Showing papers on "Forest produce published in 2013"

Forest fights in Haripur, Northwest Pakistan

Abstract: This thesis is an inter-paradigmatic exchange between political ecology and post-structuralist interpretations of actor-structure relationships. The study is founded on multiple discourses where different interpretations of a particular phenomenon by various actors have been analysed. The thesis is meant to show that relationships between society and nature are dynamic, entail multi-sited struggles among many actors at several terrains and are deeply rooted in earlier history.The study transpires that the forest is shaped by a loosely knit network of actors that are linked together by a kaleidoscope of rights, claims and social relationships which seem to determine the fate of the forest in a village. Chapter 2 elaborates the theoretical foundation and methodological trajectory of this thesis. The concept of arena is central and analytically useful for this study as it connotes and involves social actors, their social relationships, practices and struggles between them. The notion of social arena is a metaphor for the site or place where action takes place between social actors. These places are not limited by geographical, natural or administrative borders. Arenas are social locations in which contests over issues, resources, values and representations take place. These are either spaces in which contestation associated with different practices and values of different domains takes place; or they are spaces within a single domain where attempts are made to resolve discrepancies in value interpretation and incompatibilities between actor interests. I argue that the forest as a social arena stretches beyond its natural and physical borders.The arena as the site of the struggle is not just geographically confined within natural (e.g. forest) and/or administrative (e.g. political) boundaries but it stretches beyond the locality. These arenas are diverse, they overlap and co-exist, and the boundaries at a given time are defined by networks of relationships between forest users and consumers, relationships between the State, bureaucrats, forest owners, dwellers, and so on. Chapter 3 gives a detailed account of history of Haripur and how forests were legally categorised and distributed. History helps understand the political alliances and the power struggles in the region, the district, and (sub district) Khanpur. The State, during British rule introduced a new management regime for natural resources which changed the entire social landscape of Khanpur by attaching private property rights to the trees as well as forest lands in the region. The government authorities, notably the Forest department have most often seen forest dwellers destructive for the forest, depleting its resources and interfering with nature. This premise lays foundation of mistrust between people and the government. Contrary to this, the initiatives to introduce people in forestry governance are based on the realisation that the ownership, or at least management control over forests, is critical to responsible management by the people. Chapter 4 provides a detailed account of how the Forest department operates in relation to people and forest resources. There are multiple scales of articulation, alliances and struggles within and around the department and these positions are changeable from time to time with several internal and external factors. The case of Forest department manifests that the State is to be seen as a multifaceted organ and not as an individual actor. Structural changes were introduced in the department but the core on which the foundation of the department was laid, was never changed. Many women firmly believe that the department must continue to use authority to control local people who cause degradation. Each reform initiative taken in the name of participation ended up with basically continuing the same centralised system. Forests were never handed over to the community along with management responsibility (e.g. Guzara forests). Only joint management of forests was enacted – yet not implemented. Trust remained a major issue in all these struggles. The subject of forest fire, which I perceive and have experienced as a strong manifestation of resistance and also as a tool to manipulate natural resources, has been dealt with in different places in this thesis, but particularly in Chapter 5. Burning forests is an old practice for clearing land for agriculture.Fire therefore had a significant role in defining farmers’ territories. Gradually these practices changed but grazers continued to light up forests to produce lush green grass for their livestock. This led to a persistent discourse based on appropriating every fire incident to the grazers’ practices. This study highlights that fire is now increasingly used as a management tool for manipulating the resource. Firewood collectors and big owners use fire for obtaining dry firewood or build the case for felling dead / dry trees which is allowed in the policy after ban on green felling. Even if fires may occur due to the will of the forest owner, the policy blindly holds grazersresponsible for their wasteful and damaging practices. The collectors of Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFP), mostly women, are not happy with fire since their resources are burnt down due to the productive fire requirement of Chir pine (Pinus roxburghii). There is an incline in the graph of forest fires, decreasing self initiative among people to control fires, along with the Forest department’s management bias towards Chir pine trees in fire control operations; these concerns echo in various voices from the field. The chapter also highlights a form of connivance between the owner and the occupants of lands (peasants / tenants) and also the owners and Forest department staff. Chapters 6 deals with actors in their struggle to secure their rights to the forest through acquiring forest land title deeds. This initiative from the side of the new owners can be understood as a response to what is explained in Chapter 5. No forests have been handed over with management responsibilities to non owner forest users in nearly one and a half centuries. Non owners have resorted to buying forest lands in little parcels in creating private forests. This way, new meanings are given to the forest and new spaces are created through tactical networking among various actors. Field evidence and opinions from several actors suggest that Reserved forests are frequently being accessed by people for their needs in a de facto manner. Several new owners have acquired land entitlement comprising small pieces of lands which do not have a huge timber value in future. Followed by this, it is also visible that the nature of power in the contemporary society of Khanpur (and beyond) is changing. Power, which was once measured through landholding, is now measured through other symbols, such as political connectivity and affiliation. Regular access to NTFP by non-right holders for the sake of earning an income (Chapter 7) is an illustration of their struggle, or more strongly put, an in-between expression of resistance. Poor women remain invisible in their daily practice to access NTFPs. They use spaces that are considered undesirable by other forest actors. These spaces cannot be completely separated within the social arena, but they are knitted into the day to day practices of people. State intrusion into women’s customary and de facto practices concerns them. They fear that this will only reduce their chances of earning a modest livelihood from the forest. However, the women are also highly creative in reshaping their practices and relationships with every change that takes place around them. Firewood collection is the most visible, uninterrupted and non-compromising activity for women. In their daily struggle to feed the family, they virtually manage and control the forest. Contrary to this, women are not part of any dialogue on forestry reform. They need to be part of the negotiation process in which their spaces remain secure. The most important challenge is to create the mechanisms for discussion, negotiation, and arbitration of gendered access regimes under a variety of circumstances.

Decentralisation, Participation and Boundaries of Transformation: Forest Rights Act, Wayanad, India

Abstract: Participation and decentralisation have been shown to yield democratic outcomes in terms of efficiency, accountability and transparency through citizen engagement and devolution of powers. It has been a matter of debate whether they also benefit marginalised communities like the indigenous peoples. This paper analyzes the implications of decentralised governance in a tribal zone in India using the case of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act 2006 − the Forest Rights Act. The effects of the Act are studied in the district of Wayanad, Kerala, through the theoretical framework of transformative decentralisation and spatial politics of participation. The key objectives of the Act − securing tenure and access to Minor Forest Produce − have achieved limited success in Wayanad as a result of a narrowly construed ideas of people’s participation. While the process prescribed by the Forest Rights Act has the potential to create new spaces for participation, most of these spaces remain closed in Wayanad. The absence of a larger vision and a radical motive to engage with the underlying patterns of domination and subordination in society has confined the process of decentralisation to its technocratic essentials, raising questions on the extent to which the Act can pave the way for transformation.

Minor Forest Product and Marketing: A Case Study of Broom Grass in Meghalaya

Abstract: Broomgrass (Thysanolaena latifolia) , an important minor forest produce of Meghalaya grows in the wild in almost all parts of the state. The study was conducted in Mawlong village of Ri-Bhoi district of Meghalaya during the year of 2011-12. Whole sale trading of brooms was a highly monopolized activity. Major portion (65%) of consumers' price goes to the traders and middlemen. The price fixation of the produce should be carried out through open auction method. At present maximum share of produce directly taken by commission agent. Therefore, to improve economy of the people in the state and region, the system of cooperative marketing needs to be developed.

Hunting of endemic and threatened forest-dwelling chelonians in the Western Ghats, India

Abstract: This study investigates the hunting of two endemic and threatened terrestrial chelonians, the Cochin forest cane turtle (Vijayachelys silvatica) and Travancore tortoise (Indotestudo travancorica) in the Western Ghats region of India. Informal interviews were conducted with indigenous and non-indigenous communities and Forest Department officials to understand the dynamics of chelonian hunting and the existent rationale and beliefs that supported it. Chelonian consumption was existent among both indigenous and non-indigenous communities, but was higher among the former. Indotestudo travancorica was exploited to a larger extent than Vijayachelys silvatica. Both the species were used as a cure for piles and asthma, to increase body strength and were largely captured during collection of non-timber forest produce and fire management activities. These chelonians were also sold to local hotels and served to customers known on a personal basis with minimal transfer to urban areas. Conservation action needs to be prioritised towards I. travancorica, by upgrading its IUCN Red List status, and also through increased interaction between the Forest Department and local communities to improve chelonian conservation in the landscape.

The Declining Contribution of Forestry to the Gross Domestic Product of Nigeria: Causes and Cure

Abstract: Forest ecosystems play multiple roles at global as well as local levels and provide a range of important economic, social and environmental goods and services that have impact on the well-being of the people. The objective of this paper is to assess thedeclining contribution of forestry to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Nigeria and to proffer possible solution to the problem. Secondary data for the research were collected from the Central Bank of Nigeria from the period 1980-2004. Multiple regression analysis (exponential or transformed semi log) was used to determine the input factors that critically influence the Gross Domestic product in the agricultural sector of the country. The equation and figures revealed a high performance of the model in term of the high value of' R2. The high value of R2 implies that 98.7% percent variability in gross income generated from Agriculture is explained by combined effect of the independent variables (Crop production, Fishing, Forestry and Livestock). The level of significance of the explanatory variables is high. F-value is significant at both 1 percent and 5 percent. Individually, their contributions are not significant (P>0.05), but pulled together, it showed significant difference at P<0.01. The result showed that the contribution of forestry sub-sector has been declining as GDP increases. Forestry has been a unique business in Nigeria even before independence. In 1958, forestry contribution to the GDP of the country was 6.1 %; in 1960, it was 5.3%. Surprisingly, the percentage contribution in 2003 is 0.6%. The declining export role of forest produce in the national economy is partly due to the over-exploitation of the high quality timbers in the previous decades and partly to the inability of the forest departments and the timber trade to develop the secondary species which now constitute the main timber contents of the forest estate. It is recommended that the new hectarages of planted trees need not be in large expanse of lands, rather, the new forest lands might have to be in patches located in water shed areas, school compound, road sides, government institutions, community lands, and private properties.

Provision of Livelihood Opportunity in the Fringe Forest: some Experiences of Tripura

Abstract: The forest dwellers depend upon forest for meeting their livelihood requirements including fire wood, timber and other minor forest produce. But due to shrinking natural-resources and commercialization of forest products for urban utilization, forest fringe community is deprived of natural-resources which led them to frustration and anger. These have got manifested in the form of violence and unlawful activities by a section of forest dwellers. Scheduled Tribe and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of forest rights) Act 2006 was enacted to address these issues. Tripura state under the 6 th schedule of the constitution has established the Tripura Tribal Area Autonomous District and empowered the fringe forest communities to govern themselves and to protect and preserve their culture, customs and traditions. Present article described the various steps taken by the Tripura Government to address various issues for the welfare of forest dwellers for creating "Win-Win" situation.

Impact of Vana Samrakshana Samithi (VSS) in forest Development Activities With Special Reference to Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) - An Empirical Analysis

Abstract: The first forest Act was enacted in 1865 mainly to facilitate the acquisition of forest areas that could supply timber to railways without abridging the existing rights of the people. The forest in this Act was defined as “land covered with trees, brushwood and Jungle”. The next wood extraction for the industrial purposes such as ship building in Royal Navy and railway sleepers laying and bridge constructions. Based on the National Forest Policy of 1988 the Government of India has initiated joint Forest management knows as community forest management (CFM) and encourage people participation in the management of forest for the planned developments of the Forests. The National Forest policy of 1988 keeping in view main factors advocated that the forest cover should at least be 33 percent of the total Geographical area India. Forest dependent communities survival mostly depends upon the availability of the NTFPs in the tribal areas. In the scheduled areas of Andhra Pradesh most of the tribal people have been collecting different types of NTFPs for meeting their domestic needs and for the sale. The finding shows that either the male or female or other involved for certain days in the specific seasons in the NTFP collection. Our analysis clearly shows that in all a higher percentage of the respondents were aware of the functioning of VSS. It is found that out of the 168 respondents from eight VSS villages 125 respondents could not find place in the VSS executive committee. As many as 38 percent of the sample respondents were of the view that at present the forest is very thick which is due to the VSS activities. It is interesting to note that 16 percent of the total sample respondents of VSS villages have stated that due to the VSS existence there is a visible improvement in their forest area. Out of total sample respondents only 16 per cent of them were undergone the training pertaining to incense sticks making at the village level which is being facilitated by the Forest department officials. Finally, the study recommends that the concerned VSS executive committee and official should take appropriate measures, like promotion of knowledge and skill through regular meetings, trainings and role of government and other institutions in improvement of forest based livelihoods.

Implementing the Forest Rights Act: Addressing a historical injustice

Abstract: The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN (FAO) estimates that almost 400 million people in India depend on forests for sustenance and complementary income; these populations are among the most vulnerable and are generally considered extremely poor communities. Indian laws have considered forest dwellers as ‘encroachers’ and have criminalised their livelihood activities - collecting forest produce, farming, grazing of animals, and using water bodies - and has further restricted the dwellers’ rights. In 2006, the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dweller’s (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act (also known as the Forest Rights Act) recognised customary rights over ancestral land and has received mixed reviews and seen various levels of success. This paper reviews the successes of the Act, and considers areas where it has been less effective. Specifically, while the Act grants individuals, families or communities the right over their own land, in its first six years, while the government received 3.5 million claims, only 39.7 per cent had resulted in land titles being granted.

Just Harvest: Ecology and Politics of Forest Canopy Product Use in Protected Areas

Abstract: There exists a long history of state interest in non-timber forest products (NTFPs) harvest, as a result of which forest-dwelling communities have been “arborealized,” i.e., made dependent on forest produce while being denied land rights (Li 2010 ). Recent conservation policies have added to this historic marginalization by further restricting a relatively low level of subsistence forest use. Such forest policies are mandated in spite of ecological studies that demonstrate that NTFPs can be sustainably harvested. The loss of forest access has resulted in adverse effects on livelihoods of local people. We present recent fi ndings from ecological and socioeconomic studies in a protected area in India to argue that forest product harvest might be supported even within protected areas subjected to a system of local and scientifi c knowledge and management. Using the case of Phyllanthus fruit collection and Apis dorsata honey harvest, we demonstrate how ecological, social-cultural, and economic aspects might be incorporated into equitable management regimes.

Economic Instruments to Reconcile Conservation and Livelihoods: Analysing the Potential for Bamboo in Karnataka

Abstract: The over-exploitation of forest produce, the undermining of traditional institutions and the consequent institutional lacunae, as described in the previous chapters and the poverty of forest-dependent communities, raise challenges for policies towards reducing rural poverty. In Karnataka, nationalised NTFPs like bamboo generate considerable revenue to the state. Channelising part of this revenue for inclusive conservation efforts, though relatively straightforward, has been limited to a few high-value end products. This chapter examines fiscal measures on bamboo products, as an example of the potential of such mechanisms to supplement regulatory measures in augmenting the dwindling livelihood base of forest-dependent communities. A biodiversity and livelihood cess on bamboo products in the state of Karnataka is examined for equity and distributional impacts. We find that such a cess need not be anti-poor, especially so if the revenue is earmarked for livelihood enhancement of NTFP gatherers through decentralised and inclusive conservation measures.