Forests in the state of
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...
(northern
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 ...
) currently cover an area of nearly , which is about 68.16% of the total land area of the state. The forests were once considered to be the main source of income of the state and most of the original forests were clear felled. The emphasis has shifted, however, from exploitation to conservation. The state government aims to increase
forest cover
Forest cover is the amount of forest that covers a particular area of land. It may be measured as relative (in percent) or absolute (in square kilometres/square miles). Around a third of the world's surface is covered with forest, with closed-canop ...
to 50% of the total land area. There have been various projects, including the establishment of protected areas such as National Parks, designed to preserve and expand the forests.
Preservation and nationalisation of forests
Steps are being taken to intensify
environmental preservation
Environmentalism or environmental rights is a broad philosophy, ideology, and social movement regarding concerns for environmental protection and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health se ...
and
sustainable development
Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The des ...
in the Himachal Pradesh region. All remaining forests in Himachal Pradesh have been nationalised under the supervision of the officers like
Indian forest service
The Indian Forest Service (IFS) is one of the three All India Services of the Government of India. The other two All India Services being the Indian Administrative Service and the Indian Police Service. It was constituted in the year 1966 und ...
, Himachal Forest Service and seasoned Range/Dy.Range Forest Officers. Felling of trees and sale of timber is now controlled by the State Forest Corporation, and an ''Enforcement Organisation'' has been established to prevent the illegal felling of trees and the
smuggling
Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations.
There are various ...
of
timber
Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...
.
Hunting
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
has also been restricted.
The government has created 33
Sanctuaries
A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sa ...
, and two
National Parks
A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual ...
. Additional national parks sites are proposed.
Reforestation programs
A
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...
assisted ''Social Forestry Project'' has been launched. The aim of the project is to plant more trees for
fuel
A fuel is any material that can be made to react with other substances so that it releases energy as thermal energy or to be used for work. The concept was originally applied solely to those materials capable of releasing chemical energy but ...
,
fodder
Fodder (), also called provender (), is any agriculture, agricultural foodstuff used specifically to feed domesticated livestock, such as cattle, domestic rabbit, rabbits, sheep, horses, chickens and pigs. "Fodder" refers particularly to food g ...
, and
timber
Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...
to meet the basic requirements of the local people, thus avoiding depletion of the
old growth forest
An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...
s. The deforested ''Kandi'' areas are also being
reafforested in another project financially assisted by the World Bank.
Other programs
An integrated ''water shed department'' project for
Shivaliks
The Sivalik Hills, also known as the Shivalik Hills and Churia Hills, are a mountain range of the outer Himalayas that stretches over about from the Indus River eastwards close to the Brahmaputra River, spanning the northern parts of the Indian ...
is also under construction.
Fact and figures
Sanctuaries and National Parks
Himachal Pradesh has five national parks and thirty-two wildlife sanctuaries, which are listed below:
Gallery
Image:Barking Deer.JPG, Barking deer (HP wildlife)
Image:White leopard.JPG, Snow Leopard (HP wildlife)
Image:Deerincage356.JPG, Deer (Kufri, nature park)
References
External links
himachaltourism.nic.inhptdc.gov.in
{{Himachal Pradesh topics
H
Environment of Himachal Pradesh
Lists of tourist attractions in Himachal Pradesh