 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Reserved forests and protected forests of India" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(August 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Areserved forest (also called areserve forest) andprotected forest inIndia is aforest accorded a certain degree of protection. The concept was introduced in theIndian Forest Act of 1927 during theBritish Raj to refer to forests granted protection under theBritish crown in British India, but not associatedsuzerainties. AfterIndian independence, theGovernment of India retained the status of the reserved and protected forests, and extended protection to other forests. Many forests that came under the jurisdiction of the Government of India during thepolitical integration of India were initially granted such protection.
UnlikeNational Parks orwildlife sanctuaries, reserved forests and protected forests are declared by the respectivestate governments. At present, reserved forests and protected forests differ in one important way: Activities including hunting, grazing, etc. inreserved forests are banned unless specific orders are issued otherwise. Inprotected forests, such activities are sometimes allowed for communities living on the fringes of the forest, who sustain their livelihood partially or wholly from forest resources or products.
These are the forests, which enjoy judicial fortification based on legitimate systems.These are the protected forests with the natural habitat exhibiting a high degree of protection from any kind ofpoaching and hunting.These may also be utilized for the small and short contexts in various countries.The examples are Attappadi reserve forest in Kerala and Palani Hills forest conservation area in Tamil Nadu.
Protected forests are either demarcated or undemarcated, based on whether the limits of the forest have been specified by a formal notification.
A protected forest is land notified under the provisions of the Indian Forest Act or the State Forests Act. In protected forests, all activities are permitted unless they are expressly prohibited. A protected forest is land that is a reserved forest, and over which the government has property rights, as declared by a state government under section 29 of the Indian forest act 1927.
Protected forests and Reserved Forests can sometimes be made part ofwildlife sanctuaries, which in turn may be upgraded to the status ofnational parks, with each category receiving a higher degree of protection and government funding. For example,Sariska National Park was declared a reserved forest in 1955, a wildlife sanctuary in 1958, and aTiger Reserve in 1978, before becoming a national park in 1992.[1] Wildlife Sanctuaries, National Parks and other wildlife areas enjoying legal protection under Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 are sometimes referred to with a generic name, “Protected Areas,” and this is not the same as Protected Forests.
Due to faster population growth in forest and tribal areas, naturally available forest resources (NTFP) are becoming inadequate to provide a basic livelihood to the increased population. Many tribal people are giving up their traditional livelihoods in favor of farming and cattle ranching in the forest areas. Once former protectors of forests, they are gradually becoming threats to the forests and their wildlife.[opinion] Tribal people have deep understanding of forest flora and fauna that can be productively utilized if they can support their families while doing so.[2][opinion]