Forest Society and Colonialism

1) What were the main causes of deforestation in India during the British rule?
Ans.:
i) The Colonial government thought that forests were unproductive.
ii) They encouraged the production of commercial crops like Jute, Sugar, Wheat,
Cotton etc. The production of food grains was needed to feed the growing urban
population. Whereas Tea, Coffee, rubber etc were required as raw material for
British industries in Britain.
iii) The forests were cleared for making railway sleepers and for fuel for locomotives.
iv) By the early 19th century Oak forests in England were disappearing. This created a
problem of timber supply for Royal Navy. Indian forests were explored and large
number of trees cut down to provide timber to Britain.

2) What circumstances led to the foundation of ‘Scientific forestry’ by the German expert
Dietrich Brandis?
Ans.:
i) The Britishers wanted trees which were Suitable for building ships or railway
sleepers.
ii) Brandis felt that a proper system had to be adopted to manage forests and that
people had to be trained in the science of conservation.
iii) He needed legal sanction and rules on the use of forest.
iv) He felt that the felling of trees and grazing of cattle had to be restricted so that
forests could be preserved for timber production.
v) So, Brandis set up the Indian Forest Service in 1864 and helped formulate the
Indian Forest Act, 1865.
vi) The Imperial Forest Research Institute was set up at Dehradun in 1906 which
taught the method of scientific forestry.

3) Explain scientific forestry.

Ans.: Scientific forestry deals with the management of forests on scientific lines. In this
method, various species of trees in forests are cut down and replaced by one type of tree.
Trees were planted in straight rows. The forest officials undertake the survey of forests
and formulate working plans for forest management. Trees which are cut every year are
replanted in a planned manner.
4) How were forests cleared to expand the railway network in India in the early 19th
century?
Ans.:
i) The spread of railways from 1850s created a new demand for timber.
ii) Railways were needed for the spread of trade in India. Wood was needed to run the
locomotives, as fuel and to lay railway lines, sleepers were required to hold the tracks
together.
iii) As the railway tracks spread, a large number of trees were felled. The government
gave contracts to individual to supply timber. These contractors began cutting trees
indiscriminately

5) How were the forests classified on the basis of forest Act 1878?
Ans.: According to the Forest Ac of 1878, forests were divided into 3 categories:
i) Reserved Forests: - The best forests were called as reserved forests. Villagers
could not take anything from these forests.
ii) Protected Forests: - They were also protected by the villagers but, they could
collect wood from these forests.
iii) Village Forests: - They were located near the villages and could be exploited by
the villagers but not for commercial purposes.

6) How did Forest Act affect the villagers?

Ans.:
i) Forest Act meant severe hardships for the villagers.
ii) They could not cut wood for their houses. They were not allowed to graze their
cattle, collect fruits and roots or do hunting or fishing in these forests.
iii) Thus, they stole wood from the forests and if caught were at the mercy of the forest
guards who would take bribes from them.
iv) It was common for the police constables and forest guards to harass the villagers
by demanding free goods from them.
v) Most commonly practiced shifting cultivation was banned.
vi) Villagers were displaced out of the forest without any notice or compensation.
vii) Forest villagers had to work for British for free. They also imposed heavy
taxes on the forest people.

7) What were the consequences of Bastar rebellion?

Ans.: Work on reservation was temporarily suspended and the area to be reserved was
reduced to roughly half of that planned before 1910.
8) What is shifting cultivation? Why did the Europeans decide to ban it?
Ans.: In shifting cultivation a patch of forest is cut and burnt. Seeds are then sown in the
ashes after the first monsoon rains. After harvesting crops for couple of years, the land is
left fallow for the forest to regrow naturally.
The following reasons prompted Europeans to ban it.
i) Europeans thought that land which was used for cultivation every few year could
not grow good trees for railway timber.
ii) When the forest was burnt, there was the added danger of flames spreading and
burning valuable timber.
iii) It also made it difficult for the government to calculate taxes on shifting
cultivation.

9) What were the main causes of the revolt of Bastar?

Ans.:
i) In 1905, the British government proposed to reserve two-third of the forest and put
a ban on shifting cultivation, hunting and collection of forest produce which
largely affected the people of Bastar.
ii) People were displaced from forest areas without any notice and compensation.
iii) Some villagers were allowed to stay in the reserved forests but on the condition
that they would cut and transport trees and protect the forest from fire for free.
iv) Villagers were suffering from increased land rents and demand for free labour by
the British officials.
v) The problems were added by the terrible famine of 1899-1900 and 1907 – 1908.
These conditions thus led to a revolt by the people of Bastar.

10) Explain the course of rebellion led in Bastar.

Ans.:
i) People began to discuss their issues in their village councils or bazaars or wherever
the headman of several villages assembled.
ii) The initiative was taken by Dhurwas of Kanger forest. Gunda Dhur was believed
to be an important figure in the movement.
iii) In 1910, mango boughs, a lump of earth, chillies and arrow began circulating in
villages as a secret message inviting villagers to rebel against the British.
iv) Every village contributed something to the rebellion expenses.
v) Bazaars were looted; the houses of officials and traders, schools and police stations
were burnt and robbed. Looted grain was redistributed.
vi) Most of the people attacked were associated with British and its oppressive laws.
11) How did the British suppress the revolt of Bastar?
Ans.:
i) The British sent troops to suppress the rebellion.
ii) The adivasi leaders tried to negotiate but the British surrounded their camps and
fired on them.
iii) Then they marched through the villages flogging and punishing all participants of
the rebellion.
iv) Most villagers deserted the villages and fled into jungles. British could gain control
over Bastar after 3 months.

12) Give a brief description about the woodcutter community of Java – The Kalangs.
Ans.:
i) The Kalangs of Java were skilled forest cutters and they practiced shifting
cultivation.
ii) They were extremely valuable for the Kingdom as without them teak could not be
harvested.
iii) Dutch tried to make them work under them.
iv) In 1770, the Kalangs resisted by attacking a Dutch fort but they were suppressed.

13) How were forest laws enacted in Java?

Ans.:
i) The Dutch enacted forest laws in Java to restrict villager’s access to forest.
ii) Now wood cutting was done only for specific purposes like making boats,
constructing houses under close supervision etc.
iii) Villagers were punished for grazing cattle, transporting wood without a permit or
travelling through forests with horse cart or cattle.

14) What was the Blandongdiensten system?

Ans.:
i) The Dutch first imposed rent on land being cultivated in the forest and then
exempted some villages from paying these rents, if they provided free labour and
buffaloes for cutting and transporting timber. This system was known as
Blandongdiensten system.
ii) Later, instead of rent exemption forest villagers were given small wages, but their
right to cultivate forest land was restricted.
15) What was the impact of world wars on the forests? Explain with reference to
India and Java?
Ans.:
i) In India, working plans were abandoned. The forest department cut trees freely to
meet British war needs.
ii) In Java, before the Japanese occupied the region, the Dutch followed ‘A Scorched
Earth Policy’ by destroying sawmills and burning huge piles of teak logs, so that it
would not fall into the hands of Japanese.
The Japanese also exploited the forests recklessly for their own war industries and
forced villagers to cut down forests.

16) How was forest conservation carried out by the Asian and African countries
after independence?
Ans.:
i) Conservation of forests rather than collecting timber became a more important
goal.
ii) The government realised the importance of forest communities to conserve the
forests.
iii) In many cases like Mizoram to Kerala dense forest were preserved only because
villages protected them as sacred groves.
iv) Some villagers have taken up the responsibility to protect forest upon themselves
instead of leaving it upon the forest guards.
v) Many movements like the ‘Chipko Movement’ in 1770s were started to save trees
from the ruthless cutting down for the commercial purposes.

17) Under colonial rule, why did the scale of hunting increase to such an extent that
various species became almost extinct?
Ans: In India hunting of tigers and other wild animals became a game or source of
entertainment for the kings and nobles. But under British rule the scale of hunting
increased to such an extent that various species became almost extinct. The reasons
behind this condition are
i) The British saw large animals as signs of a wild, primitive and savage society.
ii) They believe that by killing dangerous animals the British would civilise India.
iii) They gave rewards for the killing of tigers, wolves and other large animals on the
grounds that they posed a threat to cultivators.
iv) Over 80,000 tigers, 150,000 leopards and 200,000 wolves were killed for reward in
the period 1875-1925.
v) Certain areas of forests were reserved for hunting.
 18) Who was samin? How did saminists revolt against the Dutch?
Ans.:
i) Surontiko Samin was a villager belonging to a teak forest village called
Randublatung. He argued & the state ownership of forest as the nature including
wind, water, earth etc. was not created by the state.
ii) Saminists protested by lying down on their land when the Dutch came to survey it.
iii) Some others refused to pay taxes or fines or perform labour to Dutch.

19) What are the similarities between colonial management of forests in Bastar and
java?
Ans.:
i) Forest laws were enacted in both Java and Bastar.
ii) These laws restricted villagers access to forests.
iii) Timber could be cut only from specific forests under close supervision.
iv) Villagers were punished for entering forests and collecting forest products without
a permit.
v) Both followed a system of scientific forestry.
vi) In both places, Forest Act meant severe hardship for villagers. Their everyday
practices of cutting wood for their houses, grazing their cattle, collecting fruits and
roots, hunting and fishing became illegal.
vii) Forest guards and constables harassed people.

19) What was ‘A Scorched Earth Policy’?

Ans.: In Java, just before the Japanese occupied the region, the Dutch followed a
Scorched Earth Policy, destroying Sawmills and burning huge piles of giant teak logs so that
they would not fall into Japanese hands.

20) What are the various uses of forests in our day-to-day lives?
Ans.: i) Paper is used for making books, wood is used for desks and tables, doors and windows,
dyes are used for colouring our clothes, we get spices to add to our food, the cellophane
wrapper of toffees, tendu leaf in bidis, gum, honey and coffee, tea and rubber. ii) Oil in
chocolates comes from sal seeds, the tannin used to convert skins and hides into leather or the
herbs used for medical purposes are all derived from forests.
iii) Forests also provide bamboo, wood for fuel, grass charcoal, packaging, fruits, flowers,
animals, birds, etc.