FOREST AND WILDLIFE CLASS 10 (NCERT) NOTES
Planet Bio-Diversity:
Millions of living beings,
- From micro-organisms and bacteria,
- Lichens to banyan trees,
- Elephants and blue whales.
Ecological Web:
Humans along with all living organisms form a complex web of ecological systems
- we are only a part and
- very much dependent on this system for our own existence.
For example
The plants, animals and micro-organisms re-create:
- The quality of the air we breathe,
- The water we drink and
- The soil that produces our food without which we cannot survive.
Forest (Ecological System)
- Important role in the ecological system
- Primary producers on which all other living beings depend.
Biodiversity or Biological Diversity
- Rich in wildlife and cultivated species,
- Diverse in form and function but closely integrated in a system through multiple network of interdependencies.
Flora and Fauna in India
- Some animals and plants which are unique in your area.
- India is the world's richest country in terms of biological diversity.
Note: Many more yet to be discovered
Environment understress:
Diverse flora and fauna - integrated in our daily life
- People take them for granted.
- Environment comes under great stress (insensitivity)
Conservation of Forest and Wildlife in India
Rapid decline in wildlife population and forestry
- Required conservation
Why Conservation:
- Preserves ecological diversity and
- Our life support systems – water, air and soil.
- Preserves genetic diversity of plants and animals for better growth of species and breeding.
For example
- In agriculture - Still dependent on traditional crop varieties.
- Fisheries - Heavily dependent on the maintenance of aquatic biodiversity.
Conservation Efforts:
In the 1960s and 1970s
- Conservationists demanded a national wildlife protection programme.
Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972:
Obj:
Provisions for protecting habitats.
All- India list of protected species was also published.
Protection of certain endangered species by:
- Banning hunting,
- Giving legal protection to their habitats, and
- Restricting trade in wildlife.
Efforts By Central and State Governments:
- Established national parks and wildlife sanctuaries
Projects: The central government announced several projects for:
Protecting specific animals,
Gravely threatened,
- Including the tiger,
- The one- horned rhinoceros,
- The Kashmir stag or hangul,
- Three types of crocodiles – freshwater crocodile, saltwater crocodile and the Gharial,
- The Asiatic lion, and others.
Most recently,
- The Indian elephant,
- Black buck (chinkara),
- The great Indian bustard (godawan) and
- The snow leopard, etc.
Note: Given full or partial legal protection against hunting and trade throughout India.
Project Tiger
Fauna Web:
Key wildlife species in the faunal web.
Decline in Tiger Population:
In 1973, authorities realized - tiger population declined to 1,827 from an estimated 55,000 at the turn of the century.
Threats to tiger population:
- Poaching for trade,
- Shrinking habitat,
- Depletion of prey base species,
- Growing human population, etc.
- The trade of tiger skins and
- The use of their bones in traditional medicines, especially in Asian countries, left the tiger population on the verge of extinction.
India and Nepal Habitat:
About two-thirds of the surviving tiger population in the world,
These two nations became prime targets for poaching and illegal trading.
“Project Tiger” 1973:
Well- publicised wildlife campaigns in the world,
Tiger conservation
- Effort to save an endangered species,
- Equal importance as a means of preserving biotypes of sizeable magnitude.
Tiger reserves of India:
- Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand,
- Sunderbans National Park in West Bengal,
- Bandhavgarh National Park in Madhya Pradesh,
- Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary in Rajasthan,
- Manas Tiger Reserve in Assam and
- Periyar Tiger Reserve in Kerala
Wildlife Act of 1980 and 1986:
- several hundred butterflies,
- moths, beetles, and
- one dragonfly
Have been added to the list of protected species.
In 1991,
For the first time plants were also added to the list,
- Starting with six species.
Types and Distribution of Forest and Wildlife Resources
Conservation is difficult to:
- Manage,
- Control and
- Regulate them.
In India,
Mostly forest and wildlife resources:
- Owned or managed by the government through the Forest Department or
- Other government departments.
These are classified under the following categories.
(i) Reserved Forests:
- More than half of the total forest land has been declared reserved forests.
- Most valuable for conservation of forest and wildlife resources
(ii) Protected Forests:
- Almost one-third of the total forest area is protected forest (declared by the Forest Department)
- This forest land are protected from any further depletion.
(iii) Unclassed Forests:
Other forests and wastelands belong to both:
- Government and
- Private individuals and communities.
Reserved and protected forests
Referred to as permanent forest estates maintained for:
- Producing timber and
- Other forest produce, and
- For protective reasons.
Total forest area:
Madhya Pradesh - largest area under permanent forests,
- constituting 75 per cent of its total forest area.
Large percentage of reserved forests (total forest area):
- Jammu and Kashmir,
- Andhra Pradesh,
- Uttarakhand,
- Kerala,
- Tamil Nadu,
- West Bengal, and Maharashtra
Bulk area under protected forests:
- Bihar,
- Haryana,
- Punjab,
- Himachal Pradesh,
- Odisha and
- Rajasthan
Bulk area under unclassed forests (managed by local communities)
- All North- eastern states and
- Parts of Gujarat
Community and Conservation
Traditional communities home:
Forests are also home to some of the traditional communities.
Conservation by Local communities:
In some areas
- local communities are struggling to conserve these habitats along with government officials.
- To secure their own long-term livelihood.
Example:
- In Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan,
- Villagers have fought against mining by citing the Wildlife Protection Act.
In many areas, villagers themselves are:
- Protecting habitats
- Rejecting government involvement.
Example:
Bhairodev Dakav ‘Sonchuri’
The inhabitants of five villages in the Alwar district of Rajasthan declared:
1,200 hectares of forest as the Bhairodev Dakav ‘Sonchuri’,
Their own set of rules and regulations
- Banned hunting, and
- Protecting the wildlife against any outside encroachments.
Example:
Chipko movement
In the Himalayas this movement successfully resisted:
- Protect deforestation
- Community afforestation with indigenous species
Other attempts for conservation:
Attempts to revive:
- Traditional conservation methods or
- Developing new methods of ecological farming are now widespread.
Example:
Beej Bachao Andolan:
Farmers and citizen’s groups like:
The Beej Bachao Andolan in Tehri and Navdanya
shown adequate levels of diversified crop production without:
- the use of synthetic chemicals are possible and
- economically viable.
India joint forest management (JFM)
Programme furnishes a good example for
- Involving local communities in the management and
- Restoration of degraded forests.
Formal existence since 1988:
- when Odisha passed the first resolution for joint forest management.
Mutual benefit:
Forest:
Depends on the formation of local (village) institutions:
- Undertake protection on degraded forest land managed by the forest department.
Members:
Entitled to intermediary benefits like:
- Non-timber forest produces and
- share in the timber harvested by ‘successful protection’.
Natural resource management
The clear lesson from the dynamics of both
- Environmental destruction and
- Reconstruction in India
local communities everywhere have to be involved in some kind of natural resource management.
Limitations:
Still a long way to go:
- Before local communities are at the centre-stage in decision-making.
Accept only those economic or developmental activities, that are:
- People centric,
- Environment-friendly and
- Economically rewarding.
Sacred groves
Ecological Wealth:
A wealth of diverse and rare species
Nature worship:
An age old tribal belief that all creations of nature have to be protected.
Preserve Forests:
Several virgin forests in pristine form called Sacred Groves (the forests of God and Goddesses).
- These patches of forest or parts of large forests left untouched by the local people and
- Any interference is banned.
Revere a Particular Tree:
Societies revere a particular tree from time immemorial.
Examples:
The Mundas and the Santhal of Chota Nagpur region worship:
- mahua (Bassia latifolia) and
- kadamba (Anthocaphalus cadamba) trees,
The tribals of Odisha and Bihar worship
- Tamarind (Tamarindus indica) and
- Mango (Mangifera indica) trees during weddings.
Others:
To many of us,
- Peepal and banyan trees are considered sacred.
Cultural and Conservation:
- Indian society comprises several cultures,
- Each with its own set of traditional methods of conserving nature and its creations.
Sacred qualities ascribed to:
- Springs,
- Mountain peaks,
- Plants and animals
Are closely protected.
Conservation about Temples:
Troops of macaques and langurs around temples.
They were fed daily and
Treated as a part of temple devotees.
Example:
In and around Bishnoi villages in Rajasthan, herds of:
- blackbuck, (chinkara),
- nilgai and
- peacocks
Seen as an integral part of the community and nobody harms them.
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