Social Forestry in Odisha: An Extraordinary ... - IRD India · objective to accelerate...

International Journal of Research and Development - A Management Review (IJRDMR)

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ISSN (Print): 2319–5479, Volume-4, Issue–2, 2015

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Social Forestry in Odisha: An Extraordinary International Aided

Initiative Towards Revival and Restoration of Forests.

C. R. Das

Nabakrushna Choudhury Centre for Development Studies, Odisha, Bhubaneswar.

Email: [email protected]

Abstract: The natural regeneration capacity of forests in

Odisha has been remaining below than the deforestation

caused by exploitation. Demand for forest products

increased more than the recouping capacity of forests,

made net loss of precious natural resources. Increase in

population, demand for forest land by the community

living in and around the forests on one hand and diversion

of forests for development of agriculture, industry, mining,

infrastructural improvement by building roads, railways,

power transmission lines, necessity of achieving other

obligations of government to restore peace and growth

along with implementation of rehabilitation of displaced

persons etc on the other hand results in shrinkage of the

forest cover and biodiversity too. To overcome the problem

of forest loss and ensure proper rehabilitation and

reforestation by supplementing through artificial

regeneration of forest by encouraging plantation in

wasteland, village unutilized space, in the bank of river,

canal, roadside, community land by strip plantation,

barren hill plantation etc encouraged to meet the need of

forest products by the villagers and at the same time

facilitating the restoration and rehabilitation of natural

forest. One of the vital point is pertinent to note that the

objective of involvement of society in its attempt to meet

the requirement of rural community. The Social Forestry

Project (SFP) aims at achieving the goal of forest

development by widespread plantation to be carried out by

the people, with the participation of people and for the

betterment of socio-economic status of the people. This

paper is an attempt to outline various schemes

implemented under the SFP and physical and financial

achievements made during the project period in Odisha

with certain crucial points.

INTRODUCTION

Along with the growth of human civilization in the

process of relentless efforts of bringing about scientific

development, the ecological balance of the mother

planet earth has been disturbed to a great extent by

altering the distribution of natural flora and fauna, to

fulfill the augmenting demand for various goods and

services by the mankind. Extensive deforestation has

taken place not only for meeting the demand for

agricultural land of the ever increasing population, their

need for fuels, fodder, and small timber for construction

of shelter but also to meet the greed of comfortable or

luxurious living of people. Deforestation has been

taking place in order to facilitate industrial development,

construction of multipurpose dams, energy and irrigation

projects, and construction of roads, railways and other

projects aims to achieve development.

Forests are not only the sources of biodiversity

conservation but also render basic services which help

survival of mankind in this planet. The twin role of

forests to preserve ecological importance and facilitate

economic growth of society, particularly for a country

like India, cannot be ignored. The contribution of forests

towards providing various life-sustaining supports to

society in general and tribal and other backward forest

dwelling community in particular cannot be measured

accurately by adopting or applying any index of

measurement simply without underestimating its use

value.

British policy pursued in colonial India for more than

century and a half ruled strategic areas robbed its rich

resources deliberately and left the country economically

very backward, socially deprived and communally

hatred. An era of unprecedented resource exploitation

began to meet the British needs and the commercial

interest become centre-stage marginalising the large

natural resource dependent communities. The twin

objective to accelerate industrialisation and colonisation

operate in tandem and inviting colonial India in to

environmental impoverishment.

The picture was vividly described by Bipin Chandra

(1979) “The colonial administration ended their relative

isolation and brought them fully within the ambit of

colonialism. It recognised the tribal chiefs as Zamidars

and introduced a new system of land revenue and

taxation of tribal‟s products. It encouraged the influx of

Christian missionaries into the tribal areas. Above all, it

introduced a large number of money-lenders, traders and

revenue farmers as middlemen among the tribals. These

middlemen were the chief instruments of bringing the

tribal people within the vortex the colonial economy and

exploitation. The middlemen were outsiders who

increasingly took possession of tribal lands and ensnared

the tribals in a web of debt. In time, the tribal people

were labourers, sharecroppers and tax-rented tenants on

the land they had earlier brought under cultivation and

held on a communal basis”.

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The scarcity and consequent need of fuel wood and

small timber for villagers was realized as early as 1893,

when Voelcker (1893) recommended that the

Government of India create fuel wood and fodder

reserves. This was restated in 1928 when the Royal

Commissioner on Agriculture suggested the creation of

village forests and minor forest divisions for provision

of fuel wood and grazing, and again in 1952 when the

National Forest Policy (1952) envisaged farm forestry

for afforestation of communal lands and government

unused lands. However, little tangible progress was

achieved until 1961 when a farm-forestry scheme was

initiated during the Third Five-Year-Plan, and although

the outlay for this scheme was relatively small, it proved

successful in states such as Tamil Nadu. However, the

involvement of villagers was not ensured, and the

plantations were raised and protected by the Forest

Department and only part of the harvest was distributed

to villagers. The real impetus to social forestry came

from the interim report on social forestry submitted by

the National Commission on Agriculture (1973) which

recommended a widening of the scope of farm forestry

by including social forestry as a component of

socioeconomic development programs. This objective

was restated in the final report of the National

Commission on Agriculture (1976) and a National

Wasteland Development Board was set up in 1985 to

supervise and monitor the progress of social forestry

being implemented in various states by using funds from

the Forest and Rural Development Departments, and

international agencies such as the World Bank, the

Swedish International Development Agency and the

Overseas Development Administration. However, the

socioeconomic gains from social forestry by the

villagers in different states of India has differed due to

the villagers' decision-making process which is

influenced not only by the agro-ecological,

technological and policy package but also by the

relevant socio-economic aspects of the environment in

which the policy is implemented. Within the same agro-

ecological zone a given package of social forestry may

be adopted at a differing rate and intensity due mainly to

the differing socioeconomic milieu of the environment.

This paper evaluates social forestry and identifies those

socioeconomic variables which have influenced its

assimilation in different states of India.

OBJECTIVES OF SOCIAL FORESTRY

Social-forestry policies are being implemented in a

number of developing countries. Community forestry

plantation s is, more or less, a common intervention

measures undertaken to ensure socioeconomic

development of society in general and local people‟s

welfare „in particular. In each case, implementation is

different as a result of the emphasis placed on the

socioeconomic aspects relevant to the country.

However, they basically aim at improving the lot of

rural poor in relation to social forestry. Westoby (1968)

defined social forestry as that "which aims at producing

a flow of protection and recreational benefits for the

community". However, NCA (NCA,1976) adopted a

wider perspective: the objective of social forestry, being

related to the basic and economic needs of the

community, should aim at improving: fuel wood supply

to the rural areas and replacement of cow dung; supply

of small timbers; supply of fodder; and protection of

agricultural fields against wind. Depending on

prevailing conditions, some local variations are

noticeable in the emphasis on the objectives of social

forestry in different states. For instance, the Orissa

social-forestry paper (OFD,1987) states that social

forestry: (i) aims at creation of sustainable forest

resources for the villagers, with the support of SFP (ii)

Ensures full involvement of the villagers as individuals

and as members of local communities, during

implementation. (iii) Generates resource base primarily

to meet villagers' needs for products of importance in the

local economy such as fuel wood, small timbers, fodder

and wood for construction, agricultural implements,

small-scale village industries and handicrafts.

(iv)Through the SFP the objective of providing

employment to rural unemployed and underemployed

job seekers to generate income to meet their basic

consumption needs fulfilled to a great extent. These

objectives can be broadly classified into production and

rural-development objectives. However, one implicit

objective of establishing tree cover can be ecological.

The role of forestry in community development has also

been realized by international funding agencies. For

example, the World Bank 1978 forest sector policy

paper stated, "a major part of forest degradation today is

caused by poor farmers seeking a livelihood through low

production agriculture...destruction of forests can be

slowed only as governments pursue greatly expanded

rural development programmes to help the rural poor.

...The challenge is to bring it about, in the policies of

developing countries, a change that will result in a larger

share of resources being allocated to rural afforestation

programmes that have a wide impact on the income of

small farmers (World Bank, 1978) ". A similar concern

was voiced by FAO (1978),"...the objective is to raise

the standard of living of the rural dweller to involve him

in the decision- making process which affects his very

existence. The physical goals which will be set are really

meant towards achieving the objective of enhancing the

lives of human beings (FAO, 1978)".

Social forestry can be broadly classified into farm and

community forestry. In farm and community forestry the

units of management are the farm and the village

community, or a group of villages sharing the communal

or government unused land on which social forests are

to be established. Farm and community forestry in

different states can be further divided into various

components depending on socioeconomic conditions.

Social forestry in Orissa has the following main

components: - Farm Forestry for Rural Poor: The

objective of FFRP is to enable landless rural households

to practice intensive forest farming and agro-forestry on

government wastelands in and around villages. Each

beneficiary is allotted 0.5 ha of unused government land


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with usufruct rights to the agriculture and forest

produce. Plantations of quick biomass growing species

are established using technical and financial support

from the Forest Department. From the nursery stage

until the harvest of the first agricultural crop in the agro-

forestry system, the beneficiary is closely associated

with all the activities and nearly 250- 300 worker days

are generated from a 0.5 ha area. This wage earning,

along with annual income from agricultural crops for the

initial 3 years, contributes a substantial income from an

otherwise relatively longer gestation forestry enterprise.

In another scheme, tree seedlings are distributed to

villagers by the Forest Department for planting on their

farms. - Village Woodlots (VWL):

The main concept of the VWL is that the Forest

Department will support villagers to carry out a

community-oriented tree plantation on community and

government lands for the benefit of the villagers.

Reforestation of Degraded Forests:

This aims at reforesting those degraded and depleted

forests which are in the vicinity of the villages and over

which the villagers have concessional rights and claims

for the forest produce needed for their bonafide

consumption. - Institutional Plantations: These are

similar to VW except that institutions such as

community centers and schools are encouraged to

participate in the plantation program.

SOCIOECONOMIC LINKAGES

The socioeconomic functions of social forestry in an

agrarian economy such as that of India are significant

and diverse, notwithstanding the protective and

ameliorating effect they have on the environment. To

achieve these functions wider implementation should be

adopted rather than meeting a single need with

technological and silvicultural solutions. Appropriate

land-use technology needs to address these issues both

for individuals and for communities. Social forestry has

strong backward and forward linkages with the local

economy. Chetty (1985) has identified nearly 90 small-

scale cottage and village industries which are dependent

on forests for raw materials. If promoted, these forest-

based rural industries will reduce the dependence of the

rural labour force on cultivated lands, promote

employment for village artisans, generate healthy

competition in rural markets and encourage

technological transfer to rural areas. In addition, other

primary sectors in India such as agriculture, dairy and

animal husbandry depend on forests for raw materials

while tribal and other communities living in the vicinity

of forests collect sell and eat many edible fruits, flowers

and other forest products.

SFP MANAGEMENT

Since social forestry, implemented for the greater

benefit of society, is largely funded by government, its

management must be based on the mutual interests of

the villagers and government in order to create

sustainable resources to satisfy their common interests.

Conflicts should be resolved in the general interest of

society. There are two possible ways of managing social

forests: i) management can either be handed over to the

existing Panchayat, i.e. village-level councils of elected

representatives, in villages; or ii) joint control of

management can be allocated to the Forest Department

and the villagers. The first option, although preferable,

was tried in some states such as Tamil Nadu but failed,

due mainly to conflict of interests within the

heterogeneous villages. This suggested that a joint

management system, implemented through a village-

level forest committee consisting of representatives from

the villagers and Forest Department should be adopted,

such a model is working well in the state of Orissa.

Investment funds for social forestry are made available

by the Forest and Rural Development departments.

Combining all rural development schemes, at least 25%

of the total outlay is invested in social forestry. To

achieve successful implementation of social forestry the

socioeconomic planning framework should be based on

a villager-centered approach. Therefore, besides the

technicalities of forest management and silviculture, the

relevant socioeconomic needs of the villagers must be

incorporated into the design and planning of social-

forestry programs. Such a planning framework,

developed by Sharma (1990), is based on a systems

approach to social-forestry-management planning. This

includes hard (goal programming and social cost-benefit

analysis) and soft (expert systems) analytical techniques

in order to obtain both the qualitative and quantitative

knowledge necessary to achieve a broader holistic

approach.

The argument made by Powel (1882) “in olden days,

native rulers used often to set aside considerable areas of

forest land as „Shikarighar‟or hunting grounds, and these

would be usually covered with thick and perhaps

valuable forests. Such lands have now become the

property of the British Government following the

principle of succession”. He further wrote about the state

intervention in the management of forests in the pre-

colonial India that” there never was time when the

government could not issue an edict „reserving‟ certain

trees –teak, sandal, blackwood and others- as royal trees,

nor any time when the chieftain of the province would

have hesitated to enclose off a large area of the waste as

a hunting preserve”(P-89). Stebbing (1922) had written

that “these restrictions found in certain parts of

eighteenth century India which applied to cutting certain

species of trees by calling them royal were used by

India‟s rulers to justify a monopoly on exploiting teak,

tectonagrandis, and sandal, santalum album, when a

lucrative trade developed in these

species(Stebbing,1922).

As has been already mentioned, Baden-Powel was

influential in crafting the Act of 1878. A crucial

contribution was his distinction between rights that

could not be abrogated without compensation but must

be engraved in the settlement record and privileges that

were always regulated, could be terminated, and, where


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allowed, were not alienable. He averred that villagers,

who from time immemorial were accustomed to cut and

graze in the nearest jungle lands, did not acquire right by

prescription because they used the forest without any

distinct grant or license. All customary usages were

therefore merely privilege (Powel, 1882).

The rural people have not contributed much towards the

maintenance or regeneration of the forests. Having

overexploited the resources, they cannot in all fairness

expect that somebody else will take the trouble of

providing them with forest produce free of charge

(NCA, 1976 Pp-354-355)”. The recommendation of

Dhebar Commission implemented after the 42nd

Amendment Act in 1976 to the Constitution of India in

which the subject of „Forest‟ was brought to „Concurrent

List‟ from the „State list‟ in which the Government of

India was also empowered with legal and administrative

control over the forests. The Forest (Conservation) Act,

1980 was made forest land diversion to non-forest uses

more stringent.

Village Forest Rule, 1985 permits community for

protection of forests. So VFC, FPC, Unregistered groups

formed to protect the local forests except RF and

National sanctuaries.

Forests after Independence:

According to the Report of the Committee to Review of

Rights and Concessions in the forest Areas of India,

Government of India , Ministry of Agriculture (Forestry

Division), (GOI,1984), had reported that 4328 thousands

hectares of forest area lost for various developmental

activities, of which land for agricultural activities,

submergence due to river valley projects, construction of

industries and townships, transmission lines, roads etc

and for miscellaneous uses were 2623, 502, 134, 61 and

1008 thousand hectares constituting in per cent terms

60.61, 11.60, 3.10,1.41 and 23.29 respectively.

Loss of forest area accompany with increasing demand

for fuel wood as projected by the Government of India

that in 1970, was 150 million cubic metre fuel wood,

had been raised to 165 million cubic metre in 1975, 184

in 1980, 202 in 1985, and 225 million cubic metre

during 2000AD.In spite of augmentation in the

production of petroleum products, hydroelectricity and

coal, the rate of fuel wood extraction from our existing

forest area was estimated to 3.14 m3/ ha. This is much

higher than many other countries. Besides, the rural

population also utilize considerable amount of

agricultural wastes and cattle dung around 114 million

31ehav, to meet their fuel requirement, which otherwise

could have been used as organic manure for increasing

agricultural production. With commercial fuels

accounting for less than 11% of the total consumption in

the rural areas and less than 25% for the country, there is

no other option but to develop forests to provide

required amount of fuel supply (, Ministry of

Environment and Forests, GOI,1986).

India has one-Seventh of the global livestock population

and about only one-fortieth of the world‟s land surface

area. Government of India estimates revealed that total

fodder production in the country was 434 million

31ehav, against the requirement of 882 million 31ehav

of both green and dry fodder. Thus the shortfall in

supply of fodder was more than fifty per cent for which

the increasing number of cattle population had to resort

to grazing in forest areas of the country which has been

estimated to have risen from 11.5 to 15.4 per cent (GOI,

1984) The pressure probably is much more as nearly 70

per cent of the land accounted is not available for

grazing as these are either agricultural or waste lands,

devoid of any type of fodder covers (Bowonder et al,

1986). Similarly the Government of India report had

emphatically stated that the total production of industrial

timber is just around 13 million cubic metres as against

the present requirement of 26 million cubic metres due

to the dwindling forest resources in the country (GOI,

1984).

Brief Review of the studies conducted:

Evaluation of the SFP in Odisha by SIDA in 1992, had

estimated a moderate but positive return from the CF

component (SIDA, 1992). The villages with CF and

without CF differ with regard to time allocation for fuel

collection. Those households in villages with CF spend

significantly less time collecting fuel, and women and

backward/downtrodden classes seem to be the

beneficiaries of this reduction. The study conducted by

Kohlin and Amacher(2005) “predicted average time

saving s from access to CFs are in the range of roughly

250 hours per household per year. Our computed

welfare impacts from these time savings are

understandably significant and challenge some of the

criticisms of SFPs for two reasons. First, community

plantations can provide substantial benefits that are not

accounted for in the typical rapid assessment that

development agencies apply to SFPs. Second, it is

important to recognize that the benefits of SFPs are

more sensitive to location than previously thought. They

further argue that the largest benefits from plantations

occur when accessibility increases at the margin as

would occur in areas where natural forest sites are

further away and fuel prices are high. The composition

of individuals in the villages also matters, as their

decisions define collection 31ehavior and the ultimate

success of plantation projects. SFP project not only

generated community property in terms of VWL,CF, FF

and plantation in forest and non-forest lands but also it

has contributed a lot of awareness among the rural

people to save forest and save future generation. From

the Satellite imagery survey by the Forest Research

Institute, Dehradun shows a relatively lower declining

rate of density of forests after implementation of SFP.

One of the evaluation study made by Sharma (1993)

argued that the differing socio-economic environment,

in which, social forestry is being implemented in various

states of India, has resulted in differential uptake by

villagers. The socio-economic variables affecting social


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forestry uptake were identified and suggested

incorporation of variables in social forestry planning for

achieving success.

Forest Diversion for non-forest uses in Odisha:

Diversion of forest land to other uses has been

immediately reducing the forest area and its resources.

With the increase in population and development

projects initiated for development of the state and people

forest lands diverted to construct roads and railways,

buildings of project sites required for hydro-electrical

projects, dams, reservoirs and canals, mining and other

infrastructure requirements including rehabilitation of

displaced households.

It is therefore necessary to present data on diversion of

forest land from which they derive their basic livelihood,

to other uses. In Orissa the diversion of forest to other

development projects need to present for consideration.

The decision to convert the forest land to non-forest uses

definitely facilitate development of communication,

infrastructure, industrially advancement and satisfy the

object of economic development of society sans the

welfare of poor illiterate tribe people. What is most

crucial is that it would certainly deprive them of an

output from the forest which they have been enjoying

since the time immemorial. The very basis of their

wealth, forest which provided all their life sustenance

things snatches away from them in the name of

„common interest‟ without protecting the interest of

those sacrificed their age old livelihood sustenance

wealth gifted by Mother Nature. Innumerable silent

sacrifices and suffering made present generation

aggressively fight to keep their environment unaffected

and livelihood base secure for future generation. The

habitat of tribal community is not free from multiplicity

of dangers surrendered. Alienation of land, forest,

fountain, sources of life and livelihood made these

people paupers whereas others enjoying the fruits of

these development with much of pump and pleasure.

Such an attitude will further deteriorate the basic fabric

of social unity by making the distance of more wide in

standard of living between those lost their base and

others who gain the accessibility and ripe the benefits

due to project accomplishment.

Objective:

The objective of this Study is to present

(a) analyse the factors which are contributory for

implementation of SFP in the State of Orissa;

(b) to analyse the trends and pattern of expenditure

incurred under SFP programme and employment

generated thereof in the State; and I to assess the

physical achievement of the SFP in terms of VWL,RDF,

FFRP, FF etc during the different phases of

implementation.

Methodology

The methodology followed to organise the paper is to

collect data from different published and unpublished

sources as well as the studies conducted by different

organizations and individual researchers. The data

Collected from the office of the Director, Social Forestry

Project, Orissa constitute one of the most reliable source

as it was in overall charge of implementation of the

project.

Genesis of Social Forestry Project (SFP):

Referring the inherent dangers of large scale

deforestation and need for corrective measures, The

National Commission on Agriculture (NCA,1976) had

suggested “ the widespread adoption of the practice of

social forestry aimed at growing and meeting the future

fuel wood, fodder, and small timber needs of rural

communities.” But it took about four more years before

the Government of India could come out with an

ordinance followed by the Forest Conservation Act in

1980 banning felling of natural forests and conversion of

forest areas for non-forestry purposes, without prior

concurrence. Hence during the Sixth Plan (1980-85)

massive afforestation programme had gained due

importance. There was sufficient budgetary provision

for the programme. Social forestry programmes have

been further strengthened by procuring assistance from

different international donor agencies, such as the World

Bank, Swedish International development Agency

(SIDA), United States Agency for International

Development (USAID), Canadian International

Development Agency (CIDA), Overseas Development

Agency (ODA), etc. The states like Karnataka, Andhra

Pradesh, Kerala, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Tamil

Nadu and Maharastra where International Development

Agencies extended their fund assistance for smooth

working of SFP. Flow of external aid for development

of SFP to fourteen states of India helped immensely for

creating a better environment to plant, preserve, protect

and reforest the degraded forests along with steps taken

to provide facilities for rural poor to grow farm forestry

to strengthen their economic condition by making

provision for future needs of fuel, fodder and small

timber etc. seedlings. The UN Food and Agricultural

Organisation (FAO), the World Bank, the USAID), the

governments of Sweden and Canada are in the forefront

in supporting social forestry projects in lndia. In the

states of Gujarat, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and

Utter Pradesh. World Bank projects were cleared for

implementation during the time. India has sought

foreign financial assistance worth Rs 4,918 million for

under taking social forestry projects in 12 states. The

World Bank has already granted Rs 372million for

social forestry projects tor Uttar Pradesh, Rs 608 million

for Gujarat and Rs 348 million for West Bengal. The

USAID had granted Rs 400 million to Madhya Pradesh

and the agency is now appraising an amount of Rs 430

million social forestry projects in Maharashtra for

assistance. The Swedish Inter- national Development

Agency (SIDA) has agreed to give Rs. 450 million to


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Tamil Nadu. It is now considering proposals for rupee

assistance to an amount of Rs 225 million projects in

Orissa. Two other projects, of 555 million for Karnataka

and Rs 400 million for Bihar are also under the

consideration of SIDA.

Evaluating the concept of Social Forestry:

The concept of social forestry gained its importance

during the Ninth Commonwealth Forestry Congress in

the year 1968. Forestry practices which aim at providing

goods and benefits to a nearby society are usually

referred as social forestry. Various steps have been

undertaken to tackle the problems of degradation of

vegetation and policies formulated to involve people in

replenishing the forest by protection, plantation and

rehabilitation. In a poorer state like Odisha, where most

of people are depending on subsistence sector to eke out

their living are unable to secure their requirements from

own resources , so they engage in different activities to

supplement their income and gathers fuel, fodder, food

from nearby natural forests etc. The socioeconomic

realities of India are complex but the socioeconomic and

cultural attitudes of the villagers are important

considerations in the adoption of technologies such as

social forestry. Such adoption may, to a large extent, be

determined by the degree of fit between technological

innovations, the existing socioeconomic environment,

and cultural practices. The much publicized rural

development programs initiated by the Government of

India during the 1950s and 1960s including a large

number of schemes for agricultural development could

not produce the desired results due mainly to non-

cognizance of the relevant socioeconomic environment.

This pioneer Indian experience of rural development

provides empirical evidence about the importance of

socioeconomic variables in adoption of any land-based

rural development scheme. In developing countries such

as India, the person to land ratio, together with the

utilization of land, and labor availability, are of critical

importance for the prospect of development

(Myrdal,1968). Social-forestry programs can benefit

from such experiences by avoiding the deficiencies of

earlier rural-development planning. As such the

planning strategy for rural development is worth

reviewing in the context of social forestry. However,

many programs were increasingly linked with Five-Year

Plans which emphasized productivity aspects

(Bhattacharjee, 1970). The Panchayats became

extremely important for the organization of „super

village‟ politics, reinforcing elitism in some states, but

nowhere have they yet brought about widespread

participation by the poorest people in community

development programs (Franda,1979). Rural

development planning appears to have been based on an

unrealistic assumption that a village is a monolithic

entity The pressure on forest for fuel wood, small timber

and grazing is very heavy and forests are gradually

getting degraded. Degradation of forests created serious

implications in the livelihood issues of village

communities living in fringe area. The economy of

forest dependant people adversely affected due to

shrinkage of forest land and reduced density of forests as

diversion of forestland to other uses combined with

more deforestation occurs than natural rate of

regeneration of forests and net addition of population

due to higher birth rate and low death rate. So

intervention in regeneration and restoration of forests

felt immense necessity for assuring people to get their

needs from the forests. The Swedish International

Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) assisted

social forestry project (SFP) started in 1983, was one of

the important measures to achieve twin objectives by

creating a new entity of producer-cum-consumer and

same time reducing the gap between demand for and

supply of various forest produces like fuel, fodder, small

timber etc. Five kinds of plantations are envisaged under

the programme, viz, (1) fuel-wood and small timber

plantations; (2) irrigated plantations along canal sides;

(3) fuel-wood plantations in the foreshores of reservoirs

and the higher reaches of tank beds; (4) village

plantations on village/ government wastelands and

degraded reserve forests; (5) free distribution of

seedlings to farmers for taking up planting of trees along

the field bunds, around homesteads, and in marginal

agricultural areas. Among all these, the plantations

included in categories (4) and (5) are the most

significant ones, because, in these a direct involvement

of the rural people in the affiorestation activities is a

necessary concomitant of the programming and the

possibilities of their receiving direct economic benefits

appear particularly promising.

As per the estimate by NCAER in1996 was the

quantum of biomass fuel requirement in India per year

was wood 302.1 million tons, dung cake 120.6 million

tons, crop residues 115.0 million tons, others 39.3

million tons. Another earlier study conducted by the

National Council of Applied Economic Research

(NCAER) in 1985 found that wood was meeting 59.2 %

of total fuel needs in rural areas and35.5% in urban areas

in1981-82. The main non-commercial energy sources

combined- woodfuel, dung, and agricultural residues-

met 95% of fuel needs in rural areas. Of these dung and

agricultural waste are widespread as fuel in

agriculturally prosperous regions with fertile soils and

controlled irrigation, such as Punjab, Haryana, Uttar

Pradesh, and North Bihar, but fuel wood continue to be

main domestic fuel in less endowed and poorer

regions(NCEAR,1985).

Energy consumption in rural households as estimated by

Natarajan (1995) in during 1978-79 and 1992-93 as

follows:

Table-1: Energy Consumption in Rural Areas.

Items % Share in

1978-79

% Share in

1992-93

Coal/Soft coke 1.92 0.38

Kerosene 2.55 4.44

Dung Cake 22.51 17.00

Fuel wood logs 18.95 32.49


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34

Fuel wood twigs 35.62 29.11

Crop waste 17.41 13.25

Others 1.03 3.23

Source: Natarajan, 1995.

The project aimed to manage the common property

resources and put the wastelands under economic use

through people‟s participation giving priorities to

community involvement as a whole with safeguarding

the interest of the weaker section in particular. It was the

major intervention aimed at sustainable supply of

forestry produces to local target community to achieve

self sufficiency.

Overuse of free access government forests for fuel,

fodder, timber and other forest produces degraded the

tree cover and forest dependent communities work hard

and more time to collect their required quantity and

unable devote their productive work hours on other

activities. Collection difficulties in severally deforested

open access forests also reduce the availability of other

resources for own consumption. There have been a

number of strategies undertaken to provide better

situation and increase fuel availability by establishing

community forests(CFs) or “Village Wood lots” (VWL).

The census of India 2011 has revealed that till now 15.1

per cent of households use grass, thatch, bamboo, wood

as major material of roof whereas it is 33.9 in case of

Odisha, which is more than twice of national average. In

fact, these materials are generally collected from natural

forests, village forests or farm forests causing more

degradation to such natural resources. Similarly if we

cast our view on different kind of fuels used by

households to get an idea how day to day demand of fuel

woods, still holds significantly high the census of India

2011 results is presented in the following table.

Table-2 : Distribution of % of Households by type of fuels used for cooking during 2001- 2011(all HHs)

Type of fuels 2001 2011

India (in%) Odisha (in %) Difference India (in%) Odisha (in%) Difference

Firewood 52.7 69.4 -16.7 49.0 65.0 -16

Crop residue 10.0 9.2 0.8 8.9 10.2 -1.3

Cow dung cake 9.8 8.5 1.3 8.0 9.4 -1.4

Coal, lignite, charcoal 2.0 1.6 0.4 1.5 1.6 -0.1

Kerosene 6.0 2.8 3.2 2.9 1.1 1.8

LPG 17.5 5.2 12.3 28.6 9.8 18.8

Electricity 0.2 1.0 -0.8 0.1 0.4 -0.3

Biogas 0.4 0.2 0.2 0.4 0.2 0.2

Any other 0.6 1.7 -1.1 0.5 2.0 -1.5

No cooking 0.3 0.3 0 0.3 0.3 0

Sources: Census of India, 2011,2001 Census website.

Above table depict the comparative picture of

percentage of households using different type of fuels in

India and Odisha. In 2001, 16.7 per cent of more

households in Odisha used firewood than India and the

differences reduced to 16 per cent is may be due to (a)

Shifting of HHs using firewood to other type of fuels,

(b) non-availability of fire-wood or supply of fuel wood

less than demanded or(c) higher cost of firewood. In

case of using crop residue as a cooking fuel in India it

was reduced 10 per cent to 8.9 per cent while in Odisha

it was increased from 9.2 to 10.2 per cent it indicates the

fuel sources in Odisha has been deteriorating as its use

not only reduced the fodder availability but at the same

time increased the gap between India and Odisha from

0.8 to 1.3 per cent. While considering use of cow dung

cake as a fuel for cooking, generally, poor and marginal

farmers family utilised is indicating poor quality of

cooking medium reversed in Odisha than the national

scenario from 2001 to 2011. In 2001 the per cent of HHs

using dung cake in India constituted 9.8 per cent

reduced to 8 per cent in 2011 while in Odisha it was 8.5

per cent increased to 9.4 per cent during 2011 thereby

reducing the manure to agriculture in the state. Coal,

char coal and lignite used by 2 per cent of HHs in India

in 2001 reduced to 1.5 per cent during 2011 while the

proportion remain constant at 1.6 per cent in Odisha for

which the gap reduce by 0.5 points. It is the fact that the

use of Kerosene in cooking reduced during 2001 to 2011

and the rate was higher in India than the state. The

domestic use of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in India

and in Odisha is necessary due to its positive elements

while used in cooking. LPG is being considered because

it is one of the relatively clean and efficient cooking-fuel

options currently available in the country. After

estimating current and potential increases in the

domestic demand for LPG, we have considered the

possibility of meeting these demands, in view of several

problems, and then listed policy issues that could help

surmount the barriers.

The percentage of HHs in India in2001 was 17.5 and

increased to 28.6 per cent in 2011 while in Odisha the

per cent of HHs using LPG was 5.2 in2001 increased to

9.8 in2011 increasing the country and state gap from

12.3 to 18.8. This is unfortunate that the network of LPG

supply to Odisha has been less than the proportionate;

hence its condition in cooking is remaining backward.

Use of electricity as cooking medium reduced due to

increase in its cost and interrupted supply while bio-gas

use remain same during 2001 and 2011. The analysis of

the above facts collected by Census provide the

importance of fuel wood in cooking in Odisha is more

than India and dependence of forest products still

prevailing in HH kitchen.


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35

Table-3 : Distribution of % of Households by type of fuels used for cooking during 2001- 2011 in Rural and

urban Segments

India Odisha

Type of

fuels

Rural Urban Rural Urban

2001 2011 Difference

2001 2011 Difference 2001 2011 Difference 2001 2011 Difference

Firewood 64.1 62.5 -1.6 22.7 20.1 -2.6 74.8 70.6 -4.2 35.8 34.8 -1

Crop

residue

13.1 12.3 -0.8 2.1 1.4 -0.7 10.2 11.7 1.5 3 2.2 -0.8

Cow dung cake

12.8 10.9 -1.9 2 1.7 -0.3 9.6 10.7 1.1 2 2.6 0.6

Coal,

lignite,

charcoal

1.1 0.8 -0.3 4.6 2.9 -1.7 0.8 0.8 0 6.9 5.6 -1.3

Kerosene 1.6 0.7 -0.9 19.2 7.5 -11.7 0.7 0.3 -0.4 15.9 5.6 -10.3

LPG 5.7 11.4 5.7 48 65 17 1 3.1 2.1 31.4 46.1 14.7

Electricity 0.1 0.1 0 0.3 0.1 -0.2 0.6 0.2 -0.4 3.8 1.7 -2.1

Biogas 0.5 0.4 -0.1 0.4 0.4 0 0.2 0.1 -0.1 0.2 0.2 0

Any other 0.8 0.6 -0.2 0.2 0.2 0 1.9 2.3 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.1

Sources: Census of India, 2011,2001 Census.

The above table try to assess the rural-urban differences

in the use of cooking medium in India and in Odisha

during 2001 and 2001. It is very easy to assert that rural

HH both in the Country and in state depend more on

traditional fuels than modern medium of cooking

available.(a) the economic condition of urban HHs are

better than rural HHs (b) Non-availability of such

facilities in rural areas due to lack of better

infrastructure, (c) lack of health awareness by user HHs,

(d) accessibility of such goods and services (e)

development impact is less in the state as compared to

the national level in connection with the cooking

medium use. In rural Odisha the increase in LPG users

during 2001 to 2011 was 2.1, whereas in India it was

increased by 5.7 per cent lagging behind the state by 3.6

points.

Beginning from the First Five Year Plan the Odisha

Forest Department has undertaken plantations under

Plan and Non-plan schemes which includes Quick

growing species, Economic plantations, Development of

M.F.P, Farm Forestry, Special Afforestation Programme

in Drought Prone Areas, Rehabilitation of Degraded

Forests, Afforestation for Soil Conservation in Coastal

Sand dunes, Afforestation for Soil Conservation in

Catchment Areas of Hirakud and Machkund Reservoirs,

Cashew Development, Compensatory Afforestation,

Mixed Plantations, Reforestation of Degraded Forests,

Coastal shelter Belt Afforestation, afforestation in tribal

Area Sub-plan of Integrated Tribal Development

Projects (ITDP) as well as afforestation scheme

component of Drought Prone Area programme (DPAP),

Integrated Rural Development Programmes (IRDP),

National Rural Employment Programme(NREP), Rural

Landless Labour Employment Guarantee Programme

(RLEGP) etc.

The approach to social forestry has been confined to

planting a single tree species over large areas. It is

believed that while these „monocultures‟ may give high

yields and good economic returns in the short term, their

long-term impact on soil and water conservation and on

the environment could be deleterious. The choice of tree

species such as fast growing eucalyptus which is the

primary species being encouraged in the social forestry

programme appears especially inappropriate for the

aforementioned reasons of long-term deleterious impact.

Water table gets lowered in the vicinity of such

eucalyptus plantations, adversely affecting agriculture. It

is also said that, in the long term, these eucalyptus

plantations can adversely affect the concentrations of

other nutrients, e g, micronutrients Iike zinc and boron.

Recently, some writers (the most prominent among them

being Prem Shankar Jha) have pointed out that the water

requirements or various other nutrient requirements for

cotton, and many other crops, are no less than the

requirement of these fast growing trees. So, there is

nothing wrong with the present programme of SFP. This

argument is not tenable due to the following reasons:

(1) Agriculture being seasonal, allows humans to

manage nutrients efficiently which cannot be the case

with trees, given the length of the tree farming cycle.

Crop rotation, fallow period, and a variety of other well-

known traditional devices exists which the: farmers use

in maintaining land fertility on the other hand it is not

possible in case of FF.

(2) Selection of Eucalyptus plantations in meeting the

fuel wood needs of the people in comparison to the

traditional trees is less fuel efficient because eucalyptus

burns very quickly rendering itself useless for the

cooking energy needs of the rural people. Further, the

high market price of softwoods like eucalyptus


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36

precludes their use as firewood. The demand for

softwoods by rayon factories as well as by those

producing pulp and paper has made these plantations

highly profitable. Additionally, the following points can

be made against the present social forestry programme:

(a) It is argued that eucalyptus is not eaten by the cattle.

While this is an advantage in terms of the survival of

plants, it renders the plant singularly useless in meeting

the local fodder requirements, Subabul, known as

Kubabul to the Indian people (Indira Gandhi had named

it Subabul), has been found to be toxic for cattle. The

toxicity is so pronounced that if “Subabul” leaves

constitute no more than 15 per cent of a mixed cattle

fodder, then over just a few years their consumption will

lead to mimeo sis, a disease which can be fatal for the

animals. Thus one of the major objectives of social

forestry meeting fodder needs and reducing the pressure

of grazing on forests is not being met.

(b) As a result of implementation of FF, its impact on

employment and income distribution will be deleterious.

It has freed the big farmers from dependence on labour,

and reduced the average annual work available to

landless labour.

(3) If the SFP orientation continues, the programmes

will lead to serious changes in land use pattern which

will adversely affect food availability. Extremely

valuable irrigated arable land cannot be allowed to be

shifted to commercial eucalyptus plantations. If such

plantation diverts agricultural land, Food insecurity, rate

of unemployment and distribution of resources may be

seriously affect rural poor.

(4) It is clear that while farm forestry increases wood

production, it does not improve per capita availability of

wood for the poor and is totally useless so far as meeting

the basic needs of the rural populations is concerned

needs which were being met by traditional farm trees. In

the light of the above, it may be postulated that social

forestry, in spite of its proclaimed objectives of

satisfying the basic needs of the rural population,

appears to be, in the present form, structurally and

organisationally oriented towards catering to industrial

and urban construction needs. A movement will have to

be built up to expose all the consequences of the current

programme, the aims of the foreign agencies and the

interests which guide the Indian government‟s policy on

social forestry.

But despite these criticism and arguments made by

intellectuals and researchers against the programme, in

Odisha it created and spread awareness about the loss of

forest affect adversely on livelihood of major chunk of

rural population including socio-economically backward

sections i.e. Scheduled Tribes (STs), Scheduled Castes

(SCs) and other poor and economically distressed

people. Therefore, implementation of SFP in case of

Odisha is more beneficial and sensitised the forest

dependent rural mass to plant trees, grow them, conserve

for future and escape from the clutches of deprivation

due to loss of traditional forest which require more than

three times of labour hours to collect same quantity of

fuel wood before deforestation. Again, the forest

dwelling community mostly engage themselves in forest

activities which provide their livelihood than

employment in other sector. Loss of forest and plants

make their life misery and victim of middleman. The

vicinity of forest is their life and livelihood.

Sustainability of forest may encourage the STs to

impart education, acquire required skill to compete with

rest of society to lead life with dignity and imbibe future

prospect of life in them.

Table-4 : Achievement under Plantation Schemes during Different Plan Periods (Financial Rs. In Lakh & Physical

in Hectares)

Plan Period State Plan Central Plan and

Others

Total Growth rate

Financial Physical Financial Physical Financial Physical Financial Physical

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

First FYP 5.035 749 N.A. N.A. 5.035 749 0 0

Second FYP 14.069 7582 N.A. N.A. 14.069 7582 64.21 90.12

Third FYP 119.620 40030 39.360 7495 158.980 47525 91.15 84.05

Annual Plans (1966-69) 136.650 30187 36.353 8020 173.003 38207 8.11 -24.39

Fourth FYP 211.397 31555 69.739 14873 281.136 46418 38.46 17.69

Fifth FYP 197.145 22053 199.691 20876 396.836 42929 29.16 -8.13

Annual Plan1978-79 62.069 5752 349.346 21964 411.442 27716 3.55 -54.89

Annual Plan1979-80 273.445 28785 110.212 9841 383.657 39599 -7.24 30.01

Sixth FYP N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. 3082.94 219408 87.56 81.95

Source: Plantation Statistics, Forest Department, Government of Odisha.

Growth rate = (p1-p0)/P1*100 where p1=figure for

current period, p0= figure of immediate preceding

period.

The data presented in above table is pertaining to

physical and financial achievement during different plan

periods in Odisha. This is revealing that both physical

plantation and financial utilization during the Sixth Plan

is highest after the Third plan period. The plantation

work gained its importance during Sixth plan period and

the operation of SFP in the state is a step forward to its

plan objective.


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37

A study by Jodha of 80 villages in the dry zones of 7

states reveals that the annual per household income

derived from common property resources (CPR) ranged

between Rs. 530 and 830 (Jodha,1983). This is higher

than the income generated by a number of anti-poverty

programs which were being implemented in these states.

However, a large-scale privatization of these CPRs in

the last decade coupled the commercialization of the

activities based on these CPRs, e.g. marketing firewood

and fodder, have almost completely marginalized the

weaker sections of society. They increasingly find that

they have to buy things which they formerly used to

receive in the form of traditional claims. Private gains

from overexploitation of a common natural resource

such as village forests and pastures outweigh private

shares of social costs leading to the “tragedy of freedom

in a commons” as pinpointed by Hardin (Hardin, 1968).

The implication is that at some point, i.e. when pressure

of increasing population or generally of increasing use,

threatens the destruction of the resource, we shall have

to give up the freedom of the commons, in favour of

other social arrangements that will avert the tragedy

(Kumar, 1991). For instance, private rights were created

in India in respect of agricultural land in order to

promote the vested interests of the individual, whereas

forest lands were brought under the control of State

mainly to restrict peoples‟ rights of entry and use.

However, an intermediate category of land resources

such as village forests and pastures have become

wastelands due mainly to their overuse, beyond the

limits imposed by nature and technology. The joint use

of resources within those limits will have to be imposed

by a set of rules (Gadgil and Iyer, 1989) possibly

through joint management and peoples‟ participation.

The project was implemented in two subsequent phases

each of five years duration, phase-I started from 1983-84

to 1987-88 and phase-II started from 1988-89 to 1992-

93 and three years extended periods from 1993-94 to

1995-96.

The Swedish International Development Cooperation

Agency (SIDA) assisted social forestry project (SFP)

started in 1983, was one of the important measures to

achieve twin objectives by creating a new entity of

producer-cum-consumer and same time reducing the gap

between demand for and supply of various forest

produces like fuel, fodder, small timber etc.

The project was implemented in two subsequent phases

each of five years duration, phase-I started from 1983-84

to 1987-88 and phase-II started from 1988-89 to 1992-

93 and three years extended periods from 1993-94 to

1995-96.

The SFP in Odisha, during phase-I had covered nine

districts out of thirteen districts excluding undivided

district of Phulbani, Kalahandi, Koraput and

Sundargarh.

The programmes implemented had four components i.e.

Village Wood Lot (VWL), Reforestation, Rehabilitation

of Degraded Forests (RDF), Forest Farming for Rural

Poor (FFRP) and Farm Forestry (FF).

14. Phase-I(1983-84 to1987-88):

The SFP in Odisha, during phase-I had covered nine

districts out of thirteen districts excluding undivided

district of Phulbani, Kalahandi, Koraput and

Sundergarh. The programmes implemented had four

components i.e. Village Wood Lot (VWL),

Reforestation, Rehabilitation of Degraded Forests

(RDF), Forest Farming for Rural Poor (FFRP) and Farm

Forestry.

14. Village Wood Lot (VWL):

The village woodlot concept embraced that the project

would support the villages to organize them to carry out

a community oriented tree plantation programme for the

benefits of the villagers. The plantation schemes on

community lands including the area set aside for village

forests located within the village limits or on the

government lands in the vicinity of the villages. The

areas were to be planted with fuelwood, food, fodder,

small timber species and any MFP/NTFP or fruit

bearing trees. For achieving project objectives, the

Village Forest Committees (VFC) to be constituted to

formulate Joint Management Plan (JMP) specified with

the relation, demands, obligations, rights and

responsibilities between the village and the project thus

used as legal document which would be acceptable in

law. The VFC was responsible for organizing protection

and management of village woodlots after taking over

the plantation. A JMP for each village was prepared by

the VFC in cooperation with the project.

B) Reforestation, Rehabilitation of Degraded Forests

(RDF):

The degraded and depleted forests which were classified

as protected forest and “B” class reserved forests were

reforested by undertaking plantation activities provided

that these degraded forest areas are notified as village

forest to which village forest rules of Orissa could be

applied. The silvicultural models adopted for

rehabilitation component consisted of stool cleaning to

favour well formed stems and reduce congestion, to

coppice back malformed stems of coppiceable species,

to clean malformed and congested bamboo clumps, to

take enrichment planting with fuelwood, bamboo,

fodder, fruit and other trees in existing spaces with

species which are natural and indigenous of Sal were

done for rehabilitation of degraded forests.

C) Forest Farming for Rural Poor (FFRP):

The FFRP was a individual targeted subsistence oriented

land use component enable landless and tribal to

practice intensive forest farming on government owned

marginal, unused degraded surplus land an and around

the villages bestowed with them the usufruct rights to

produce. The beneficiaries and land s were selected in

accordance with the principles of the ongoing scheme

for Economic Rehabilitation of the Rural Poor (ERRP).


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38

The FFRP activities were undertaken according to the

ecological conditions. First, where the soil is suitable for

growing crops, with an emphasis on agro-silvicultural

practices where the beneficiaries during first three years

were growing agricultural crops along with the tree

crops. The other lands where no agricultural crop could

be grown, the SFP extended assistance to the

beneficiaries with seedlings, fertilizers, pesticides, and

wages for soil preparation, plantation etc. The

beneficiaries were provided with the usufruct rights by

issuing the legal document known as “Tree Patta”.

D) Farm Forestry:

The farm forestry had aimed at assisting individual

farmers, organization and institution to plant fuel wood,

fodder and fruit trees on individual owned or leased land

not suitable for agriculture. Most of small and marginal

farmers were provided with seedlings to plant in their

own land as well as ensuring production of relevant trees

species on homestead and other land.

All projects components except farm forestry (FF) had

some common features of management. Those were (a)

Formation of Village Forest Committee (VFC) where it

already does not exist.(b) Ensuring the representation of

women, SCs, STs and all social group-wise members in

the VFC. (c) Choice of species would be selected on the

basis preference of the VFC.(d) Protection was

bestowed in the VFC. (e) Preference would be given to

weaker sections to fulfill their requirement from the

produce of SFP and to ensure equitable distribution of

the yields.

2. Phase-II (1988-89 to 1992-93):

The entire state of Odisha was covered during the phase-

II started from 1988-89 to 1992-93. The aim of the

second phase was to achieve self-sufficiency with

marketability. The activities of phase-I were retained

and activities extended to cover plantation in degraded

hills, strip plantation, and institutional plantation.

A) Barren Hill Plantation(BHP):

The practice of “Podu” cultivation oh top hills and hill

slopes made degraded and barren hills. The plantation in

barren hills aimed at restoring the village woodlot in tact

as well as;

a) Arresting degradation of soil fertility of such hill

slopes; b) undertake intensive soil conservation

measures to conserve soil and moisture which would be

beneficial for tree growth; and c) provide vegetative

cover to barren hill slopes and other erosion prone area.

The plantations were made only on such government

wastelands and government protected forests where no

cultivation could take place.

B) Strip Plantation:

The category of VWL in the form of strip plantation s

were undertaken on government land adjoining village

and panchayat roadways, canals, tanks, foreshores and

on other institutional areas. The objectives are a)

increase the supply of MFP; b) provide employment for

the adjoining villagers including women and poor; c)

provide environmental benefits in the form of shade and

aesthetic improvement; and d) provide opportunity to

poor local collector of fuel wood to obtain twigs,

branches and fallen dry leaves in and around the village.

C) Institutional Plantation:

The objective of the institutional plantation was to that

the project would support the villagers , students and

other local people to organize themselves to carry out

the tree planting in the scattered patches of unused land

and vacant areas around religious places, schools,

hospitals, community centres, rural market places and

other institutions, in order to meet the different social

requirements. All the input costs were provided by the

SFP free of cost. The species for plantation selected on

the basis of aesthetic and recreational considerations

depending on the conditions specific to each site.

3. Extended Years:

After completion of phase-II, the project tenure was

extended for a further period of three years from 1993-

94 to 1995-96 which ended on March, 31st 1996.

3.1 Extended year 1993-94 to 1995-96:

The components of SFP were remaining unchanged as

during the phase-II. But during the interim year 1994-

95, the component and approach were drastically

modulated so as to change the direction of the project

towards sectoral alignment. The emphases were laid on

the qualitative aspects rather than quantitative ones. As a

consequence of it, there had been scaling down of

physical targets under the plantation components in

order to allow more time to field staff to frequently

interact with VFCs and individual beneficiaries to

motivate them and concentrate on extension work

focusing on bio-diversity, fodder development and

consolidation aspects were introduced in a miniature

scale as a preliminary step for changing the direction of

the project for the coming years.

All the project components except Farm Forestry (FF)

would also have some common features of management

which are; (a) Formation of Village Forest Committees

(VFCS) where there was no such a committee exists

earlier. (b) Ensuring representation of women, SCs, STs

and other minor communities in the VFC.(c) Choice of

species would be in accordance with the preference of

the VFC.(d) Protection of forests would be organised by

the VFC.(e) Ensuring equitable distribution of the forest

yield and preferably weaker sections should be given

priority in sharing the project produce.


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39

Table-5 : Operational Area Details of SFP, Odisha.

Year No. of C.D.

Blocks

covered

No. of Locations

under plantation/

rehabilitation/

illages

Under

FF

No. of

VFCs

formed

No of

JMPs

signed

No of beneficiaries

under

New Repeated FF FFRP

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

1983-88 (Phase-1) 204 3623 496 9873 3623 3623 370565 3144

(Phase-I1) 314 5173 2045 19010 5127 5127 1020610 8333

% GR 153.92 142.78 412.30 192.55 141.51 141.51 275.42 265.04

Source: O/o Director, SFP, Orissa.

Detailed data on coverage of area, plantation under

different schemes, number of VFCs formed and JMPs

signed as well as number of beneficiaries presented

during phase-1 and during the operation of phase-II .

The first phase of the SFP ended in 1987-88, physical

targets set out in the period of the programme and

achievement is given in the following table.

Table-6 : Physical Target and Achievement during

the First Phase of SFP

Sl.

No

.

Particular

Indicators

Achievement

s

Target Achievemen

t as a % of

Target

0 1 2 3 4

1 VWL (in ha) 18346 21700 84.54

2 Reforstation

(in ha)

13737 20300 67.67

3 FFRP (in ha) 1509 1000 150.90

4 Rehabilitatio

n (in ha)

14184 15000 94.60

5 FF Seedling distribution

(Lakh Nos)

139.27 510.00

68.48

Source: O/o Director, SFP, Orissa.

The performance of the first phase of SFP was

encouraging. It was recorded that “out of 35000 villages

in the 9 project districts, the project aimed at covering

5000 villages during the first phase. By the end of 1987-

88 there were 3623 villages have already been covered

under various plantation components and another 9873

villages had been covered under FF component alone.

The achievement under FFRP was 151 per cent of the

target made, under Rehabilitation scheme 95 per cent

achieve whereas VWL also touched 85 per cent of

target. Reforestation and seedling distribution remains

below 70 per cent of target achieved. The most

important component of analysis under SFP in Odisha is

analysed about financial and physical achievement

under the project.

Table-7 : Phase-wise expenditure incurred and SIDA

Assistance provided to SFP, Orissa.(Rs. In Lakh)

Indicators 1983-

88

(Phase-

1)

1988-

93

(Phase-

II)

1993-96

(Extended

Period)

1983-96

Total

SFP

Years

1 2 3 4 5

Total

Expenditure

incurred

2706.65 8746.89 5259.79 16713.35

SIDA

Assistance

1100.29 5465.50 5601.39 11074.08

%of SIDA

asst. to T.E.

40.65

62.49 106.49 66.26

Source: O/o Director, SFP, Orissa

Table-7a : SIDA Assisted SFP, Year wise Expenditure and SIDA Share. (RS. Lakhs)

Year Expenditure Total SIDA

Share

Establishment Works Supportive

1 2 3 4 5 6

1983-84 5.41(36.90) 4.51(30.76) 4.76(32.47) 14.66(100.00)

1984-85 49.87(31.28) 96.08(60.27) 13.47(8.45) 159.42(100.00)

1985-86 116.99(26.26) 300.37(67.42) 28.17(6.32) 445.53(100.00) 1100.29

1986-87 164.76(23.93) 491.81(71.42) 32.02(4.65) 688.59(100.00)

1987-88 221.78(15.86) 1127.12(80.60) 49.55(3.54) 1398.45(100.00)

Total

Phase-1

558.81(20.65) 2019.89(74.63) 127.97(4.73) 2706.65(100.00) 1100.29

Phase-II

1988-89 277.38(23.23) 856.53(71.74) 60.10(5.03) 1194.01(100.00)

1989-90 358.82(27.02) 909.99(68.53) 59.12(4.45) 1327.93(100.00) 1767.44

1990-91 392.73(25.83) 1080.61(71.06) 47.35(3.11) 1520.69(100.00) 1109.73

1991-92 463.72(26.84) 1213.08(70.21) 50.95(2.95) 1727.75(100.00) 1081.57

1992-93 554.82(18.64) 2331.22(78.32) 90.47(3.04) 2976.51(100.00) 1506.76

Total Ph-II 2047.47(23.41) 6391.43(73.07) 307.99(3.52) 8746.89(100.00) 5465.50

Extended


_______________________________________________________________________________________________

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40

Years

1993-94 606.20(25.38) 1601.61(67.04) 181.11(7.58) 2388.92(100.00) 2143.12

1994-95 644.81(42.06) 824.41(53.78) 63.77(4.16) 1532.99(100.00) 1565.13

1995-96 632.89(47.31) 647.27(48.38) 57.72(4.31) 1337.88(100.00) 800.04

Total 1883.9(35.82) 3073.29(58.43) 302.6(5.75) 5259.79(100.00) 5601.39

Grand

Total

4490.18(26.87) 11484.61(68.72) 738.56(4.42) 16713.35(100.00) 11074.08

Note: Figures in parentheses refers to percentage to respective row totals.

Source: O/o Director, SFP, Odisha.

Table -4 represents the total financial achievements and

funding details of the SFP in Odisha along with major

heads of expenditure. Out of the total expenditure of

Rs.16713.35 lakhs incurred for the implementation of

the Social forestry Project in Orissa during the three

phases from 1983-84 to 1995-96, Rs.11074.08 lakhs

provided by the SIDA which is about 66.26 per cent of

total project cost. The segregation of expenditure on

different heads of account reveals that establishment

expenditure constituted 26.87% of total project

expenditure, 68.72% utilized in works and rest 4.42% of

total expenditure incurred in supportive activities. The

percentage of total expenditure incurred during different

phases revealed that expenditure on establishment

constituted 20.65 during phase-I, 23.41 in during phase-

II , during extended years 35.82 and the percentage

during the 1983-84 to 1995-96 was 26.87.The Works

expenditure during phase-I was 74.63 per cent , the

share marginally reduced to 73.07 per cent during phase-

II and further reduced to 58.43 per cent during the

extended years of operation. Under supportive heads of

expenditure4.73 percent of total expenditure was

incurred during phase-1, while it reduced to 3.52 per

cent during phase-II and rise to 5.75 per cent during

extended years.

Table-8 : Person days of Employment Generated during the SFP, Odisha During different phases.(in Lakh)

Indicators 1983-88

(Phase-1)

1988-93

(Phase-II)

1993-96

(Extended Period)

1983-96

Total SFP Years

1 2 3 4 5

Total Employment person

Days Generated

143.32 228.23 80.29 451.84

Average employment person

Days generated per year

28.66 45.65 26.76 34.76

Table-8a. : Year-wise Person days of Employment Generated during the SFP, Odisha (1983-84 to 1995 -

96).(Person days in Lakhs)

Year Scheduled Castes Scheduled Tribes Others Total

1 2 3 4 5

1983-84 - - - -

1984-85 2.72(27.20) 3.98(39.80) 3.30(33.00) 10.00(100.00)

1985-86 6.10(26.03) 8.44(36.02) 8.89(37.94) 23.43(100.00)

1986-87 9.79(24.49) 16.48(41.23) 13.70(34.28) 39.97(100.00)

1987-88 17.13(24.50) 27.00(38.62) 25.79(36.89) 69.92(100.00)

Phase-I 35.74(24.94) 55.90(39.00) 51.68(36.06) 143.32(100.00)

1988-89 13.00(22.22) 23.71(40.52) 21.80(37.26) 58.51(100.00)

1989-90 13.73(24.48) 23.04(41.08) 19.31(34.43) 56.08(100.00)

1990-91 10.29(22.48) 18.91(41.32) 16.57(36.20) 45.77(100.00)

1991-92 6.99(21.10) 13.02(39.30) 13.12(39.60) 33.13(100.00)

1992-93 7.33(21.10) 13.65(39.29) 13.76(39.61) 34.74(100.00)

Phase-II 51.34(22.49) 92.33(40.45) 84.56(37.05) 228.23(100.00)

1993-94 8.60(21.10) 16.02(39.30) 16.14(39.60) 40.76(100.00)

1994-95 5.34(21.11) 9.94(39.29) 10.02(39.60) 25.30(100.00)

1995-96 3.00(21.08) 5.59(39.28) 5.64(39.63) 14.23(100.00)

All Ext. yrs 16.94 31.55 31.80 80.29(100.00)

Grand Total 104.02(23.02) 179.78(39.79) 168.04(37.19) 451.84(100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses refers to percentage to respective row totals.

Source: Office of the Director, SFP, Odisha.


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41

During the first phase of SFP in Odisha, 3623 villages

were covered and out of 143.32 lakh total person days of

employment generated, 37.54 lakh days contributed by

female workers which is 26.19 % of total person days.

Social stratification of person days of employment

created revealed that 11.55 lakh days of employment

(32.32%) contribute by female S.C. participants out of

35.74 lakh person days employment provided by S.C.

community participation, whereas out of total 55.90 lakh

person days of employment generated due to S.T.

peoples participation, S.T. females contributed 14.79

lakh person days (26.46%) during the first phase of

operation of SFP in Odisha. It is therefore vividly clear

that S.C. females were relatively had worked more days

than female participants of other communities.

Table-9 : Salient features of the SIDA Assisted SFP, Odisha (1983-84 to1995-96)

Features Unit Phase-I Phase-II Extended period Total

1983-88 1988-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1983-96

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

No of Dist. Covered. Nos. 9 13(All) 30(All) 30(All) 30(All) 30(All)

No of C.D Blocks covered. Nos. 204 314 314 314 178 314

No of Villages Nos. 3623 7470 2526 1012 349 14980

Area covered Under

plantation.

Ha. 33592 55509.8 10370 6085 298 105854.8

Area cov. Under

Rehabilitation.

Ha. 14184 14195 5542 7020 19353 60294

No. Of Trees

Planted/Regenerated.

Lakh 1520.07 2871.71 709.40 548.08 429.00 6078.26

No.Of seedlings

distributed.

Lakh. 349.27 1126.51 300.00 300.47 191.00 2267.25

No. of beneficiaries under

FFRP

Nos. 3137 9189 1400 1372 - 15098

No of Vill.under FF Nos. 9873 13784 5913 6000 6000 41570

No of Farm Forestry (FF)

beneficiaries

Lakh 3.71 16.36 4.29 9.03 2.5 35.91

No of Man-days generated. Lakh 143.32 228.23 40.76 25.3 14.23 451.84

Funds utilized Rs. Lakh 2706.67 8746.89 2388.92 1538.55 1337.88 16712.68

Share received from SIDA Rs. Lakh 1326.27 5874.27 1672.39 986.74 178.66 10038.33

Area declared as village

forest (upto Mar-96)

Ha - - - - - 33005

No of VFCs Formed (upto

Mar-96)

Nos. - - - - - 14980

No of Tree Patta Issued Nos. - - - - - 1691

Area of tree Pattas issued Ha. - - - - - 835.1

No of Schools where

Green Brigades formed.

Nos. - - - - - 30


During the phase-1 of SFP operation in Odisha out of 13

districts, 9 districts were covered to improve the

environment by undertaking plantation activities along

with improving the economic conditions of the rural

poor‟s by providing employment and making provision

for supply of future fuel wood to the rural households.

There were many components of the scheme which

includes rehabilitation and regeneration of plants,

distribution of seedlings to improve village ecology and

economy, farm forestry for the rural poor(FFRP), farm

forestry(FF) concept was introduced to popularize the

scheme of plantation at the field bunds of the farmers.

The most important objective of the scheme was to

sensitise rural people about the importance of plants in

the life of people and society. The very existence of the

universe and sustainability of living organisms depends

on sustainabilityof forests. Plantation can help to restore

the ecology and provide future need of economy of

society for which social forestry had gained importance.

The basic necessity of society to fulfill day to day

Table-10 : Amount Spent under Different Functional heads, during SIDA Assisted SFP, Odisha. (Rs. In Lakh)

Components of Expenditure Phase-I Phase-II Extended period Total

1983-88 1988-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1983-96

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Establishment 558.81 2047.58 606.20 644.81 632.89 4490.29

Nursery 358.20 1060.20 297.05 74.54 0.00 1789.99

Vill. Woodlot 644.59 2270.31 475.60 136.05 45.11 3571.66

Reforestation. 452.39 542.43 152.07 39.99 13.28 1200.16

Rehabilitation 76.23 205.32 122.88 20.85 8.56 433.84

FFRP 118.94 530.37 96.08 73.51 28.58 847.48


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42

Farm Forestry 140.60 767.05 289.54 171.38 217.33 1585.90

Barren Hills - 181.79 57.31 9.56 3.22 251.88

Strip Plantn. - 16.68 1.06 0.30 0.12 18.16

Inst. Plantn. - 18.77 4.49 1.53 0.42 25.21

NGO - 32.62 22.00 6.22 0.00 60.84

Motorcycle 28.99 - - - - 28.99

Building 112.08 591.31 83.54 26.78 41.32 855.03

Training 37.68 121.37 30.25 12.32 40.36 241.98

Research 11.64 56.06 7.37 12.62 17.36 105.05

Publicity 28.11 89.20 35.07 11.22 0.00 163.60

Protection 89.86 174.58 74.88 17.36 0.00 358.68

Monitoring 21.55 41.25 33.53 10.25 0.00 106.58

VWL Consoln. - - - 26.10 8.15 34.25

Silvipasture - - - 71.89 66.16 138.05

Multi. Refo-R1 - - - 37.36 0.00 37.36

Multi. Refo-R2 - - - 35.95 11.20 47.15

Multi. Refo-R3 - - - 92.40 38.40 130.80

Eco-restoration - - - - 104.83 104.83

Inf. &Extn. - - - - 16.52 16.52

Seed Improve. - - - - 3.00 3.00

Dev. NFM. - - - - 17.00 17.00

Intensification & Extn of JFM - - - - 24.07 24.07

Total 2706.00 8746.89 2388.92 1532.99 1337.88 16712.68


Table-10a. : Percentage of Amount Spent under Different Functional heads, during SIDA Assisted SFP, Odisha.

Components of Expenditure Phase-I Phase-II Extended period Total

1983-88 1988-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1983-96

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Establishment 20.65 23.41 25.38 42.06 47.31 26.87

Nursery 13.24 12.12 12.43 4.86 0.00 10.71

Vill. Woodlot 23.82 25.96 19.91 8.87 3.37 21.37

Reforestation. 16.72 6.20 6.37 2.61 0.99 7.18

Rehabilitation 2.82 2.35 5.14 1.36 0.64 2.60

FFRP 4.40 6.06 4.02 4.80 2.14 5.07

Farm Forestry 5.20 8.77 12.12 11.18 16.24 9.49

Barren Hills 0.00 2.08 2.40 0.62 0.24 1.51

Strip Plantn. 0.00 0.19 0.04 0.02 0.01 0.11

Inst. Plantn. 0.00 0.21 0.19 0.10 0.03 0.15

NGO 0.00 0.37 0.92 0.41 0.00 0.36

Motorcycle 1.07 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.17

Building 4.14 6.76 3.50 1.75 3.09 5.12

Training 1.39 1.39 1.27 0.80 3.02 1.45

Research 0.43 0.64 0.31 0.82 1.30 0.63

Publicity 1.04 1.02 1.47 0.73 0.00 0.98

Protection 3.32 2.00 3.13 1.13 0.00 2.15

Monitoring 0.80 0.47 1.40 0.67 0.00 0.64

VWL Consoln. 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.70 0.61 0.20

Silvipasture 0.00 0.00 0.00 4.69 4.95 0.83

Multi. Refo-R1 0.00 0.00 0.00 2.44 0.00 0.22

Multi. Refo-R2 0.00 0.00 0.00 2.35 0.84 0.28

Multi. Refo-R3 0.00 0.00 0.00 6.03 2.87 0.78

Eco-restoration 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 7.84 0.63

Inf. &Extn. 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.23 0.10

Seed Improve. 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.22 0.02

Dev. NFM. 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.27 0.10

Intensification & Extn of JFM 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.80 0.14

Total 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

Note: Estimated from Table-9

Table-7 provides all necessary features of the SFP and

table-8 represents expenditure under different heads.

The expenditure under different functional categories

during different phases presented for better

understanding and further research purposes of scholars

and planning authorities.Table-8a try to distribute the


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43

percentage of expenditure incurred during different

phases on various activities carried out by the SFP in

Odisha which is presented in Table-8 in absolute terms

of expenditure in lakh of rupees.Table-8a present

percentage of total expenditure incurred on different

activities undertaken under thwe SFP. The percent of

expenditure are significant on Establishment, Village

Wood Lot (VWL), Nursery and Rehabilitation of

degraded forests.

Table-11 : Physical Achievement under SFP, Odisha during 1983-84 to 1995-96.(Rs in Lakhs)

Component Unit Phase-I Phase-II Extended Period Total

1983-88 1988-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1983-96

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

VWL Ha. 18346.00 39799.50 7012.00 - - 65157.50

Reforestation Ha. 13737.00 8696.80 2002.00 - - 24435.80

Rehabilitation Ha. 14184.00 14195.00 5542.00 - - 33921.00

FFRP Ha. - 0

Agro-forestry Ha. 1509.00 3343.50 450.00 446.50 - 5749.00

Density plantn. Ha. 349.27 1251.00 250.00 239.50 - 1740.50

Farm forestry Lakh no. - 1126.51 300.00 300.47 205 2281.25

Barren Hill Plantn. Ha. - 1735.50 500.00 - - 2235.50

Strip Plantn. Ha. - 339.50 30.00 - - 369.50

Inst.Plantn. Ha. - 344.00 126.00 - - 470.00

VWL Consoln. Ha. - - - 1398.00 - 1398.00

Silvipasture Ha. - - - 1996.00 298 2294.00

Multi. Refo-R1 Ha. - - - 5000.00 - 5000.00

Multi. Refo-R2 Ha. - - - 2020.00 - 2020.00

Multi. Refo-R3 Ha. - - - 2005.00 - 2005.00

Eco-restoration Ha. - - - - 19353 19353.00

Total Plantation Ha 33592 55509.80 10370.00 6085.00 298.00 105855.00

Total Rehabilitation Ha 14184 14195.00

5542.00

7020.00 19353.00 60294.00

Total Farm Forestry

(Seedling Distd.)

No. Lakh 349.27

1126.51

300.00

300.47

191.00

2267.25


Table-9 has presented the physical achievement of the

SFP in Odisha during different phases of operation and

provided relieves to fuel wood collectors, predominantly

women who were victims of loss of forests at the same

time they save their productive work hours and help to

restore environment in a better way. The percentage of

expenditure during the total tenure of the SFP in Odisha

on physical plantation was highest during second phase

i.e 52.44, followed by phase-I expenditure was 31.73%.

The percentage of total expenditure incurred during the

whole period, on rehabilitation of degraded forests was

highest 32.10 per cent during the extended year 1995-96

of SFP. Similarly out of total expenditure incurred

during the whole period of SFP in Odisha on total farm

forestry, highest percentage of expenditure during the

phase-II constituted 49.69 percent.

Table- 12 : Physical plantation done under SFP

Component Unit Phase-I Phase-II Extended Period Total

1983-88 1988-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1983-96

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Total Plantation Ha 33592

(31.73)

55509.80

(52.44)

10370.00

(9.80)

6085.00

(5.75)

298.00

(0.28)

105855.00

(100.00)

Total Rehabilitation Ha 14184

(23.52)

14195.00

(23.54)

5542.00

(9.19)

7020.00

(11.64)

19353.00

(32.10)

60294.00

(100.00)

Total Farm Forestry No.

Lakh

349.27

(15.41)

1126.51

(49.69)

300.00

(13.23)

300.47

(13.25)

191.00

(8.42)

2267.25

(100.00)

Species wise plantations by Forest Department in Odisha:

It is one of the bones of contention among forestry

experts that monoculture or single specie plantation

destroyed the ecological prospect in the state. Lack of

diverse plantation also undermines the principle of

forestry among local habitats according to their customs.

But the charge made against it is not the full truth. Facts

presented below in the table is containing species wise

plantation by forest department data estimated by

FSI,1999 in Odisha is as follows.

Table-13 : Species wise plantations by Forest

Department in Odisha (Up to 1999)

Sl.

no

Species wise

plantations

Plantation

in „000

hectares

% of total

plantation

0 1 2 3

1 Acacia

auriculiforms

117.40 14.18


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44

2 Eucalyptus Spp 87.90 10.62

3 Cassia siamea 45.82 5.53

4 Tectona grandis 44.12 5.33

5 Dalbergia

Sissoo

33.84 4.09

6 Acacia nilotion 31.12 3.76

7 Anacardium

occidentale

23.78 2.87

8 Casuarina Spp 11.41 1.38

9 Others 432.58 52.25

Total 827.97 100.00

Source: FSI estimate,1999.

From the above data it is vividly presenting that various

species plantations done by the forest department of

state is enough to deny the monoculture issues raised by

various corners.

Plantations in India:

The Government of India (GOI) was thinking seriously

to improve the forest situation in the country, after

1970s to cease further damage to precious forest

resources. The non-tax revenue generating sources of

states also had shown a declining trend. The „Forest‟

was in the State list as per the VIIth Schedule of the

Constitution of India since the year 1935. In 1935, The

British Parliament based on the Government of India

Act of 1935 created Provincial Legislature but by virtue

of which a dual system of Government came in to

operation. Consequently, the 42nd

Constitutional

Amendment Act,1976, brought the „Forest‟ from state

subject to the concurrent List, which had given to

provincial governments. After the amendment the GOI

legally armed with the power to regulate forests in its

territory. But by this change the powers of the State

were reduced and those of the Centre were enhanced

over the „Forests‟. The Government of India

promulgated the Forest Conservation Ordinance in the

year 1980 prohibiting the State Government from

allowing the use of any forest land for any other purpose

without the prior approval of the Central Government.

The Ordinance was listed and converted in to an Act in

the same year (No.69 of 1980). The importance of

intervention in forest conservation and increasing tree

cover through various plantation schemes implemented

to achieve at the destination of afforestation of

unutilized spaces within or outside forest area. The SFP

created a new venture by bringing paradigm change in

approach of people from indiscriminate tree felling to

plantation of trees which led from deforestation to

reforestation. At the same time altering rural community

from forest produce „Consumer‟ to „producer-cum-

consumer‟. Motivating, educating, spreading awareness

and sensitizing the people to create a movement though

slow down after seventh plan, it is still alive and

working with a rejuvenating energy during ninth plan.

For the better assessment the following table represent

the area of afforestation and expenditure incurred by the

GOI.

Table-13 : PROGRESS OF AFFORESTATION THROUGH SUCCESSIVE PLANS (( one sq. km = 100

hectares )

Five Year

Area

Afforested (in

„000 Hect.) Cumulative

Afforestation

expenditure in

Plan Period Cumulative

Investment in

Affn.(area Sq Km./Rs in

Million)

Plan Period

(„000

hectares.)

Expenditure (Rs.

Ten Million)

(`Ten

Million)

First(1951-56) 52 52 1.28 1.28 0.025

Second 1956-61 311 363 6.86 8.14 0.022

Third 1961-66 583 946 21.13 29.27 0.031

1966-69 453 1399 23.02 52.29 0.037

Fourth 1969-74 714 2113 44.34 96.63 0.046

Fifth 1974-79 1221 3334 107.28 203.91 0.061

1979-80 222 3556 37.1 241.01 0.068

Sixth 1980-85 4650 8206 926.01 1167.02 0.142

Seventh 1985-90 8863 17069 2426.63 3593.65 0.211

1990-91 1387 18456 627.79 4221.44 0.229

1991-92 1725 20181 705.72 4927.16 0.244

Eighth 1992-97 7950 28131 3686.4 8613.56 0.306

Ninth 1997-02 8050 36181 7350.5 * 8613.56 0.238

2002-03 405 36586 151.26 8764.82 0.240

2003-04 283 36869 207.98 8972.80 0.243

2004-05 107 36976 233 9205.80 0.249

2005-06 54 37030 248.12 9453.92 0.255


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45

2006-07 0 37030 292.75 9746.67 0.263

2007-08 493 37523 392.95 10139.62 0.270

2008-09 173 37696 345.62 10485.24 0.278

2009-10 104 37800 318.17 10803.41 0.286

2010-11 57 37857 309.99 11113.40 0.294

2011-12 140 37997 303 11416.40 0.300

2012-13 56 38053 3043.74 14460.14 0.380

Source: ISFR, 2013.

Table- 14 : Plantation done in Odisha

Year Plantation

(in „000 ha)

Rehabilitation

(in „000 ha)

Avenue

Plantation (in „000 ha)

Seedling Distribution

(No in cores)

1 2 3 4 5

Up to 1951-52 32.95 - - -

1951-56 0.75 - - -

1956-61 7.10 0.52 - -

1961-66 39.74 7.79 - -

1966-71 53.67 3.20 - -

1971-76 47.08 1.34 - -

1976-81 90.61 11.81 2.68 0.32

1981-86 175.64 61.19 2.71 5.84

1986-90 205.19 140.31 5.87 6.82

1991-95 144.80 56.73 0.23 13.98

1995-2000 133.29 64.85 1.39 5.16

2005-10 (Total)303.77 - - 14.39

2010-11 233.45 0.24 0.13

Economic Survey of Odisha, (2004-05) and Published materials, O/o the PCCF, Government of Odisha.

Afforestation and plantation programmes assume great

importance to enrich the forest wealth of the state and

cater to the demands of small timber and firewood

requirements of the people. Afforestation programme in

Odisha now, includes (a) bamboo plantation

programme, (b) economic Plantation, (c) avenue

plantation,(d)bald hill plantation,(e) urban plantation, (f)

plantation of medicinal plants (g) maintenance of

permanent nurseries, (h) agro-forestry and (i)

Popularisation of fuel-efficient chullahs. These

plantation programmes are financed both by

Government of India and Odisha through (i)

Afforestation programme under Thirteenth finance

Commission Grants, (ii) Mahatma Gandhi National

Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS),

(iii)National Afforestation Programme (NAP), (iv)

National Bamboo Mission(NBM), (v) Industrial belt

Plantation, (vi) Compensatory Afforestation (CAMPA)

(vii) Jagannath Bana Prakalpa, and (viii) Medicinal

Species Conservation Programme etc.

Tribal people residing in and around the forest consume

fuel for cooking food, boiling paddy, boiling water,

frying grains, protection from cold, baking tiles, getting

light, protection from wild animals etc. They generally

used dry wood, branches, twigs, leaves, hey of paddy,

dry stalks of maize, millet. Kulthi, cattle dung cakes etc.

At present most of them used kerosene oil for domestic

light. To meet the scarcity of fuel and fodder of local

people village forest or community forestry was

introduced and handed over to community.

Jones (1978) had rightly also put tribal situation of

impoverishment due to exploitation in fallowing words,

“Perhaps the most crucial prerequisite for tribal

development is to curb severally the power of the non-

tribal money lenders, landlords and traders that control

the tribal economy. However, since the political

organizers for the centre and centre-right parties that are

likely to control any government under the present

political system come from this class, it is highly

unlikely that this basic change will ever be made. The

laws exist, but no government that wants to remain in

power can afford to implement them.”

The suspicion and trust deficit between the forest

dwellers and those who are in government to implement

various projects to ameliorate their poverty and deliver

justice, substantially contributed nothing to win their

trust. The failure of delivering administrative justice to

these marginal sections of society is not only due to their

tradition, customs, backwardness in education, living

conditions but also due to visible inequality among their

communities, encroachment of their resources by

outsiders including other community people entering

into their communities to enjoy the government

concessions and benefits demarcated/reserved for them.

For instance, for securing government benefits/jobs

many other caste people manipulated their identity as ST


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46

community and snatch the benefits meant for those

target people.

CONCLUSION:

The Demand for forest produces particularly fuel wood

and small timber in rural segment has been increasing

due to rise in population and lack of suitable substitutes

while diversion of forest for non-forest uses reduces

availability of potential forest produces in odisha.

SFP is an attempt to reduce the supply–demand gap of

forest produces and create an atmosphere to achieve

twin objectives by creating a new entity of producer-

cum-consumer and same time reducing the gap

between demand for and supply of various forest

produces like fuel, fodder, small timber etc and to some

extent the project deliver successfully its objectives.

The percentage of expenditure during the total tenure of

the SFP in Odisha on physical plantation was highest

during second phase i.e 52.44, followed by phase-I

expenditure was 31.73%. The percentage of total

expenditure incurred during the whole period, on

rehabilitation of degraded forests was highest 32.10 per

cent during the extended year 1995-96 of SFP.

The SIDA assistance during the first phase was 40.65

per cent of total expenditure, 62.49 during second phase

and 106.49 per cent including arrear dues during

extended three years period had created financial

bottleneck for the better implementation of SFP, if the

SIDA Share of 66 per cent of expenditure had provided

to SFP more effective results might accrued in Odisha.

The pattern of expenditure had revealed that 74.6 per

cent of total expenditure incurred during the phase-I,

73.04 per cent during phase-II and 58.11 during

extended years of the SFP and 68.72 per cent of

expenditure total period utilised for works only which is

definitely a sine qua non of a good project.

Employment generated under SFP during First phase

were 143.32 lakh person days, 228.23 lakh days during

second phase and 80.30 lakh days during extended years

and social group-wise percent share shows that

Scheduled Tribes contributed 39.00 employment days

during first phase, 40.45 employment days and during

the whole period 39.79 employment days while SCs

contributed 24.94, 22.49 and 23.03 per cent of total

employment days during the corresponding period.

The project implemented in all districts of Odisha and

had covered 41570 villages under FF out of 47529

inhabited villages which constitutes 87.46 per cent and

includes all forest villages.

Achievement of the SFP in generating assets and natural

resources to meet the immediate need of the village,

organised by institutional intervention made their

outlook more effective. For example in Odisha numbers

of VFCs formed were 14980, which covered 31.52 per

cent of total inhabited villages of Odisha

The SFP, Odisha had a direct positive impact on local

poor people by providing them employment and income

reduce pressure on nearby forests where they were

engaged to earn their livelihood.

Secondly, it had generated awareness among local

people to save forest and plant tree to have a secure

future for future generations.

Thirdly, Creation of VWL generates hope among local

people to meet future fuel needs of the community and

help to get additional income from the output to be

provided through forest products.

Fourthly, it reduced the hard working hours of fuel

wood collectors by growing trees in and around the

villages which provided alternative fuels in the form of

twigs, branches, dry leaves in local area enhanced

welfare index of fuel wood gatherers.

Fifthly, the reforestation activities for restoring natural

forest preserve natural environment.

Sixthly, by involving people in the development of

VWL, FF, FFRP and other programmes, it has positive

impact on society to ensure their contribution for

sustainable supply of fuels, fodders, small timber for

household construction and agricultural implements,

non-timber forest produces (NTFPs), etc for the

economic security of community.

In seventh, the contribution of social forestry project,

despite many weaknesses cannot be underestimated as a

step towards involvement of people in conservation,

plantation or creation of new forest in government or

Panchayats waste lands, and ensuring a better

environment and generating additional avenues if

income from different ways.

Evaluation of the SFP in Odisha by SIDA in 1992, had

estimated a moderate but positive return from the CF

component (SIDA, 1992). Thus, in the conclusion, it

may be said that the contribution of social forestry not

only limited to its physical and financial achievements

but its impact on society as a whole also in awakening

the consequences of forest depletion and role of each

individual/society in conservation of natural resources is

more important as the government agencies to grow

trees, protect, conserve and ensure its sustainability.

Recent data on fuel wood consumption for cooking in

India is used by 49 per cent of households whereas in

Odisha it is 65 per cent (Census, 2011). It shows that

majority of households till using wood for cooking

purposes in India, so the importance of social forestry

can not be underestimated.

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