Introduction to forestry

1. INTRODUCTION – DEFINITIONS &
BASIC TERMS RELATED TO FORESTRY
Dr. B. Sangeetha

2.  Forest- The word ‘Forest’ is derived from Latin word ‘foris’ meaning
outside the village boundary or away from inhabited land.
 Forest is defined as ‘an area set aside for the production of timber and
other forest produce, or maintained under woody vegetation for certain
indirect benefits which it provides, e.g., climatic and protective.
 Forestry is defined as ‘the theory and practice of all that constitutes the
creation, conservation and scientific management of forests and the
utilization of their resources’.

3. Forest Cover: defined as all lands, more than one hectare in
area, with a tree canopy density of more than 10%.
Forest
cover
Very
Dense
Forest
Moderately
Dense
Forest
Open
Forest
Scrub
Forest

4. Very Dense Forest:
All lands, with a forest
cover with canopy
density of 70% and
above

5. Moderately Dense Forest:
All lands, with a forest
cover with canopy density
of 40-70 %

6. Open Forest:
All lands, with forest
cover with canopy
density of 10 to 40%

7. Scrub:
All lands, with poor
tree growth mainly
of small or stunted
trees with canopy
density of less than
10 %

8.  Non -Forest:
Area not included in the above category

9. Forest Cover of India
Class
Area (Sq
km)
Percent of Geographic Area (%)
Very Dense forest 98,158 2.99
Moderately Dense forest 3,08,318 9.38
Open Forest 3,01,797 9.18
Total Forest Cover 7,08,273 21.54
Scrub 45,979 1.40
Non – Forest 25,33,217 77.06
Total Geographical Area 32,87,469 100
Includes 4921 sq km under mangrove cover

10. Forest Laws in India
 Indian Forest Act, 1927
 Forest Conservation Act, 1980
 Environment Protection Act, 1986
 Biological Diversity Act, 2002
 The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest
Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006
 Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act, 2016

11. Forest research Institutes
 ICFRE – Indian Council for Forest Research and Education, Dehradun.
 Forest Research Institute - Dehradun.
 Forest Survey of India, Dehradun
 Institute of Forest Biodiversity, Hyderabad
 Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding, Coimbatore
 Forest College and Research Institute, Mettupalayam
 Centre for International Forestry Research, Bogor, Indonesia.

12. ICFRE – Indian Council for Forest Research and
Extension, Dehradun.

13. Forest Research Institute - Dehradun

14. Forest Survey of India, Dehradun

15. Institute of Forest Biodiversity, Hyderabad

16. Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding,
Coimbatore

17. Forest College and Research Institute, Mettupalayam

18. Centre for International Forestry Research, Bogor,
Indonesia.

19. Agroforestry Research
Institutes
 ICAR-Central Agroforestry
Research Institute, Jhansi
 International Centre for
Research in Agroforestry,
Nairobi, Kenya

20. Important Days Related to Forestry
 International day for forest – March, 21
 International Mother Earth Day – April, 22
 Environment Day – June, 5
 International Day for Biological diversity – May,22

21. Scientist involved in Forest Conservation
 Dietrich Brandis – Father of Indian forestry
 Hugo Woods – Man behind the conservation of western Ghats
 Volcker – Forest development and management
 Salim Ali – Ornithologist, Bird man of India
 Sunderlal Bahuguna - Chipko movement
 Wangari Mathaai – Green Belt Movement

22.  1864-Dietrich Brandis- Inspector General of Forests
in India, a position he served in for 20 years.
 He formulated helped establish research a new forest
legislation and training institutions.
 The Imperial Forest School at Dehradun was founded
by him.
 Brandis was created a Companion of the Indian
Empire in 1878

23. Salim Ali – Ornithologist
 Sálim Moizuddin Abdul Ali (12 November 1896 – 20
June 1987) was an Indian ornithologist and naturalist.
 "Birdman of India“- the first Indian to conduct
systematic bird surveys across India and wrote
several bird books that popularized ornithology in
India.
 He became a key figure behind the Bombay Natural
History Society after 1947 and used his personal
influence to garner government support for the
organisation, create the Bharatpur bird sanctuary
(Keoladeo National Park) and prevent the destruction
of what is now the Silent Valley National Park.


24.  The Chipko movement or chipko andolan, was a forest conservation movement in India.
 The movement originated in 1973 at the Himalayan region of Uttarakhand (then part of Uttar
Pradesh) and went on to become a rallying point for many future environmental movements all
over the world.
 It created a precedent for starting nonviolent protest in India. However, it was Sunderlal
Bahuguna, a Gandhian activist, who gave the movement a proper direction and its success meant
that the world immediately took notice of this non-violent movement, which was to inspire in time
many similar eco-groups by helping to slow down the rapid deforestation, expose vested interests,
increase social awareness and the need to save trees, increase ecological awareness, and
demonstrate the viability of people power.

25. Wangari Mathaai – Green Belt Movement
 The Green Belt Movement (GBM) is an indigenous, grassroots, non-
governmental organization based in Nairobi, Kenya, that takes a holistic
approach to development by focusing on environmental conservation,
community development and capacity building. Professor Wangari
Maathai established the organization in 1977, under the auspices of
the National Council of Women of Kenya.
 The Green Belt Movement also aims at organizing women in rural Kenya to
plant trees, combat deforestation, restore their main sources of fuel for
cooking, generate income, and stop soil erosion. Maathai has incorporated
advocacy and empowerment for women, eco-tourism, and overall economic
development into the Green Belt Movement.
 Since Wangari Maathai started the movement in 1977, over 51 million trees
have been planted, and over 30,000 women have been trained
in forestry, food processing, bee-keeping, and other trades that help them
earn income while preserving their lands and resources.