Excellent study material for all civil services aspirants - being learning - Kar ke dikhayenge!
SHARE:
India - vegetation, soils, forests - Part 2
6.0 MAJOR TYPES OF NATURAL VEGETATION, PLANT AND ANIMAL LIFE
The term natural vegetation usually excludes planted or cultivated vegetation. But it is difficult these days to find areas free from human influence and thus perfectly natural in terms of vegetation. The natural vegetation of an area is a function of the climate of that region. Temperature and moisture availability are the chief elements determining the character of vegetation found in various parts of the world. India being a land of climatic variety is also a land of variety of natural vegetation.
India being a tropical country, the temperature in most parts of the country is conducive to plant growth. Therefore amount of precipitation is more important a control of plant cover except for in the high altitude regions. The forests of the country can be divided into the following types.
6.1 Evergreen Forests
Found in areas receiving over 200 cm rainfall, they cover the Western Ghats and hilly areas in northeastern India, mainly in the sub-Himalayan belt. Trees typical of these forests are hard woods such as teak, rosewood, ebony and ironwood. Bamboo is also commonly found. Due to adequate moisture availability all the year round coupled with high temperature, the vegetation here remains active all the year round and there is no particular leaf shedding season. The forest therefore looks always green. The trees in these forests are very tall and they support a lot of epiphytes.
6.2 Deciduous Forests
Found in areas receiving a rainfall of 150 to 200 cm, deciduous forests cover the larger part of the peninsular region. Trees like teak, sal, sandalwood and rosewood grow well. Due to seasonality of precipitation, the trees here shed their leaves in dry season. These forests are less dense than the evergreen ones and the height of the trees is also lesser. Epiphytes are generally absent in these forests. These forests are very important from a commercial point of view. They are a source of good quality timber.
6.3 Dry Forests
Areas with precipitation of 75 to 100 cm have dry forests. Areas under this type of vegetation are the semi-desert region of Rajasthan and the southern parts of Punjab and Haryana. Thorny trees and bushes are dominant life forms of vegetation in these regions.
6.4 Hill Forests
Also called montane forests, these cover the higher reaches of hills in southern India and the Himalayas. Since altitude is an important control of climate, the character of vegetation in upland areas changes with elevation. The foothills zone of the Siwaliks is covered by tropical moist deciduous forests of sal and bamboo, etc. Between 1000 and 2000 metres above the sea level are found the wet hill forests of oak and chestnut and some pine forests. This zone is followed by the zone of coniferous forests between 1600 and 3300 metres. The dominant trees in these forests are pine, deodar, silver fir and spruce. Above the coniferous forests extend the alpine forests of silver fir, birch, etc. above an altitude of 3600 metres. They are followed the alpine grasslands and scrub. Thus the zonation of vegetation in the mountainous regions is vertical and all types of vegetation from tropical to tundra type are found in these regions.
6.5 Tidal Forests
The estuaries of large rivers like the Ganga and Mahanadi support the littoral type of vegetation. (Littoral refers to the shallow water zone of the sea, mainly the continental shelf.) Most trees in these forests are those that can grow in marshy conditions. Sundri tree is an example of trees growing in such enivronments. These forests are also known as mangrove forests. Achra Ratnagiri (Maharashtra), Coondapur (Karnataka), Pichavaram (Tamil Nadu) and Vembanad (Kerala) also have mangroves.
Proportion of the total area of forest in India has been changing during the last few decades. Till early 1980s, land was notified as covered under forest under the Indian Forest Act, and this area was reported as the area under forest irrespective of the state of actual forest cover over such areas. As per these records 71.8 million hectares was categorised as area under forest. However since the advent of satellite data based mapping and analysis more accurate information about actual forest cover started becoming available and as per the mapping by the National Remote Sensing Agency's mapping cycle of 1980-82 the actual forest cover as estimated at 46 million hectares. Using the satellite based information the forest area is now mapped using the following definitions: Forest Cover It is defined as all lands, more than one hectare in area, with a tree canopy density of more than 10 percent. Such lands may or may not be statutorily notified as forest area,
- Very Dense Forest: All lands, with a forest cover with canopy density of 70 percent and above.
- Moderately Dense Forest: All lands, with a forest cover with canopy density of 40-70 percent,
- Open Forest: All lands, with forest cover with canopy density of 10 to 40 percent.
- Mangrove Cover: Mangrove forest is salt tolerant forest found mainly in tropical and sub-tropical coastal and/or inter-tidal regions. Mangrove cover is the area covered under mangrove vegetation as interpreted digitally from remote sensing data. It is a part of forest cover and also classified into three classes as very dense, moderately dense and open.
Besides forests under the above categories, mapping is also done for scrub cover which includes all lands generally around forest areas with tree canopy density of less than 10 per cent, as well as for patches of land under trees (blocks and linear) outside the recorded forest area exclusive of forest cover and less than minimum mapable area of 1 hectare and also the trees growing outside the Recorded Forest Areas.
Data for area under forest cover are being collected using the above criteria and reported on biannual basis. The area under forest as reported in 2010 amounts to 23.02 per cent and it has increased from 22.76 per cent in 2004. However, the area under very dense forest cover is less than 2 per cent of the total geographical area of the country and about half of the total area under forest has moderate density forest cover. Open forest accounts for about 9 per cent of the total geographical area of the country. Thus out of the total area under forest, only about 10 per cent has a dense cover.
The forest cover varies from one part of India to the other. The five leading states in terms of the total area under forest are Madhya Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Maharashtra. All these states have more than 4.68 million hectare each under forest. India is among the countries that have reversed the deforestation trend in the last two decades. According to FAO India was the fifth largest gainer in forest cover from 1990 to 2000 and third largest gainer from 2000 to 2010.
The proportion of forest area to the total area varies from more than 90 per cent in Andaman and Nicobar islands to less than 10 per cent in Haryana. Other states with over 50 per cent of their reporting area under forests include Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Jammu & Kashmir, Tripura and Himachal Pradesh.
7.1 Forestry and conservation of forests
Development, utilization and conservation of forest resources are included in forestry. Like mining and agriculture, forestry is a primary activity and depends to a great extent upon the physical environmental conditions for its development. Forestry can be pursued as an economic activity only where forests can grow. They provide a number of economically valuable commodities, the most important being timber, fuel wood and products such as bamboo, gum and leaves. Timber and firewood are called major forest products while the rest are called minor forest products.
Of the total forest are in India about half is considered to be under good tree cover. However, due to a large population of the country per capita productive forest area comes to only about 0.05 hectares. This figure has shown a declining trend from 0.2 hectares in 1951 as a result of population growth. As a consequence of increasing demand for forest products, the area under productive forests has shown a declining trend and many of the areas which supported luxuriant forests in the past are treeless today. It is believed that the Rajasthan Desert area once had a much denser cover of trees.
Timber-producing forests grow mainly in areas of ample precipitation and the major species of such trees in India are teak, sal, shisham, deodar and pine. The first three species are found in the tropical forests of central and southern India and the foothills zone of the Himalayas while conifers like pine and deodar grow in the Himalayan region at higher elevations. Some conifers are found on the upper slopes of the higher hills in southern India also. The sandalwood tree, a valuable species, grows in Karnataka in the peninsular region. Madhya Pradesh is an important producer of teak, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh of shisham, and Karnataka of sandalwood. Much of the sal forest of India is found in the eastern part of the peninsula in the states of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
There are a number of other forest products of significance. Bamboo, gum and the leaves of some trees are important forest products. These are obtained from forests of many parts, especially in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha. Resin is obtained from pine trees in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Katha (a tanning material) and lac (sealing wax) are also obtained from the forests of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
The steadily decreasing area under productive forests has led to the idea of conservation of forests and the growing of forests in areas where deforestation has resulted in the depletion of vegetation cover and land degradation. Besides causing a shortage of forest resources, the indiscriminate felling of trees leads to the problem of soil erosion and a number of ecological hazards. Conservation can be defined, in simple terms, as the management of resources in such a manner that the benefits accrue to the largest number of people for the longest possible time without harming the natural or ecological balance. Keeping the problems of forestry in mind, the national policy of forests was revised in 1952. It proposed the classification of forests on a functional basis as protected forest and village forests. It sought the creation of free lands wherever possible and the increasing of forest area to as much as 33 per cent of the total area of the country. It made provisions for ensuring progressively increasing supplies of fodder, timber and firewood to meet the increasing demands. A number of steps have been initiated to protect and increase the area under forests. The national free planting festival, Van Mahotsava, is observed every year all over the country. World Forest Day is celebrated on March 21.
Among other steps taken to increase the area under forests, the scheme of social forestry introduced during the Sixth Five Year Plan is very important. This scheme aims at the creation of cultivated forests to meet the community requirements of timber, firewood and fodder by planting locally suitable trees on public and private lands. Afforestation, in areas where vegetation cover has been degraded, is being taken up in a big way.
The government enacted the Forest (Conservation) Act in 1980 and issued guidelines to minimize the diversion of forest land to other uses. Various restrictions have been imposed on the cutting of frees from public lands and to some extent from private lands. Efforts are being made to minimize the role of contractors in the production of timber and firewood. Degradation of forests due to biotic pressures has been another area of concern. In this connection, guidelines have been framed for the preparation of working plans and felling in forests.
The Ministry issued guidelines to involve the village communities in the development and protection of degraded forests on the basis of their taking a share of the usufruct from such areas in 1990. This step initiated the concept of Joint Forest Management in the country. All the states have already issued resolutions for the Joint Forest Management and nearly 17 m.ha of forestland is being managed by projects under this programme. This resolution has been adopted by all states.
The government has also initiated the fully centrally sponsored scheme Association of Scheduled Tribe and Rural Poor in Regeneration of Degraded Forests on Usufruct Sharing Basis. This programme aims at involving the local people in rehabilitation of degraded forests in predominantly tribal areas. The scheme aiming at providing wage-employment and usufructs to the tribal people is being implemented in a number of states with large tribal populations.
The government has formulated an Integrated Forest Protection Scheme with the objectives like infrastructure development, working plan preparation and forest fire control and management. This scheme was formulated to cover all states and union territories for the Tenth Five Year Plan.
Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education, Dehradun is the apex body engaged in forestry research. There are a number of forestry research institutes and centres under the Council that are responsible for undertaking forestry research in their respective eco-climatic zones. These institutes and centres include the Forest Research Institue, Dehradun; Arid Forest Research Institute, Jodhpur; Rainforest Research Institute, Jorhat; Tropical Forestry Research Institute, Jabalpur; Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding, Coimbatore; Himalayan Forest Research Institute, Shimla; Institute for Forest Productivity, Ranchi; Centre for Social Forestry and Eco-rehabilitation, Allahabad; and Institute of Forestry Research and Human Resource Development, Chhindwara. The Indian Plywood Industries Research and Training Institute, Bangalore, an autonomous body of the Ministry, is engaged in research and training on mechanical wood industries technology. Another autonomous organization in the forestry sector is the Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal. The institute undertakes education, training, research and consultancy in forest management.
8.0 Wildlife
With a great variety in physiography, climate and habitat, India has a wide range of animals and birds in different parts. Total number of species of animals, birds and insects in India runs into several thousand. Species of birds alone number more than 1,200. It is estimated that nearly 80 per cent of all wildlife species in the world find representation in India.
Among mammal species in India the elephant is the largest and though their numbers have decreased, they still number in thousands. Elephants are found in Assam, West Bengal, Uttarakhand, Central India and the southern states of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Rhinoceros, the second largest mammal found in India once inhabited most of the Ganga Valley. However, their numbers today have been reduced to less than 1,500. They are found in a few areas in West Bengal and Assam today. Most of them survive under protection in the Manas and Kaziranga reserves in Assam and Jaldapara sanctuary in West Bengal. Wild buffalo, another large mammal, is found in parts of Assam and forests of Chhattisgarh. Forests of central region are home to bison.
Among the large carnivores, tiger is an important animal. Most of the tigers survive in wildlife reserves- tiger sanctuaries and national parks. They inhabit the foothills of the Himalayan region, parts of West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and adjoining areas. India had a large population of lions also. However, their numbers had declined and today they are confined to the Gir forest in Gujarat. With protection, numbers of both tigers and lions have shown an increase. Wild sheep and goats are found in the Himalayan region, especially in Jammu and Kashmir. Indian forests are home to a number of other animals including different varieties of bears, panthers, leopards and deer and antelopes of different varieties. The Himalayan region is home to yak also. In addition there are hyenas, jackals, wild dogs and a number of species of cats. India has monkeys and langours of several varieties.
Variety of reptiles is also fairly large. Species and subspecies of snakes alone run into hundreds. Cobra (including king cobra), krait and viper are the most well known poisonous snakes found in India. In addition there are many species of non-poisonous and aquatic snakes and different varieties of pythons. Crocodiles and gharial are among the important reptiles living in the water bodies. Ganga and some other rivers are home of Gangetic dolphin, the National Aquatic Animal of India. Lower reaches of the Ganga and the Mahanadi are still home to estuarine crocodiles. Tortoises and turtles of different varieties abound in water bodies including rivers, seas and lakes, etc. The breading area of the famous Ridley's Turtles is the coast of Odisha while the Hawksbill Turtles breed on the coast of Tamil Nadu.
India is home to a large number of bird species. In addition to the local birds, India is a temporary home to several species from the colder zones extending as far north as Siberia during winters. These birds from the cold areas migrate to India when the weather in the areas of their summer residence is too cold. Siberian crane is one of the largest birds among winter visitors to India. Peacock and jungle fowl are among the most beautiful birds. Monal, found in Himachal Pradesh is one of the most beautiful birds and it has been hunted to the level close to extinction. Only a few of these birds survive under protection today.
8.1 Wildlife Conservation
The wildlife in India is under a great deal of pressure today. The population of many species of mammals, birds and reptiles is decreasing. Hunting in the past has been one of the leading causes of decreasing animal populations. Tigers, lions, elephants, rhinos, some of the species of deer and several birds and reptiles have been extensively hunted in the past. Indian cheetah has been one of the large carnivores that got extinct more than 6 decades back. Likewise tigers and lions had also been hunted to levels threatening extinction. Crocodiles and turtles also had a similar fate. A number of birds have been hunted for their meat and feathers. Monal for example has been hunted to almost extinction and it may well have become extinct except for a few specimens surviving in zoos.
Another major factor responsible for the decreasing populations of wild animals has been the decreasing area under forests. Loss of forests implies the loss of habitat for wild animals and hence their populations decline. The forests provide not only food to animals but also seclusion and loss of the habitant affects the breeding of some of the animals.
Not only the area under forests has decreased in India, reckless felling has also interrupted the continuity of forested areas. Today forest in most parts of Central India survives in isolated patches unlike the continuous forest belts in the past. This fragmentation of forest into small isolated habitats interferes with movement of animals from one part of the forest to another. Hence the incidence of excessive populations of certain species in some forests is not rare today. Most of the tiger reserves today have more tigers than can be supported in the reserves and wildlife experts are thinking of relocation of some of the animals to other areas. The interruption of forest areas also has an adverse impact on wildlife during times of stress like a drought or spread of some disease or instances of forest fires. Interrupted forest patches prevent migration of animals in times of such stresses. Forest fires, droughts and diseases may wipe out total populations of some of the species that are confined to small pockets of forests.
Due to various causes the populations of several species have been drastically reduced. A number of the species are at the verge of extinction and several are considered endangered. A major consequence of the loss of wildlife is the loss of biodiversity. This will result in adverse ecological conditions. Hence there is a strong need for conservation of wildlife.
Recognizing the problems the government constituted the Indian Board for Wildlife in 1952 with the objectives of advising the government on means of conservation and protection of wildlife, creation of national parks, sanctuaries, zoological gardens and for promoting public awareness about wildlife problems in the country. The Wildlife (protection) Act, 1972 is the comprehensive law aiming at conservation of wildlife in the country. The act has been amended to make provisions more stringent and several species have been declared endangered under the provisions of this act.
The National Wildlife Action Plan provides for the framework, strategy and programme for conservation of wildlife in the country. The first National Wildlife Action Plan (NWAP) was formulated in 1983 and it has now been revised and the new Wildlife Action Plan (2002-2016) has been adopted. The Indian Board of Wildlife was also reconstituted in December 2001 and the board headed by the Prime Minister is the apex advisory body overseeing and guiding the implementation of various wildlife conservation schemes. Presently there are 102 National Parks and about 515 sanctuaries in the country and they together cover an area of 1.56 lakh square km. The Wildlife (Protection) Act.
1972 has been adopted by all states except for Jammu & Kashmir. The act prohibits trade in endangered and rare species. India is a signatory to the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of wild flora and fauna. India is also a signatory to the Memorandum of Understanding concerning the conservation of Siberian Cranes. The Ministry of Environment provides financial and technical assistance to states for development and improved management of national parks; protection of wildlife and control of poaching and illegal trade in wildlife products; eco-development in areas around national parks and sanctuaries; conservation of elephant and its habitat; and conservation of rhinos in Assam.
A specific project called Project Tiger was initiated to protect tiger from extinction in 1973. A total of 45 tiger reserves have been set up in different states under this project. Project Tiger has been implemented in 17 states. Looking at the success of Project Tiger, Project Elephant was started in 1992. States having free-ranging populations of elephants are provided financial and technical assistance under this project to ensure long-term survival of elephants in their natural habitat. This project is being implemented in 12 states. A total of 26 Elephant Reserves have been set up so far.
A National Institute of Animal Welfare has been established at Ballabhgarh, Faridabad. Another important organisation is the Animal Welfare Board of India. It has its headquarters at Chennai.
COMMENTS