🌲 Forest Society and Colonialism

Deforestation

The permanent destruction of forests for agriculture or industrial use

Colonial view of forests

Seen as wilderness and unproductive land to be 'improved'

Sleepers

Wooden planks used to hold railway tracks in place

Brandis

Dietrich Brandis was the first Inspector General of Forests in India

Indian Forest Service

Established in 1864 for forest management

Indian Forest Act

Passed in 1865 and amended in 1878 and 1927

Scientific forestry

Forest management system promoting uniform plantations for timber

Reserved forests

Best forests

Protected forests

Villagers allowed some rights like grazing or wood collection

Village forests

Least restrictive; local use allowed

Plantation

A forest of a single species of tree

Sal and Teak

Preferred trees for timber by colonial authorities

Bastard Mahua

Mahua trees were used for oil

Tendu leaves

Collected for making bidis; major source of tribal income

Swidden/Shifting cultivation

Rotational cutting and burning of forests to farm temporarily

Local names of swidden

Podu

Impact of forest laws on cultivation

Banned shifting cultivation

Taungya system

Farmers allowed to cultivate between trees in plantations

Hunting before colonialism

A major source of food and custom for forest dwellers

Hunting under British

Declared illegal for locals; promoted as a sport for officials

Rewards for hunting

Tigers

Forest villages

Villagers allowed to stay in forests in return for free labour

Kalangs of Java

Skilled forest-cutting tribe who resisted Dutch control in 1770

Blandongdiensten system

Dutch forced villagers to cut timber in return for rent exemption

Surontiko Samin

Led a movement in Java questioning state control of forests

Saminists

Followers of Samin who refused to pay taxes or obey Dutch

Bastar Rebellion

1910 tribal uprising against reservation of forests in Chhattisgarh

Gunda Dhur

Leader of the Bastar Rebellion

Devsari/Dand

Fees paid for collecting resources from another village's forest

Forest protests

Burning of schools

Impact of WWI & WWII

Wars led to massive cutting of forests for military needs

Scorched Earth policy

Dutch destroyed forests in Java to prevent Japanese access

Post-war forest expansion

People expanded farms into forests; govts struggled to reclaim land

1980s shift

Focus moved to conservation rather than timber production

Sacred groves

Forests protected by villages as part of religious belief (e.g.

New forest movements

Community-led forest protection from Mizoram to Kerala

Villagers’ forest needs

Fuel

Colonial aim

Control over forests for revenue

Forest officials' control

Permits required

Timber for railway sleepers

Massive logging during railway expansion from 1860s

Impact on women

Faced harassment while collecting wood or forest produce

Impact on tribals

Livelihood disrupted