Forest Conservation In Indiaby Dharmendra Kapri | 28-02-2017 04:36 |
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Man has now realised the importance of forests has also felt the need for their conservation. Forest Conservation Act, 1980 has come into existence. The idea of growing trees as a regular crop is fast spreading. Foresters agree that all our requirements of woods can be met ig the forest conservation programmes are properly implemented. India's forest policy requires that there should be 60% forest cover in the hills and 20% in the plains. The following steps can help conserve the forest wealth- 1. Maximum economy should be observed in the use of timber and fuel wood. Wastage should be minimized or eliminated. Alternative sources of energy, such as bio gas, should supplement fuel wood. 2. Indiscriminate deforestation should be prohibited. 3. Reforestation of the deforested areas should be undertaken as early as possible. "A tree removed from the forest for timber or fuel wood must be replaced by a new tree" should be the aim. 4. Afforestation should be done in areas unfit for agriculture, along highways and rivers, around playgrounds and parks, and in spacious compounds. A special function of tree plantation, Van Mahotsava, is held each year in our country during February and July since 1950. However, it needs to be made more popular, meaningful and effective. Many international agencies are also giving help for promoting afforestation programmes. These agencies include World Bank, US Agency for International Development(USAID), Canadian International Development Authority(CIDA), and Swedish International development Authority(SIDA). Reforestation and afforestation are slow and costly processes, but are vital aspects of the conservation programme. 5. Forest fires should be prevented. Modern fire-fighting equipment should be used to extinguish forest fires. 6. Pests and diseases of the forest trees should be controlled. Both chemical and biological methods of pest control should be adopted. 7. Grazing of cattle in the forests should be discouraged. Apart from shelter, animals get little from a wood pasture. Trees and other plants of the forest contain abundant cellulose but very little protein- a material essential for the production of flesh and milk. 8. Modern techniques of forestry should be adopted. These include use of irrigation, fertilizers, bacterial and mycorrhizal inoculation, control of weeds, breeding of choice tree and tissue culture. 9. Operations called improvement cutting and selective cutting should be adopted in the forest management. These are described ahead. 10. The central and state governments have undertaken many afforestation programmes for the conservation of forests. These are discussed separately ahead. Central Arid Zone Research institute (CAZRI) at Jodhpur is trying to check the spread of Rajasthan desert and to reclaim its lands by planting suitable trees, shrubs and grasses. |
