NWFPs obtained are far short of the potential. Research provide 50% of the income to about 30% rural support is absolutely essential for realizing their people. The average income realized through the true potential. sale of NWFPs by households in the state of Madhya Pradesh constituted 34 to 55 percent of Role of forestry sector in economy their total income. As per estimates made in West Bengal, an average return of Rs 2270 ha Contribution to GDP yr-1 is obtained from NWFPs, which is 25% more India, in spite of having 2.5% of the world’s than the polewood harvest, which fetches Rs geographic area and 1.8% of the world’s forests, 16,000 per ha after 10 years. There is, thus suf- 58 FORESTS AND FORESTRY IN INDIA ficient evidence to believe that the collection of Growing pressure on forests NWFPs is a crucial part of the population’s life The present ecological conflicts have created support system, especially of the tribals. many economic compulsions and sociological stresses due to changing consumption patterns, Employment generation scarce availability of land and other natural re- Of the total wage employment in the forestry sources. To make a trade off between demand and sector, NWFPs account for more than 70% of the availability of forest produce is a big challenge ac- opportunities for self-employment for the forest cording to the wood budget of the year, 1996 pre- dwellers as farm mechanization has not developed sented below in Table 2. well in India. According to an ILO estimate, one Out of the total requirement for wood, 70% is hectare of forest plantation creates nearly 630 for fuel wood and 30% for timber. Thus, forests mandays, from the raising of nurseries to the har- have at least 5 times more pressure than what vesting stage. 70% of the budget allocated to plan- they can withstand. This is in addition to the 30% tations or is spent on providing direct contribution to the fodder requirement of the coun- wages to the workers and only 30% goes towards try in the form of 178 million tonnes of green fod- purchase of seeds, planting materials, equipment der and 145 million tonnes of dry fodder. etc. It would not be out of place to mention that 50% of the workforces on forest plantations are Supply and demand scenario of women and tribal. Rural women use 70-80% of the forest raw materials mandays in collection of NWFPs, fuel and fodder. The current demand of timber is around 30 Activities related to NWFPs provide employment million m3, out of which 8.3 million m3 is needed during slack periods and a buffer against risk and for paper, pulp and panel products and 15.4 mil- household emergencies. In the remotest areas, lion m3 for saw milling i.e. housing, packaging, sometimes the forest is the only source of employ- furniture, etc. The total timber requirement is es- ment and income. Research is needed to evolve timated to grow to a level of 60 million m3 during forest based entrepreneurial endeavours to pro- the next five years (20.5 million m3 for paper, pulp duce multiplier effects through the forward and and panel products and 27 million m3 for saw mill- backward linkages. ing). Therefore, during 1994 -1995, nearly US$ 600 Markets million worth of wood and wood products were im- ported. Similarly, the current requirement of fuel The dependence of the producer on intermedi- wood is around 280 million tonnes, which is likely aries and his limited access to markets has a direct effect on prices. The price of a product whether Table 2. Growing pressure on forests. Source: sold to consumers directly or through intermediar- MOEF (1999). ies, has no bearing on the expenditure incurred on the labour, inputs and transportation. Under di- Fuel wood Demand (million ton) 201 rect sales, the localized activity for localized mar- kets creates a supply position in excess of local Supply (million ton) demand. Traders control the market and dictate From forests 17 the prices during the season and in the off-season. From farm forests and other wood lands 98 The sale of produce during the flush season and in Total 115 the off-season is different. In the case of sale Deficit 86 through intermediaries, the producers have abso- lutely no control over the prices. Studies show that Timber Demand (million m3) 64 the poor primary producer's income always re- Supply (million m3) mains low. The need for market related studies From forests 12 has always been felt, and includes research on the From farm forests and other wood lands 31 market information system and the scope of value addition like bioprospecting, Intellectual Property Total 43 Right (IPR) etc. Deficit 21

SINGHAL, KUMAR AND JEEVA 59 to rise to 356 million tonnes. As such, there is an rial for the phytopharmaceuticals and various ever enlarging gap in the supply against the cur- other industries (Table 5). Herbal medicines in use rent sustainable yield of only 12 million m3 of tim- today are derived from nearly 8,200 species of me- ber and 21 million tonnes of fuel wood. dicinal plants. In developing countries, more than Despite the low consumption and production, 80% of the population depends on traditional plant shortage has been the history of the India’s for- based medicine, and even in the USA, 25% of the estry industry sector. India is, therefore, supple- prescription drugs are still based on phytochemi- menting its wood with bamboo and agriculture cals. NWFPs offer an excellent potential interna- wastes. The trend, due to poor transport economics tional trade. Ahmed (1997) reported 8 categories of force Mills to be small and within the transport NWFP, some are important from the point of tribal radius. The situation of Indian paper mills, de- indigenous groups such as West Bengal where pending on the sugar mills is within the 100 km tribal groups collect 27 commercial products, 39 radius, for cool-fired boilers for their own heat plant food, 47 medicines. NWFPs account for 70% needs. To spare the bagasse for sale as pulping India’s exports and the demand for phytochemicals raw material there is severe pollution in pulping is expected to increase in future as a new frontier agriculture radius and poor quality paper relative for trade and sustainable commercialization of bio- to wood fiber material. This trend is likely to con- logical resources at international level with se- tinue if there is no reform in the forest policy link- cured intellectual property right. ing biophysical, demand, research and marketing. The manufacturers and the practitioners of As regards with the fodder availability, it is seen traditional medicines depend solely on the pro- that its requirement is increasing year by year in curement of MFP plants from the wild, as cultiva- comparison to its availability shown in the Tables tion of most of these plants barring the spices has 3 & 4. not gained momentum. The methodology of extrac- tion of phytochemicals from the forest products has Medicinal plants gained attention of researchers. The value addi- tions may be done through percolation methods The NWFPs play a very important role in the using extraction of plants, spray drying, distilla- modern economy. They form the basic raw mate- tion, effleurage or cold fat extraction, maceration or hot fat extraction and solvent extraction. Oleo- Table 3. Estimated fodder requirement projections resins are obtained conventionally by extraction of (million tonnes). the powdered spice with solvents, but notable dif- ferences in the yield and in aroma flavour and Dry fodder Green fodder Year (million ton) (million ton) pungency of the final product can be achieved by varying the geographical type of the spice, the age 1985 780 932 at which it is harvested, the choice of solvents and 1990 832 992 the method of extraction. To make this possible a 1995 890 1064 determined investment in technological capacity 2000 949 1136 building, biophysical research and development, Source: Report of Committee on Fodder and Grasses, market research is crucial. NWDB (1987). The major task before the country, therefore, is to rehabilitate the degraded forests and to enhance Table 4. Estimated fodder availability, require- the area under forest/ cover to 33% of total ment and gap. area as envisaged in the National Forest Policy (1988). Despite continuous efforts the desired re- Dry fodder Green fodder Concentrate sults could not be achieved because of the ever- (million (million (million increasing demand for forest products and the lim- ton) ton) ton) ited funds available (less than 1% of the total Plan Availability 398.68 573.50 41.98 allocation). To reverse the process of degradation Requirement 583.52 744.73 79.40 and to achieve the goal of the National Forestry Gap 184.84 171.23 37.42 Policy (1988), the government formulated the Na- Source: Policy Advisory Group, MOF (1993). tional Forestry Action Programme (NFAP), a com- 60 FORESTS AND FORESTRY IN INDIA

Table 5. Estimated annual consumption of some gums and resins by various industries.

Approx. consumption in in- Name of the industry Item used dustrial units in the country (ton) Food, chocolate, confectionery, ice creams etc. Gums 50 Textile Gums & Resin 5000 Artificial leather and oil clothes Gums & Resin 500 Paper for packing Gums & other pastes 1000 Drugs and pharmaceuticals Gums & Resin 700 Lithography in map publications Gums NA In oil industry as drilling fluids in ore flotation of Carbohydrate polymers of NA gums, Mining industries gums Surgical and medicinal products Resin 200 Paper industries Resin 2500 Tyres and tubes Resin 500 Rubber footwear Resin 300 Paints, varnishes and lacquers Resin 5000 Resin 250 Turpentine 7 x 106 l Source: Shiva (1994). prehensive strategic plan to address the key issues In the light of the sector review (GOI), the underlying the major problems of the forestry sec- strategic issues for forestry research are identified tor in line with the National Forest Policy (1988). as follows: • Increasing forests and tree productivity. Research priorities • Enhancing peoples participation in forest man- agement. In the policy document (GOI 1988) a number of • Saving the biological diversity: in-and-ex-situ priority areas of research and development, need- conservation. ing special attention have been identified as a re- • Rehabilitating degraded lands. search strategy to achieve the objectives of the Na- • Strengthening institutional and human capac- tional Forest Policy. These are: ity; and • Increasing the productivity of wood and other • Improving forestry research policy and setting forest produce per unit of area per unit of time priorities. by the application of modern scientific and technological methods. Goal and objectives • Revegetation of barren/marginal/ waste/ mined lands and watershed areas. • Increasing productivity from less than 1 m3 ha-1 • Effective conservation and management of yr-1 to 5 m3 ha-1 yr-1 expanding forest/tree cover existing forest resources (mainly natural forest to achieve national goal of 33% of geographic ecosystem). area. • Research related to social forestry for rural/ • Extending protected area network for biodiver- tribal development. sity conservation. • Development of substitutes to replace wood • Planting of fuel wood species on non-forest and wood products; and wastelands. • Research related to wildlife and management • Producing pulp wood and other industrial of national parks and sanctuaries. wood through agro-forestry. • Encouraging and strengthening of JFM. SINGHAL, KUMAR AND JEEVA 61

• Developing NWFPs and generating rural em- ing India, where research and development in for- ployment through value addition. est and improvements yet to show meaningful re- • Promoting development, harvesting, process- sults. ing and marketing of medicinal plants for in- come generation. References • Strengthening infrastructure for forest inven- tory, research and development. Ahmed, M. 1997. In Depth Country Study –India. Asia – • Augmenting research capabilities of state for- Pacific Forestry Sector Outlook Study. Working pa- est departments. per No. APFSOS/WP.26.Food and Agriculture Or- • Building the capacity and training of personnel ganization of the United Nations (FAO). Rome/ engaged in forestry through well conceived Bangkok, October 1997. HRD planning. FSI. 1988. State of Forest Report 1987. Forest Survey of • Building the capacity for proper monitoring India. Ministry of Environment and Forests, Dehra and evaluation of forestry projects at the state Dun. and central levels. Ganguli, B.N. 2000. Options beyond • Rationalizing investment for the sustainable 2000- Issues and Opportunities for India. Paper for development of forests. Commonwealth Forestry Association (India). Semi- nar on India’s forests beyond 2000. New Delhi, April In the early part of this century, forestry re- 19-21, 2000. search concentrated on botany, taxonomy, phenol- GOI. 1988. National Forest Policy. Ministry of Environ- ogy, silviculture, and wood utilization. ment and Forests, New Delhi, 1988. However, in the present day context the scope of MOEF. 1993. Policy Advisory Group. In: National For- forestry research covers not only biological and estry Research Plan. ICFRE, Dehradun, 2000. technological aspects (forestry, forest products, MOEF. 2000. Sustainable Development. Special paper. conservation and wildlife), but also the wider spec- In: Economic Survey. Economic Division. Ministry trum of economic and sociological researches lead- of Finance, New Delhi. NFRP, 2000. ing to policy formulations. NFAP. 1999a. National Forestry Action Programme. Vol. 1. Status of Forestry in India. Ministry of Envi- Conclusions ronment and Forests, GOI, New Delhi. NFAP. 1999b. National Forestry Action Programme. Vol. 2. Status of Forestry in India, Ministry of Envi- In developing countries like India, an increase ronment and Forests, GOI, New Delhi. in the population of humans and cattle results in NFP. 1988. National Forest Policy. Ministry of Envi- an increase in demand for forest produce, where ronment and Forests, New Delhi. there is scope for cultivation of forestry species in NFRP. 2000. National Forestry Research Plan. ICFRE, wasteland and other forest land because of the Dehra Dun. drastic decrease in per capita land availability. NWDB. 1987. Committee Report on National Wasteland Forest produce has to be increased from the land Development Board. In: National Forestry Research already available and stress sites have to be culti- Plan. ICFRE, Dehradun, 2000. vated to meet the demand. Under these circum- Shiva, M.P. 1994. Determinants of the key elements of stances the research should be linked with the on- demand and supply of NWFPs. International Work- going programmes on tree management. Im- shop on India’s Forest Management and Ecological provement studies should be given priority in or- Revival. Delhi 10-12 Feb, 1994. der to achieve meaningful results. This approach is Tewari, D.N. 1994. Tropical Forest Produce. Interna- sadly lacking in many developing countries includ- tional Book Distributors, Dehra Dun.