Deforestation
* Forests form an important part of our ecosystem and are beneficial to us in various ways.
* Deforestation is the process of clearing of forests by removing trees through logging or burning.
* Causes of deforestation are cultivation, timber for building ships, trains and railway line sleepers, plantations and the demand for fodder, leaves and fuel by the Adivasis.
* The effects of deforestation include soil erosion, disturbance in the water cycle, extinction of plants and animals, and rendering of forest dwellers homeless.
Rise of Commercial Forestry
* Dietrich Brandis was appointed the first Inspector General of Forests in India.
* He set up the Indian Forest Service in 1864 and helped formulate the Indian Forest Act of 1865.
* Brandis founded the Imperial Forest Research Institute at Dehradun in 1906.
* He introduced and started the practice of ‘scientific forestry’ or commercial forestry in India.
Impacts of the Indian Forest Act
* The Indian Forest Act of 1865 had several impacts on the lives of various people.
* The daily practices of cutting wood, collecting fruits and roots, and fishing – were banned.
* The British banned hunting of small animals, but encouraged hunting of wild animals by giving rewards.
* They also banned shifting cultivation.
Rebellion in the Forests
* Rebellion arose in the forests of Bastar in 1910.
* The people of Bastar were exploited to pay increased land rents, work for free and provide free goods to the government officials.
* The initiative for rebelling against the British was taken by the Dhurwas of the Kangar forest.
* One prominent name associated with these rebellions is that of Gunda Dhur who was a rebel leader from a village named Nethanar.
* The British had to suspend the work of forest reservation and reduce the area to be reserved to half of the original proposed.
Forest Transformations in Java
* The development and transformation of the forests in India and Java in Indonesia are similar to a great extent.
* Forest management, large-scale deforestation and shifting cultivation were also practiced in Java.
* Like the people of Bastar, the Kalangs also rebelled against the Dutch.
* Surontiko Samin took the initiative to stand up against the Dutch.
* Both the Dutch in Java and the British in India exploited the forest resources to meet their war needs.
