Forest Society and Colonialism

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Deforestation refers to the disappearance of forests. While it began many centuries ago, under colonial rule it became more systematic and extensive. Between 1700 and 1995, 13.9 million sq km of fores…

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The British encouraged cultivation expansion for two main reasons: 1) To increase production of commercial crops like jute, sugar, wheat and cotton needed in Europe for feeding urban population and in…

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Each mile of railway track required between 1,760 and 2,000 sleepers. By 1890, about 25,500 km of track had been laid, requiring massive tree felling. In the 1850s, in Madras Presidency alone, 35,000 …

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Dietrich Brandis was a German forest expert invited by the British to advise on forest management in India. He became the first Inspector General of Forests in India, set up the Indian Forest Service …

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Scientific forestry involved cutting down natural forests with diverse tree species and replacing them with plantations of single tree species planted in straight rows. Forest officials surveyed fores…

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The 1878 Forest Act divided forests into three categories: 1) Reserved forests - the best forests from which villagers could take nothing, even for personal use, 2) Protected forests - villagers could…

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Forest laws made everyday practices illegal - cutting wood for houses, grazing cattle, collecting fruits and roots, hunting and fishing. People were forced to steal wood and faced harassment from fore…

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Shifting cultivation (swidden agriculture) involves cutting and burning parts of forest in rotation, sowing seeds in ashes, harvesting crops, then leaving land fallow for 12-18 years. Local names incl…