New perspectives in forestry research and problems of its management in developing countries
New perspectives in forestry research and problems of its management in developing countries
K. M. Siddiqui
ABSTRACT
Significant changes have occurred all over
the world in recent past in the concepts regarding
nature and role of forests. Forestry has moved
from backwaters to central stage in international
forums. For almost a century, scientific forestry
meant management of woodlands on the basis of
classical principles developed in Central Europe
especially in Germany when widespread wood
scarcity and flood destruction caused by
deforestation occurred in that part of the world.
The forests were considered essentially to perform
two broad but ill-defined functions e.g. productive
and protective. In the case of developing countries,
scientific forest management was started in the
nineteenth century to supply timber and other
produce on sustained yield basis which actually
meant timber supplies for large works such as
railways and army barracks and in time of
emergency or wars. In the process, attempts were
made to convert their existing natural forests into
normal forest but little success was achieved in this
regards even after many decades of efforts. The
protective functions of the forests were recognized
for mountains, and sub-mountain regions only. In
some situations, especially in Indo-Pakistan subcontinent, effect of forests on general climate was
also considered to be important. The local people
living in the vicinity of forests however, hardly
mattered in forest management and they were
excluded from areas demarcated as state forests.
This produced conflict between local people and
forestry departments over the use of forest
resources which continues till todate and has been
the main cause of forest depletion in the
developing countries over the years.
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December 1991
Vol. 41, Iss. 4
