Introduction to Forest Resources in India: Conservation, Management and Monitoring Perspectives

Abstract

India is known to have a vivid array of forests from the rainforests in Kerala to the alpine pastures in Ladakh and the desert pastures in Rajasthan to the evergreen forests situated in the north-east. Numerous parameters determine the type of forest such as climate, soil type, elevation and topography. Forests are categorized into diverse types based on the type of climate in which they are found, their nature and composition and their relationship with the surrounding environment. According to ISFR (2019), the total forest and tree cover of the country accounts for about 24.56% of the geographical area, which is 80.73 million hectares. 99,278 sq.km is covered by very dense forest, 3, 08,472 sq.km area is covered by moderately dense forest and 3,04,499 sq.km area is covered by open forest. According to the assessment in ISFR 2019, there was an observed upsurge of 5188 sq.km in the area covered by forest and tree cover combined, at the national level, as compared to the assessment carried out earlier in 2017. There was an upsurge in the area covered by overall forest and tree cover at the national level, but there was a decrease in the forest area in the country’s north-east region as emphasized in the report. It was also observed that Arunachal Pradesh had maximum species richness in terms of trees, shrubs and herbs followed by Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Champion and Seth (A revised survey of the forest types of India. Govt. of India Publication, New Delhi, 1968) have used temperature and rainfall data for the classification of Indian forests into five major forest types and 16 minor forest types and more than 200 subgroups. In India, the major forest type groups are tropical semi-evergreen, tropical moist deciduous, littoral and swamp, tropical dry deciduous, tropical thorn, sub-tropical broad-leaved hill forests, sub-tropical dry evergreen, Himalayan moist and dry temperate, sub-alpine, montane wet temperate moist alpine scrub and dry alpine scrub. The tropical moist littoral and swamp forests of Sundarbans are constituted by mangroves. Mangroves are salt-tolerant plant communities that inhabit tropical and sub-tropical intertidal regions of the world and have developed into a good habitat for tigers. Though the diversity of forest resources in India is remarkable, the status of deterioration of these resources should also be monitored. The primary causing serious threats include loss of forest cover due to shifting cultivation, illegal felling, conversion of forest lands for urban expansion and other biotic pressures. Illegitimate cutting of trees has impacted the climatic conditions at a micro-level. It has affected the soil quality, hydrological cycle and biodiversity of the country, thus making the country more exposed to natural calamities and climate change. Most forests are under threat due to strong anthropogenic pressure, extensively due to collection of fuel wood and livestock grazing. Effective management strategies that take into account restoration and also promote judicious use of forest resources would ensure sustainability in the long run.