The Kezol-tsa Forest is a thick forest along the southern and northern edges of the

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

n states of

Nagaland Nagaland () is a landlocked state in the northeastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south and the Sagaing Region of Myanmar to the east. Its capital cit ...

and

Manipur Manipur () ( mni, Kangleipak) is a state in Northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It also borders two regions of Myanm ...

. The forest is located on the southern part of

Dzüko Valley The Dzüko Valley is a valley located at the borders of the states of Nagaland and Manipur in Northeast India. This valley is well known for its natural environment, seasonal flowers and flora & fauna. It is situated at an altitude of 2452 m abo ...

. This forest has dry, warm summers and cool winter. The accumulation of several inches of

snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

during the winter is not uncommon and can stay on the ground for several days. Some threats to the Kezol-tsa forests include

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks or skeleton cars. Logging is the beginning of a supply chain ...

, changing

fire regime A fire regime is the pattern, frequency, and intensity of the bushfires and wildfires that prevail in an area over long periods of time. It is an integral part of fire ecology, and renewal for certain types of ecosystems. A fire regime describes th ...

s and

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

Flora and Fauna

The Kezol-tsa forests has diverse species of trees. Animals that may be found in this forest include the

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

, etc.

Dispute

Kezol-tsa has been the center stage of dispute between the Mao Council of Manipur and the

Southern Angami Public Organization The Southern Angami Public Organization is a public organization established in 1944. It is the apex public organization of the Southern Angami Naga Naga or NAGA may refer to: Mythology * Nāga, a serpentine deity or race in Hindu, Buddhist a ...

(SAPO) of Nagaland. Both parties have been stalking claim for Kezol-tsa forest and

for the last many years. On 23 November 2000, a rest house constructed by volunteers from

Viswema Viswema (), is a Southern Angami Naga village located 22 km south of Kohima, the capital of Nagaland, India. With a resident population of 7417, it is the second biggest village in the state and is part of the contiguous built-up of the K ...

at Kezol-tsa was destroyed by suspected Songsong villagers and this led to tension between

Mao people The Mao languages are a branch of the Omotic languages spoken in Ethiopia. The group had the following categories: *Bambasi, spoken in the Bambasi woreda of Benishangul-Gumuz Region, * Hozo and Seze (often described together as 'Begi Mao'), spok ...

and the

Southern Angami Southern Angami or ''Japfüphiki'' is a geo-cultural region located in the southern part of Kohima District in the state of Nagaland in India with a portion of its territory also lying across the inter-state border in the Senapati District of Ma ...

s. On enquiry made by Memai Council of Mao, it was found that some youths from Songsong village had destroyed the rest house and the written report was intimated by Memai Council of Mao to the then ''Japfüphiki Public Organization'' which is renamed now as

. During this relevant time of tension, the then Tenyimi Central Union (TCU) intervened and directed the defaulters (Songsong village) to reconstruct the rest house of the Southern Angamis which read as ''‘the destroyed rest house should be re-constructed to its original shape by Songsong village within 20 (twenty) days with effect from 15th February 2001’''. The destroyed rest house was re-constructed to its original shape by the Songsong village within the stipulated time and Southern Angami ownership of Kezol-tsa and Dzüko is undisturbed until tensions rose again in 2015.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kezol-tsa Forest Viswema Forests of India

Flora and Fauna

Dispute

See also

References

External links