FOREST AND WILDLIFE RESOURCES

Q1) Why is conservation of wildlife and forest resources important?

i) Conservation preserves the ecological and genetic diversity of plants and
animals.
ii) Conservation is important as it helps us protect our environment which in
turn preserves the eco-system.
iii) Forest resources are considered essential for the maintenance of eco-logical
balance.
iv) Government of India implemented Indian Widlife Protection Act in 1972,
which made various provisions for protecting the natural habitat.
v) Central government also launched several projects such as Project Tiger,
Project Rhino, Project Great Indian bustard, etc. to conserve the species
which are getting endangered.

Q2) Highlight the objectives of the Indian Wildlife protection act of 1972.
i) An all-India list of protected species was made.
ii) The main goal of the program was to conserve the remaining population of
endangered species by banning hunting, giving legal protection to their
habitats, and restricting trade in wildlife.
iii) Central and state governments established many national parks and wildlife
sanctuaries.
iv) Several projects were also announced by the Central government (Project
Tiger, Kashmir Stag, great Indian Bustard, project rhino, Asiatic Lion,
Indian Elephant, etc)
v) In the notification under the Wildlife act of 1980 and 1986, several
butterflies, moths, beetles, and one dragonfly was also added to the
protection list.
vi) In 1991, for the first time, 6 plant species were added to the list.
Q3) Write a note on Project Tiger.
i) Tiger is one of the key wildlife species in the faunal web.
ii) Tiger population dwindled from 1827 from an estimated 55,000 in the span
of a century.
iii) Major threats to tiger population are hunting, poaching, shrinking habitat,
depletion of prey base species, and the growing human population.
iv) Trade of tiger skin and the use of their bones in medicines has also led them
to the verge of extinction.
v) India and Nepal are home to two-thirds of the entire tiger population in the
world; hence they have become sites for poaching and illegal trading of
tigers.
vi) Project Tiger, is one of the most well-publicized wildlife campaigns in the
world, it was established in 1973.
vii) It was not only seen as an effort to save an endangered species but also to
save biotypes of sizeable magnitude.
viii) Examples of different tiger reserves in India:
- Corbett National Park (Uttarakhand)
- Sunderbans National Park (West Bengal)
- Bandhavgarh National Park (Madhya Pradesh)
- Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary (Rajasthan)
- Manas Tiger Reserve (Assam)
- Periyar Tiger Reserve (Kerala)
Q4) What were the types of Forest and wildlife resources? How were they
distributed?
i) Reserved forests: Considered the most valuable for conservation of forests
and wildlife.
ii) Protected forests: Almost one-third of the total forest area is protected
forest, declared by the forest department. Forest land is prevented from any
further depletion.
iii) Unclassed forests: forests belonging to both government and private
individuals and communities.
iv) Reserved and protected forests are also referred to as permanent forest
estates.
v) They are maintained for the purpose of producing timber and other forest
produce, and for protective reasons.
Q5) Describe the distribution of forest resources in India.
i) Madhya Pradesh has the largest area under permanent forests, 75% of its
total forest area.
ii) Jammu Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West
Bengal, and Maharashtra have large percentages of reserved forests.
iii) Bihar, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, and Rajasthan have
mostly protected forests.
iv) North eastern states mostly have unclassed forests which are managed by
local communities.
Q6) How are local communities conserving the forests?
i) In some areas of India, local communities are struggling to conserve these
forests along with government officials.
ii) They have come to realize that only when they conserve these forests, they
can ensure their own long-term livelihood.
iii) Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan, villagers fought against mining by citing
the wildlife protection Act.
iv) In many areas, villagers are themselves protecting the forests and refusing
government interference.
v) In Alwar district of Rajasthan, villagers have declared the forest as
Bhairodev Dakav Sonchuri, and have made their own set of regulations
which do not allow hunting.
Q5. Write a note on good practices towards conserving forest and wildlife.
i) Nature worship is an age-old tribal belief based on the promise that all
creations of nature have to be protected.
ii) Such beliefs have preserved several forests.
iii) Certain societies have specific trees that they have preserved:
- Mundas and the Santhal(Chota Nagpur region)Mahua and Kadamba
- Tribals of Odisha and Bihar Tamarind and Mango
iv) To many of us, Peepal and Banyan trees are considered sacred.
v) Sacred qualities are often ascribed to springs, mountain peaks, plants and
animals which are all protected.
Q6. Write a note on Chipko Movement.
i) Chipko movement, started in the 1970s and was aimed at protection and
conservation of trees and saving forests from being destroyed.
ii) It is known as ‘Chipko’ as the villagers used to hug the trees to protect them
from woodcutters.
iii) It not only successfully resisted deforestation but proved that communal
afforestation with the help of indigenous species can be successful.
Q7) What is JFM? How was it organised?
i) JFM is short for Joint Forest management.
ii) It was a program that furnished a good example for involving local
communities in the management and restoration of degraded forests.
iii) Programme has been in formal existence since 1988, when the state of
Odisha barked the first resolution for JFM.
iv) It depends on the local institutions that undertake various protection
activities on degraded forest land.
v) In return, members get non-timber products and some revenue share.