Forests

Featured Articles
October 6, 2022 Rapid urbanisation and faulty land use policies are rapidly destroying forests, grasslands and wetlands in Jammu and Kashmir, India and the ecosystem value services they provide. Can these valuable ecosystems be saved?
Deteriorating ecosystems of Jammu and Kashmir, India (Image Source: tkohli at Flickr via Wikimedia Commons)
April 13, 2022 Over 30% of Indian districts are prone to extreme forest fires, as per a CEEW study
More than 275 million people in India are exposed to extreme forest fire events. (Image: Naveen N Kadalaveni, Wikimedia Commons)
September 21, 2021 A fatal tick borne disease is on the rise in the Western Ghat states. Deforestation, declining biodiversity and increasing human animal conflicts are to blame.
The Western ghats forests, under threat (Image Source: India Water Portal)
April 28, 2021 There is a need to work on the development of protocols or models, enhancement of productivity and livelihood sustainability
Jhum cultivation in Nokrek biosphere reserve, Meghalaya (Image: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0)
December 11, 2019 Policy matters this week
Polythene bags and solid waste left behind as water recedes in the Ganga river. (Source: India Water Portal on Flickr)
Choppy waters and a calm river voyager
Emmanuel Theophilus was awarded the ' Bhagirath Prayas Samman' at the India Rivers Day 2015 for his valiant and untiring effort to safeguard the integrity of the Mahakali River. Posted on 06 Dec, 2015 12:31 PM

The epic voyage--Nadisutra--along the Ganga may have been the high point of Emmanuel Theophilus’s recent work, but there have been many more peaks and valleys for this fervent mountaineer cum ecologist. Theo lives in a remote village near Munsiyari in Uttarakhand.

Theophilus being awarded the ' Bhagirath Prayas Samman' (Source: Kush Sethi)
New CGWA guidelines mandate NOC for industries to extract groundwater
Policy matters this week Posted on 24 Nov, 2015 05:45 PM

Industries can extract groundwater only after obtaining a NOC: CGWA

Groundwater, a scarce resource (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Saaf Mathe Ka Samaaj: A treasure of essays on life and water
In our blind pursuit of progress, has the equation between man and nature been lost? Anupam Mishra talks about people, the environment and the mislaid empathy between the two. Posted on 19 Nov, 2015 01:04 PM

Saaf Mathe Ka Samaaj’ is a compilation of 23 essays on people, land, air and water, on issues and concerns that plague them, and the deep and direct connect between society and the environment they live in. Anupam Mishra is a simple, down to earth man and a true Gandhian.

Saaf mathe ka samaaj': Essays by Anupam Mishra (Source: Anupam Mishra)
Wildlife Board panel not to consider projects in and around protected areas
Policy matters this week Posted on 11 Nov, 2015 08:23 PM

Panel not to consider projects until eco-zones are clearly demarcated

Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan (Source: Vasundhara Deogawanka via IWP Flickr Photos)
20 sq.km forest area to be diverted for “blue and green, environment-friendly capital city” Amaravati
Policy matters this week Posted on 03 Nov, 2015 12:00 PM

Centre to allow diversion of a whooping 20 sq.km. forest area for Andhra's new capital

An undisturbed forest (Source: IWP Flickr Photo)
Sustainable practices in slash-and-burn lands in Nagaland
Jhum or shifting cultivation has been criticised regarding its ecological and economic impacts. UNDP takes on the challenge by introducing integrated farm development practices. Posted on 01 Nov, 2015 11:02 AM

A thick smog and haze eclipse the sun all through the day when jhum areas are burnt. Jhum, known as shifting cultivation a practice practice inv

Shifting cultivation lands (Source: Prashant N S, 2006, Wikimedia)
Why seeds sprout 'hope'
Seeds are not a just a gateway to the future but also a link between our today & tomorrow, and a harbinger of hope, says Biju Negi of Beej Bachao Andolan. Posted on 31 Oct, 2015 05:09 PM

Beej Bachao Andolan (Save the Seed Movement) is not an organisation nor is it a registered entity. It does not take on projects nor does it crave funding.

Forests, water & seeds are all interconnected (Source: India Water Portal)
Adapting to floods and improving lifestyles could give us some clues to finding an alternative to embankments
Dr David Molden, Director General, ICIMOD, talks to Monoj Gogoi on his visit to flood-affected Lakhimpur and Dhemaji districts of Assam and Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh. Posted on 29 Oct, 2015 01:46 PM

Dr Molden, you have visited Dihiri in Dhemaji district and Borsala in Lakhimpur districts. Both these villages are the worst flood affected villages of the region. You also interacted with the communities in these two villages. What was the purpose of this visit? Please share your experiences.

In conversation with Dr Molden (Source: Monoj Gogoi)
Community conservation of forests is successful when women participate
Van Panchayats have only been successful in conserving their forests with the enthusiastic participation of women. This is how to increase women's leadership in forest conservation. Posted on 24 Oct, 2015 04:34 PM

When I first spoke with Bhagoti Devi, I attempted to break the ice by telling her how warmly our mutual acquaintances spoke of her. She was nonchalant. "Of course they will recommend you speak to me”, she said. “After all, it took a lot of hard work to have such a thick forest standing here.”

These two neighbouring oak trees, one untouched and the other over-lopped, are both managed by the women of one family and illustrate the impact that women have on forests
Respect tribal goverments; conserve forests
Tribal governments can manage village natural resources better than elected Panchayats. Jarjum Ete, President of the All India Union of Forest Working People, explains why. Posted on 24 Oct, 2015 04:31 PM

The Galo tribe has lived in the Eastern Himalayan forests for centuries. Like their neighbours, this tribe had a well-defined territory, the boundaries of which were marked by various topographical features such as rock formations or mountain ridges.

Arunachal's tribes have a tradition of managing their natural resources (Source:Wikimedia Commons)
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