DoCC Social Internship

Topic: ‘Understand the relation of Social Forestry Projects

with respect the the Environment, Economic and Social
Factors and suggest a few action points to sustain the project
and or to handhold the project to the communities’

By, Rohit Chakraborty, PGP-19-209

 problem statement and project description
‘To understand the relation of Social
Forestry projects with respect to the
Environment, Economic and Social
factors and suggest a few action
points to sustain the project or to
hand-hold the project to the
communities.’
The project aims at understanding the relationship of Social Forestry
projects with respect to the Environment, Economic and Social factors by
means of numerous FGDs which was conducted in various villages of
Ankleshwar, Dahej and Jhagadia. Having known them, it will be
benchmarked with some of the best practices across the world. Then, using
Design Thinking concepts I would aim to find out
solutions/recommendations for the same and this shall be supported using
cost benefit analysis. Based on the discussion with my mentors the scope of
the project was defined as follows:
• to understand the nitty-gritty of Social Forestry with respect to various
factors like Environmental, Economic and Social Factors
• to suggest certain methods for sustainability of the social forestry
projects with emphasis on handing over the projects to the local
community so as to establish a symbiotic relationship between both of
them
 SOCIAL FORESTRY PROJECTS IN INDIA

Social Forestry means the management The term ‘Social Forestry’ was used in
and protection of forests and afforestation the year 1976 by The National
of barren and deforested lands to increase Commission on Agriculture, when the
the forest/green cover of the earth with an Government of India aimed to reduce
additional purpose of helping in the pressure on forests by planting trees on
environmental, social and rural all unused an fallow lands.
development.

Social Forestry can be of many types- Farm Forestry, Community Forestry, Extension Forestry, and
Agroforestry. Through this initiative, UPL Limited takes the ‘Gauchar land’ from the Gram Panchayat
(Land meant for grazing of live-stock), makes the required investments to engage in social forestry
(trees being orchard trees like mango, jamun, guava etc. and non-orchard (forestry trees) like neem,
pipal, gulmohar etc.) and then maintains it for 3-4 years, finally after this, the land is handed over to
the Gram Panchayat and it becomes their responsibility to take care of it thereafter.
 ABOUT UPL LIMITED
UPL CSR

United Phosphorus Limited (UPL Limited)

was established on 29th May, 1969. It’s the 5th Employment and
Entrepreneurship

biggest agrochemical company in the world and

Education and Agriculture
with a revenue of US $3.14 billion, it is present Empowerment Development

in 130+ countries.
UPL CSR
Division
UPL Vasudha Project: Under the theme of
Environment National
Environment and Nature Conservation, UPL’s and Nature or
Conservation Local need
Vasudha Project nutures and strengthens the Eco and
Health and
Environmental Clubs in schools, aids in tree Sanitation

plantation, species conservation, soil and water

conservation etc.
 methodology
Need Analysis (Empathize phase in the Design Thinking Process)- This was done
by conducting field visits and consequent FGDs to various villages of Ankleshwar,
01 Jhagadia and Dahej cluster. The FGDs conducted had stakeholders from various
backgrounds in terms of age, gender, profession, hence each FGD thus conducted
boasted of a great diversity .

Defining the needs of the end-user (Define phase in the Design Thinking Process)-The
next stage in the Design Thinking Process is the Define phase which shall state the needs
02 and wants of the user. This shall be a compilation of the various insights gained from the
Need Analysis. The Empathize and Define phase will be clubbed together.

Benchmarking Analysis (Ideation Phase of Design Thinking Process)- Using an

Ideation Technique we will try to chalk out solutions for the same. This shall be aided by
03 a Benchmarking Analysis consisting of best practices of similar conditions around the
world.

Development of Project Proposal (Prototyping and Testing Phase of Design Thinking

Process)- Using additional information like GPS location Analysis (of the Social Forestry
04 sites) and combining them with the needs and wants of the user, a solution will be chalked
out which will be accompanied by a cost benefit analysis.
need analysis (empathize+define phase)
Visit to Mandava Visit to Motali
need analysis (empathize+define phase)
Visit to Kadodara Visit to Paniyadra
need analysis (empathize+define phase)
Visit to Padariya Visit to Fulvadi
need analysis (empathize+define phase)
Visit to UPL Centre for Agriculture Excellence
need analysis (empathize+define phase)
Empathy Map

It’s a good initiative Why should I

but what do I get? contribute to the
forestry projects?

Don’t care much Gram Panchayat will

about social forestry take care of the
projects since they projects, they don’t
have other problems require me.
 need analysis (empathize+define phase)
Overall Insights
• The crops being cultivated mostly are not water intensive, this is the learning gained by studying the social and economic factors as is the aim
of this project, hence the trees present here are usually ones which are not water-intensive or are aided by drip irrigation systems.
• The people know about social forestry projects being undertaken by UPL, this is the learning gained by studying the social factors as is the aim
of this project.
• The ground water in general has high TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) due to presence of Arabian Sea in the vicinity, this is learning gained by
studying the economic and environmental factors as is the aim of this project, hence the social forestry projects cater to trees which can
withstand the high salinity present in the ground-water.
• People are motivated to work for the social forestry project but also need slight incentives for sustainability of the same. Also, there’s a slight
correlation between the tendency of being motivated to work for the social forestry project and the well-being of the village (in terms of
availability of other important resources such as access to pure drinking water, no lack of cow-feed resources, proper medical facilities etc.).
This relationship is however not a causation-based relationship.

Point of View (POV) Statement

“The stakeholders (primilarly residents of a nearby village) of the social forestry project need some kind
of incentive for maintaining that very project because they are already embroiled by problems like lack of
pure drinking water, high TDS of groundwater, lack of medical facilities and they need to sustain
themselves as well.”
 benchmarking analysis and ideation phase

Social Forestry Projects at Social Forestry Projects in

Kalibiru, Indonesia Pakistan

Betagi-Pomta Model, Bangladesh

The ideation technique will be

Random Links Bissociation.

Social Forestry Projects at Mangrove Plantations,

Philippines Bangladesh
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
GPS analysis of Mandava plot
Recommendations for Mandava plot (45 acres) are:
• A PO (People’s organization) (similar to benchmarking
analysis) to that of Philippines can be formed.
• Cattle fodder needs can be fulfilled (even for those
cattle that migrates during rainy season).
• Primarily, this plot can be developed as an eco-tourism
place due to its large area of 45 acres
• UPL can install 3 ‘wood-houses’ with basic amenities.
• The people involved in the PO can be 1-2 villagers who
shall maintain the online bookings, 2-3 ladies with
good cooking skills to serve the local cuisine, 4-5
people for general maintenance.
• The ‘wood-houses’ can be powered by the solar panels
which are currently powering the drip-irrigation
systems.
• ‘Selfie-spots’ like in Kalibiru, Indonesia can be installed
at various places.
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
Financials for the eco-tourism model
S no. Cost component
1 Cost of Felling Trees
2 Clearing the Area
3 Construction of Wood-house
4 Construction of Bath-room
5 Retrofitting with basic
amenities (Fan, TV, AC, Sofa,
Bed, Dining Table, Chairs,
Fridge)
  Total
Table 1: Initial Fixed Costs required for the setup of the eco-tourism
model
Underlying Assumptions:
Approximate costs  assuming a tree-felling rate of ₹ 1000/tree and 30 trees to be
₹ 90000 felled in 3 such areas for the 3 houses (Cost of felling trees)
₹ 3000  assuming a house-keeping rate of ₹ 1000 for the 3 allotted
₹ 1800000 areas (Clearing the area)
₹ 180000  assuming a per sq. ft. construction rate of ₹ 1000 for 600 sq.
₹ 564000 ft. for the 3 areas (Construction of Wood-House)
 average cost of construction of bath-room taken from internet
considering tiling and Western toilet system
 basic Amenities cost is taken as the average price of items
(Fan= ₹ 1000, TV= ₹ 25000, AC=₹ 27000, Sofa= ₹ 50000,
₹ 2637000
Bed= ₹ 50000, Dining Table= ₹ 15000 and 5 chairs worth ₹
1000 each, Fridge= ₹ 15000 all these are taken for all the 3
wooden-houses)
 I have also assumed that variable costs will be ₹ 0 because
the electricity requirements will be taken care by the solar
panel system, maintenance will be done by members of the
people’s organization so that will be a part of profit sharing
and the food brought will be covered by the raw-materials as
and when ordered, in fact it can be made at the break-even
price. For the purpose of simplicity, I have avoided this cost
component because many people might not prefer having
food from outside and might bring his/her own food.
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
Financials for the eco-tourism model
S no. Time of the year Revenues
1 November- February ₹ 180000
2 March- May ₹ 45000
3 June- October ₹ 150000
  Total ₹ 375000
Table 2: Yearly Revenues of the eco-tourism model
Financial metrics/implications of the project:
• UPL can propose to take 50% of the revenues and
can break even in ~14 years.
• considering 5% growth in revenues YoY, the IRR
over a 10 year period is 11%
• minor costs like training of personnel to maintain
online bookings will be bore by UPL
• Assuming a 10 member PO (People’s Organization),
earnings of each member can be ₹ 18750, even
more if week-days revenues are considered.
Underlying Assumptions:
 I have divided the year into 3 parts-
i) November-February (4 months)- Winter season, maximum
turnover, 100% occupancy rate, all 3 wooden-houses will be
occupied
ii) March-May (3 months)- Summer Season, minimum turnover,
33.33% occupancy rate, 1 wooden-house will be occupied
iii) June-October (5 months)- Rainy Season, Average turnover,
66.67% occupancy rate, 2 wooden houses will be occupied.
 I have assumed that people/family would like to take the week-
end off and hence the wooden-house (by all conservative
estimates) will be occupied only during the weekend, so for
November to February the revenues for 4 weekends, for 4 months
considering 3 wooden houses and a half day (Friday) with a per
day rental of each wood-house pegged at ₹ 1500 comes out to
be= (4*(4*(3*(1500*2+750)))=₹ 180000 during this period,
similarly the revenues for March-May (3 months) and June-
October (5 months) have been chalked out with 1 wood-house
occupied (33.33% occupancy rate) and 2 wood-houses occupied.
 The estimates are very conservative in nature, it’s highly and very
realistically possible that people will pour in on weekdays as well
and in good numbers considering the high concentration of
businessmen in Gujarat area who don’t have fixed working days
and can be free on week-days as well.
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
GPS analysis of Motali plot

Recommendations for the Motali plot (10.5 acres) is-

This forestry plot can be maintained as a bird sanctuary
due to presence of water body (Amravathi river) near it.
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
GPS analysis of Mangrove Plot, Kadodara
GPS analysis of Samshan plot, Kadodara
Recommendations for the Mangrove plot, Kadodara (60
acres) are:
• This plot can be used as a fishing ground akin to the
mangrove plantation projects in Bangladesh due to being
breeding ground for many fishes.
• Tourists can be given passes for ‘recreational fishing’ and
revenue can be earned from the same.
Recommendations for the Samshan Plot, Kadodara (3
acres) is-
The cemetery plot at Kadodara can serve the people who come
to the cemetery because it can serve as a natural shade for the
people attending the last rites of a person. For greater
community engagement, the ashes of a person thus burnt can
be spread over one of the trees and the family of the person
can be tasked to look after that very tree and use the produce
to sustain themselves. A nameplate of the deceased can be put
up near the tree his/her ashes are spread. This will attach an
emotional value to the members of his /her family and they will
be enthusiastic about the entire exercise.
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
GPS analysis of Mangrove Plot, Paniyadra
Recommendations for the Mangrove plot, Paniyadra
(45 acres) are:
• This plot can be used as a fishing ground akin to the
mangrove plantation projects in Bangladesh due to being
breeding ground for many fishes.
• Tourists can be given passes for ‘recreational fishing’ and
revenue can be earned from the same.

Recommendations for the Samshan Plot, Paniyadra (8

acres) is-
GPS analysis of Samshan plot, Paniyadra
The cemetery plot at Paniyadra can serve the people who come
to the cemetery because it can serve as a natural shade for the
people attending the last rites of a person. For greater
community engagement, the ashes of a person thus burnt can
be spread over one of the trees and the family of the person
can be tasked to look after that very tree and use the produce
to sustain themselves. A nameplate of the deceased can be put
up near the tree his/her ashes are spread. This will attach an
emotional value to the members of his /her family and they will
be enthusiastic about the entire exercise.
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
GPS analysis of School Plot, Padariya
Recommendations for the School Plot, Padariya (1 acre)
is-
Whenever a new child will be born in the village, the family will
adopt one tree on behalf of the child and use its produce for
themselves. There shall be a nameplate bearing the name of the
child and it shall be near the tree which the individual family
has adopted. This shall serve as an emotional value and families
will definitely take care of the social forestry projects due to this
reason.

GPS analysis of Bapasitaram Plot, Padariya

Recommendations for the Bapasitaram Plot, Padariya

(2 acres) are:
• eco-tourism model albeit on a smaller scale
• future growth place for Baobab (Kalpataru) trees
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
Baobab trees
Map of similar climate conditions
Recommendations for the long term in Paniyadra and
Padariya villages-
In the long run, to counter the water problems, a part of the
plot can be dedicated for the cultivation of Baobab Trees
(Kalpataru). Baobab trees which are also known as tree of life
stores around 12000 liters of water in its branches and trunks.
It also provides shelter, clothing and food for the animals and
humans of the African Savannah region. The feasibility of
growing this tree is extremely high because both Gujarat and
African Savanna has the same type of climatic conditions as
indicated by the map shown in the side box. Baobab trees can
be a major savior for such regions of scanty rainfall and saline
underground water. Infact, in the future it can be a model
village being the first village to fulfill its water requirements
from trees. There are currently just 9 such trees in India. Of the
nine, 4 are found in Ranchi, Jharkhand but the feasibility of
growing such trees is high and will reap a lot of benefits.
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
GPS analysis of Plot 1, Fulvadi

Recommendations for Plot 1, Fulvadi (3 acres) is-

Underprivileged people can form a PO (People’s Organization)
as in Philippines and a cluster of trees can be allotted to each
individual and they can reap benefits of the trees because 90%
is orchard (fruit) trees.

GPS analysis of SDM office plot, Fulvadi

Recommendations for the SDM office plot (2 acres),

Fulvadi is-
Officials of the SDM office can be encouraged to look
after them for the beautification of their campus.
 recommendations (prototyping phase)
GPS analysis of Uchali SFP site, Ankleshwar
GPS analysis of Vav Samshan plot,
Ankleshwar
Recommendations for Uchali SFP site is-
Formation of PO (People’s Organization) should be undertaken,
allocation of cluster of trees to each member of the PO should
be done and resources of the forest should be utilized.
Recommendations for the Vav Samshan plot is-
The cemetery plot at Kadodara can serve the people who come
to the cemetery because it can serve as a natural shade for the
people attending the last rites of a person. For greater
community engagement, the ashes of a person thus burnt can
be spread over one of the trees and the family of the person
can be tasked to look after that very tree and use the produce
to sustain themselves. A nameplate of the deceased can be put
up near the tree his/her ashes are spread. This will attach an
emotional value to the members of his /her family and they will
be enthusiastic about the entire exercise.
 testing phase and personal learnings

The ‘Testing’ phase can be performed after the implementation of the recommendations.

Farmers are not getting
appropriate monetary
compensation for their
produce.
Tall claims of the government
to improve the lives of
farmers is not fulfilled.
The basic things which I take
for granted like water,
medicinal facilities and even a
roof is not available for many
people.

“Simplicity is novelty.”
 bibliography

1) https://www.upl-ltd.com/
2) http://agris.fao.org/agris-search/search.do?recordID=TH2001003812 (Begati
Pomta Model)
3) https://www.bd.undp.org/content/bangladesh/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2
018/07/30/diversified-mangrove-plantation-to-save-vulnerable-coastal-
commu.html (Mangrove Forestry, Bangladesh)
4) https://forestsnews.cifor.org/60457/the-future-of-social-forestry-in-indonesia?
fnl=en (Social Forestry Programme, Kalibiru, Indonesia)
5) https://bsmrau.edu.bd/seminar/wp-content/uploads/sites/318/2018/05/Bony-13-
05-2992.pdf (Social Forestry Projects in Kalibiru, Indonesia, Pakistan,
Philippines, Begati Pomta Model, Bangladesh)