Afforestation Programmes

Meeting Multiple Objectives

During the past few decades, forests in India have been under increasing human pressure. Forests have been cut at the alarming rate of 1.3 million hectares per year, while forest regeneration has not keep pace with the rate of depletion. Future afforestation programmes could be better designed by taking advantage of the experiences from past efforts.

Several afforestation models have been tried out in the past with varying results. Earlier, the accent was on plantations effectively fenced to prevent outside pressure on the forest. This model was not found adequately successful, because it had overlooked at the basic reality of people’s dependence on forest products. With time, various mechanisms were worked out to incorporate this kernel element.

Forest have been cut 
at an alarming rate 
and forest regeneration 
has not kept pace 
with the 
rate of depletion.

Depletion of forest resources has a multitude of ramifications. It has seriously affected the biomass based subsistence economy of the tribals. Their dependence on fuel, fodder and non-timber forest produce has long been realised. Forestry activities also cater to the seasonal employment of the small and marginal farmers. Many afforestation programmes are devoid of sustainability, because they neither create long term assets, nor meet the immediate needs of the dependent population.

This article cites certain options for more successful afforestation programmes. It is based on an appraisal undertaken by Development Alternatives of a World Food Programme funded forestry project in southern Rajasthan.

Plantation on forest land which is widely in vogue in the country is an expensive form of afforestation. It lays accent on commercial species, which do not always meet the domestic requirements of the local population. There exist vast tracts of degraded parts of the country. Eco-restoration allows natural regeneration of the indigenous species. It requires closures and certain cultural operations like cut backs, singling and pruning. This model has been tried out very effectively in several forest divisions.

An effective means of initiating eco-restoration is through preparation of Micro-level Village Plans. These integrated to forestry development - soil & moisture conservation, agriculture, minor irrigation and animal husbandry. The Micro Plans become more effective when they are prepared with the participation of local people.

The success of forest regeneration through community management in West Bengal has had ripple effects in several other states. Recently, the Rajasthan State Forest Department announced the decision to constitute village level Forest Protection Committees (FPCs). These are joint management committees involving the Forest Department and the village community living adjacent to forest patches. The community undertakes the responsibility of planting, maintenance and protection of forest land, the role of the Forest Department being that of a catalyst. In return the community gets a share of the forest produce. This has been seen as an effective means of forest protection and also giving the population long-term assets. The Appraisal Report spells out the modalities for effective functioning of FPCs.

Another mechanism of asset creation can be through setting up various forest based enterprises which carry out value addition. These enterprises could be managed by the community. The feasibility of such ventures will depend on scale of operations and setting up adequate mechanisms to provide inputs. Again, commercial plantations prevent local-level value addition by these enterprises. Existing government channels for setting up these enterprises have been often plagued with a lot of problems. The Appraisal Report highlights the procedures for successful operation of these enterprises.

(The Project Appraisal was carried out by Madhavi Makkapati, Lakshmi Menon, Vijay Pillai and Vijaya Kumar).

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