Project Work of M.Sc. Forestry, Guru Ghasidas University - Bilaspur, Session -2000-02.

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 Income from Minor Forest Produce - A case study of Hazaribag Wildlife Sanctuary

INTRODUCTION

          Hazaribag Sanctuary is most important Sanctuary of the Chhotanagpur plateau. The wilderness is classified as a northern dry deciduous forest. Mildly undulating with hills running from east to west. The forest is filled with the natural treasures.

Man is fully related with land and to animals and plants which grow upon it. The forest-man relation is still economic, entailing privileges. The tribals and the forest relation is immortal. MFPs are readily available to meet their daily needs. Wild edible plants have assumed great significance in rural India on account of their potent role in socio-economic development foe rural people by promoting their nutrition and health and creating income and employment generation opportunities for them (Namdev and Pant, 1991). There are innumerable MFP species occurring in and around forests.  They provide fuel, fodder and small timber in such a way that they also yield one or more minor forest produce to produce food, drugs, species, essential oils, fatty oil, gum, resin, tan, dye, fibre, floss, nuts, beads, leaves for platters, tassar, lac, honey etc.(Shiva M.P, 1993)

There are a many group of tribals and other people living in the forest since long. They have a very good knowledge of the medicinal and other uses of the local plants. For the household income they extract many products and also process some products for their own use and sale in local markets. They are also making some products as leaf baskets, Bamboo baskets, Wood carving, Milk and milk products and much more.

MFPs provide food and income to tribals during the lean season. This forest produce may be minor for the government, as it earns little revenue for them, but it is a major source of income to the tribals.

There are many works done by the government in the forest area. Taungia methods, road construction, other forest related works as census, felling, Tending operations etc.(Krishnamurty, T, 1988). The villagers residing in the area are always preferred and easily accessible for these works. They are also provided many training and proper encouragement so that they utilize the most and in the best way so that the forest is not over exploited.

This thesis explains about the various species found in the Hazaribag Sanctuary and their uses. It also explains about the earnings of villagers by the Sanctuary, their dependence on the Sanctuary. The thesis tells about the industries based on the forests and the forest products. It explains about the works done by the government for the benefit of the forest dwellers. All in one it shows how man is dependent on the forest for his livelihood. It briefly tells about the man – nature relationship.

  A village in the Hazaribag called “Kaili” was undertaken for the study. It is a small village of about 18 houses. A total of 4 families were taken into account. A comprenhsive study about the dependency on the forest for the livelihood of the family was taken. Whole economic data on the income point of view was taken. Evaluation of the assets and the products from the forest they take was evaluated.

This work shows about how the forests are a source of income. It shows the importance of the Minor Forest Produce which is often neglected. The MFP is also a big source of income and should be duly encouraged and acknowledged.

HAZARIBAG WILDLIFE SANCTUARY

Hazaribag is a hill resort in the Damodar valley. It is around 120 Km. from Ranchi on the Patna-Ranchi national highway. Hazaribag is the second important city of Jharkhand state. There is a Wildlife Sanctuary here. The British had built the picturesque town of Hazar Bag or Hazaribag at a height of 615m at hilly plateau of Chhotanagpur. Grey hills stands guard the whole area. It has reputation as a healthy place. Therefore the health seekers come here more than that of the tourists. But the attraction of Hazaribag National Park is undeniable. The newest discovery of Hazaribag is the world's oldest cave picture Isco at a distance of 40 km from the town. From Hazaribag one may visit Tilaiya (53) and Konar (51 km) dams by bus or can even trek through.

.. Hazaribag Sanctuary is situated around 25 Km from Hazaribag town. Hazaribag Santuary has an abundance of wild animals like the wild boar, sambar, nilgai, chital, sloth bear, tiger and panther.

Position

    The Hazaribag Santuary is situated in Jharkhand state. It (Hazaribag west division) lies between 23⁰ 25’ N to 23⁰ 20’ N latitudes and 84⁰ 55’ E to 85⁰ 50’ E longitudes. It is just north of the Tropic of Cancer. Forest of Hazaribag Sanctuary is spread over the western and southern portion of the Hazaribag plateau.  It is situated at a distance of 120 Km from Ranchi on NH-33.

Establishment

The ex-Ramgarh reserves and former Ramgarh reserves were notified as Private Protected forests in under section 29(1) of the B.P.F Act in the Government Notification no. 11969-VIF-293/47-R, dated 18^th December, 1947. Then in 1950 it was notified as Protected Forest under section 29(3) of the Indian Forest Act. Subsequently it was changed into the “National Forest” in the year 1952.  But in year 1976 it was changed into Wildlife Sanctuary due to small area, heavy population residing inside and low population of animals inside. The Sanctuary was notified by the Govt. of Bihar gazette notification no. 955/956 dated 20^th May, 1976. Now the sanctuary is designated as “Hazaribag Wildlife Sanctuary”.

Area

            Total forest of Hazaribag west forest division is 1692.30 Km². The area of Hazaribag Sanctuary is 183.23 Km². Shape of the division is oblong. It is about 100 Km long and average 50 Km broad. The Sanctuary is divided into two zones -

1. Core area – Total area is 37 Km²
2. Buffer area – Total area is 148 Km²

Weather/Climate

            There is a typical monsoon climate with three distinct seasons – summer, rainy and winter. Altitudinal height of Hazaribag Plateau softens the temperature extremes during summer. Yet hot westerly wind too over the low lying tract has its annual toll. Mid June coincides with monsoon break. Pre-monsoon rains during late May or early June are a common feature. Frost is uncommon except certain low lying pockets. The winter is mostly moderate with brief period of chilling cold. Hazaribag is considered as the hill station of Jharkhand. The climatological data obtained from Damodar Valley Corporation (Hazaribag Division) is given below :-

Table No - 1

*source DVC, Hazaribag office

Water supply and river system

            The main rivers of the Division are the Barakar, Damodar, Haharo (in Barkagaon range), Garhi (in Tandwa range), Barsoti (in Barhi range). The first two are perennial. The general flow is from west to east. The water table is fairly high. It ranges from 8-10 meters deep. Generally supply of water for drinking purpose is not a problem. But during severe draught years the areas specially in hilly terrain face acute shortage of water.

            The division is having a good water harvesting system. All over the division there are various check dams and ponds which supply drinking water during summer.

Soil and Topography

The general formation in Archeans but in the valleys of Damodar and its tributaries extensive areas of the Gondwanas formation, which is one of the oldest of the sedimentary rocks are found. The geology of the areas lying within the sanctuary consists of two systems –

1. The Archeans – These consist of the metamorphic and igneous rocks like schista, gheisses and granites. These rocks are intersected by acid pegmatite veins. The pegmatite consists of quartz, feldspar and other intersecting minerals such as tourmaline, beryl, garnet fluorite etc. 
2. The Gondwanas – The rocks are of sedimentary origin and contain shale and sandstone and loose round boulders and pebbles embedded in clay. The lowest layer contain the coal seams. Sandstone is found to overlie the coal while the shale underlies it. The loose conglomerate is found on the top.

            The soil derived from the archean rocks are generally sandy loam. The general name given to it is “Red soil”. The soil is generally acidic. Available potash is rich but phosphate is low. The soil derived from quartzite is poor and shallow. The soil overlying the shale of the Gondwana system tends to be clayey and heavy while that overlying the sand stone is sandy loam and light.

                        The degree of soil erosion varies from sheet erosion to formation of deep gullies. Due to frequent fire and heavy grazing the soil floor is rendered bare of any vegetation cover or cover by dead fallen leaves. Due to this soil run off is fairly high during the first few rains of the summer monsoon.

Forest type

            Mainly the Hazaribag Sanctuary is a Sal Forest. According to revised classification forest types of India by Sir H.G Champion and S.K Seth the forest of the Hazaribag Sanctuary  fall into following type :-

1.      The Sal forests – This corresponds to the Northern dry Sal bearing forest of 5B/C-1 type. Most of the forest area comes under this classification. The crop the area is of coppice origin. The general quality is Coppice quality-B but localized patches of  quality-A are found in several felling series. The associates in the top and middle stories are Shorea robusta, Terminalia tomentosa, Madhuca indica, Pterocarpus marsupium, Adina cordifolia and occasional bamboo brakes are also present. The shrub consists of  Hollarrhea antidysentrica, Indigofera pulchella,  Carissa opaca etc. The grasses consists of Heteropogon controtus, Eulaliopsis binata. The climbers are Bahunia vahlii, Acacia pinnata  and a few Asclepiadacene etc.

       The best sal forests are found on the coarse sandstone of Madhudi and adjoining  hills. But an extensive area having sal forest has undergone degradation due to extreme biotic interference like irregular felling, grazing etc. The site quality is generally good to support good pole crop.

 2.      The Miscellaneous forests – This belongs to the type Northern Dry mixed deciduous forest of 5B/C-2. These forests are situated on the comparatively drier locations like hill slopes and hill tops having poor soil and moisture conditions. The tree in the top story are Boswellia serrata, Anogeissus latifolia, Pterocarpus marscupium etc. The middle story consists of frequent and extensive bamboo brakes of Dendrocalamus strictus where condition of soil is better. The shrubs consist of Nyctanthae arbortritie, Zizyphus species etc. Climbers are generally absent. The ground cover is also very light.

            The outer slopes  of  Ranchi  plateau  facing  the Damodar basin falling within the  division contain very  little  except  the  mesh  of  climbers  and miscellaneous shrubs. The forest  crop on  the  slopes  of hills  facing  the  G.T Road  in  Barhi range contain  bushy growth of miscellaneous species. But here also the  crop  is  much disturbed due  to biotic interferences. Occurrence of  bamboo  in  this  division  is not extensive and occur mainly on the hill slopes of Ranchi plateau and Barhi ranges. The quality is however poor.

Classification of forest from management point of view:-

• Sal and miscellaneous forests which can regenerate and establish by themselves and grow into pole crop after coppice felling.
• Sal forests which are perpetually in sapling stage and the sal rooted wastes which are not able to grow up due to excessive biotic interference.
• The bamboo bearing forests
• The khair bearing forests
• The blanks and semi blanks containing shrub and useless species.
• The plantations
• Forest situated on dry hill tops, steep slopes, out crops of rocks which are not likely to regenerate after coppicing.

Tourism and recreational

            Hazaribag Sanctuary is a very nice place to visit. As it is situated at a very nice place there are a lot of people who visit the area. Previously there was no tourist zone. Now an area of 100.79 hectare is demarcated as tourist zone where the tourist activity are concentrated. The whole tourist complex is situated at Rajderwa. It is around 10 Kms from the main gate situated at Hararibag-Tilaya Highway called as Madhuban. It is around 25 Km from Hazaribag. The tourist zone has following facilities:-

• Canteen cum mess
• Twin tourist cottages
• Meeting hall
• Boating facilities
• Safari tours
• Specially designed tours for sight seeing, Sunrise and Sunset.
• Specially trained guides

Since the area is very much important for pilgrims. There is a huge rush during the month of October to June. For Jain pilgrims there is a very important place named Parasnath Hills is there. They are allowed to the hill top through the definite foot path. The Sanctuary has a chain of Sight seeing towers (total 14) from where the tourist can see the forest beauty. The hand outs mentioning all the features of the area is distributed to the tourists.

        Whole of the Sanctuary has a very good chain of pitch and murrum road. The entrance is regulated. Each vehicle entering into the forest has to pay entry fee at Madhuban toll gate. Vehicles to be entered into register and then only it is permitted to enter the sanctuary.

            The tourists have to follow the regulations described in the Wildlife Protection Act and as described by the tourism officer concerned.

Population in and around Sanctuary

            The sanctuary is facing a very heavy load of human and cattle population. The total population in the area is :-

• No of  villages in and around sanctuary = 89
• Human population in and around sanctuary = 1,15,000
• Cattle population = 1,23,500

Sources of income

The sources of income in the sanctuary are various :-

• Collection of Minor Forest Produce
• Collection of small timber and their derivatives
• Work done under the sanctuary
• Migration for job
• Small industries based on forest produce
• Working in the mines
• Agriculture and animal products.

Flora  at the Sanctuary

Glossary of vernacular and Botanical names of Plants of Hazaribag  Santuary (Hazaribag West Forest Division)

Table No - 2

               * Working plan of Hazaribag West Division 2000-2001

Fauna at the Sanctuary

Glossary of names of animals and birds of Hazaribag Sanctuary (Hazaribag West Forest Division)

Table No - 3

*Working plan of Hazaribag West Division 2000-2001

APICULTURE

 Honey has been under use in human civilization since prehistoric period. The highly evolved social organization of bees had been established before the existence of human race. Honey is considered as one of the most prized free gifts of nature and is very commonly used as natural sweet. Nectar in its natural condition is transparent, thin fluid but in course of transit it passes through a process of chemical change and turns into honey. Honey contains about 75% invert sugar, proteins, and mineral salts.

            Honey is collected by bees. The color and flavor of honey depends upon the nature of nectar and fragrance of flowers which the bees visit. The bees belong to the order Hymenoptera. There are three common varieties of bees – rock bees, hive bees and the little bees. The rock bees are the greatest honey yielder. They build their combs on the branches on the trees and under trees. Bees store the honey in the upper part of the comb particularly in the bigger cells. When they are full they are sealed with wax. In the unsealed cells the honey is not fully ripe. Honey hunter climbs the trees and lights fire near the comb in such a way that it produces maximum smoke but no flame. Too mush smoke scare the bees and they fly away. Honey is collected in the containers. Honey is separated in centrifuge. Wax is skimmed off from the surface to separate the honey. (G.S Shukla and V.B Upadhayay,1988).

 Social organization in Honey Bee

A highly organized division of labor is found in the honey bee. A well developed colony has around 40000 individuals consisting of three castes – Queen, Drone and Workers. The queen is concerned with the reproduction only. The workers collect the honey and they are the 95% of the colony. The drones are responsible for the protection and fertilizing the queen.

 Collection Method

The collection is done around whole year. Mainly males are involved in the collection. The collection is high during the months of November – March. The collection is an old process of manual collection. The bee culture is not done by the villagers at Hazaribag Sanctuary. But now they are being encouraged to do. Mostly the villagers are concerned with the collection from the forest. The revenue is high as there is always a great demand in the market. However the most part of honey collected is consumed by the family itself.

 Food value

 It is considered as the most easily digested food. It has a very rich content of carbohydrate. 2 gm of honey provides as much as 67K.cal of energy.  It is taken by men of all age groups. (G.S Shukla and V.B Upadhayay,1988).

 Medicinal uses

 Honey is mildly laxative, antiseptic and sedative. It is also used in cough, cold, as blood purifier and curative for ulcers on tongue and elementary canal. It is helpful in typhoid and dysentery. It is a very good source of carbohydrate.

 Other uses – It is used in alcoholic industry, poultry and fishing industry. In Laboratory honey is used to stimulate the growth of plants, bacterial culture, inoculation of seeds and insect diet.

BAMBOO

 Bamboo is the poor man’s timber. Bamboo belongs to the grass family, Graminaea, tribe Bambuseae. It is distinguished by the special structure of its stem, or 'culm', the fact that it reaches full height in a short period, its rapid rate of growth, and its singular flowering habit. Bamboo does not flower annually, but once every 7 to 120 years, depending on the species. At that time, that species will flower (and generally produce seed, depending on the genus) all over the world - with variances due to environmental and horticultural influences. The parent plant may then die completely.

New shoots emerge from the ground with the diameter they will have at their mature height, which will be attained within 60 days. New shoots are quite vulnerable and should be treated with care. A rough touch or any type of damage could cause the culm to abort (die back).

Bamboo does best in well-drained, light, sandy soil. Organic supplements (compost, peat, mulch, and manure) are beneficial. It does like a lot of water, but once established in the ground, it is much more drought tolerant than is commonly believed. Adequate water during establishment (approximately twelve months) cannot be over emphasized. Good drainage is also critical. Bamboo will respond impressively to a heavy fertilization schedule - fast release, slow release, and foliar feeding of major and minor elements are all recommended. As with all plants, newly acquired bamboo will do best in the light situation in which it was grown. The tropicals tend to prefer full sun. This means full sun must reach the leaves.  The base of the plant may be grown in shade and is often more attractive this way. It is of much use. It is the fastest growing plant on this planet. The common uses being roofing, rafters, walling, flooring, matting, spear and lance shafts, lathies, masts, spares, tent, poles, furniture, cart shafts, basket making, musical instruments, bows and arrows. (N.C Sexana, 2001)

Dandrocalamus strictus is the only species of bamboo found here. The quality of bamboo is generally poor. The clumps are generally congested thin and twining. The Bamboo cutting rules are to be strictly followed. The supply of bamboo to the local people for their bonafide use is arranged. They are allowed to cut bamboo for their own use. However for commercial purpose Bamboo is provided to the villagers at reasonable rate.(Working plan of Hazaribag West Division, 2000-2001)

Bamboo is extensively used in house construction, agricultural instruments and basket making. It is also used in making many things for sale. Mainly they are baskets, furniture, mats, musical instrument, lathies etc.

The main uses are as follows:-

• A viable replacement for wood. It is also used in making furniture, ladder etc.
• An enduring natural resource.
• Versatile with a short growth cycle. So it is very good source of fuel and fodder.
• A critical element of the economy as it is used in making many items of trade like mats, baskets, flower pots, decorative items etc.
• An essential structural material in house architecture.
• A renewable resource for agro forestry production.  
• A natural controllable barrier 
• An ancient medicine 
• Integrally involved in culture and the arts. It is used in making many musical instruments.

Other uses:-

• Young and tender rhizomes are pickled and eaten as vegetable curry
• Seeds are collected and eaten by poor people.

  The people residing in the forest area are supplied bamboo at very reasonable rate for making various items for sale. However they are free to collect bamboo for their own bonafied use. The people are using bamboo for making their home especially the roof. Usually at the Sanctuary the people are engaged in making mats, baskets, flute, sticks and toys etc which are sold at the local market. This fetch them a good source of money. Almost all the members of family are engaged in making these items.(Anil Agarwal, 1988) During some special seasons the demand is high. Especially in the months of November and June the demand of baskets is very high due to the festivals.                                                      

LAC CULTURE

             Forest fauna is no way less important than the forest flora. The products from them have been the items of trade and commerce. One of them known to man since old times is the tiny insect that has given very valuable product in the form of Lac. Lac is a natural resin of animal origin. Three products from lac insects – viz – the lac dye, lac wax and lac resin have been items of trade and commerce.

            Lac is the secretion of insects belonging to the genus Laccifer.   The larvae on emerging (Swarming) are quite active and crawl over the branches of host plant and settle down preferably on the lower side of the twigs. They send out their proboscis and start sucking nutrients.  After sometime a shiny layer is seen covering the body of larvae.  This a sort of protective covering for the tender insects. Secretion continues till the incrustation is formed. As they feed and grow, they secrete the lac resin in the semisolid state from the lac glands which are situated all over the body. Female does not move form its place. They are larger than males. Most of the lac is made by females only. (G.S Shukla and V.B Upadhayay,1988).

Cultivation and collection of lac

Lac is found sometimes naturally or sometimes cultivated also. The cultivation is done by artificial inoculation. The lac sticks are tied with the fresh lac host plants. Thus the new plants are also introduced with the lac insects. A large amount of labor is not generally used.

The lac insects repeat its life cycle twice a year. There are actually 4 lac crops a year. The lac which grows on non-Kusum plants is called Rangini Lac and on Kusum plant is known as Kusumi Lac.

The Rangini crop is of two type :-

1. Katki crop (June – July)
2. Baisakhi crop (October - November)

The Kusumi crop is of two type :-

1. Aghani crop (June – July)
2. Jethwi crop (January – February)

 When the crop is mature fully the lac is harvested and some part is left on the host plant for the inoculation for the next season. The twig bearing the lac is cut and scrapped. It is then crushed by hand operated mortars. It is washed and dried in sunlight.  Then it is soaked in water, washed, bleached and heated to melt on charcoal fire. It is then collected in cloth bags and squeezed. This is called Kirri lac. This is the pure form of lac.

 The cultivation of lac is a good source of money. The lac industry is mostly small scale industry. Jharkhand has many lac industries so act as a good purchaser of lac from the villagers. The villagers themselves do not use lac for their own purpose generally. (G.S Shukla and V.B Upadhayay,1988).

  Lac host plants

The lac insects have many host plants. But the most favorable are Kusum, Babul, Ber, Palas, Khair, Peepal etc. The best quality lac in obtained from Kusum.

 Uses of Lac

Lac is a very important resin of animal origin. It is used in polishing wood, sealing wax, varnish, metal primer, adhesives, leather finishing, making chocolates, printing inks, perfumery compounds, electrical appliances, brass paintings and many more.

 A lac Research institute “Indian Lac research Institute – Namkum, Ranchi” has been established in 1925 which is providing training to the cultivators. There are about 350 factories mostly located in the Bihar and Jharkhand. Jharkhand alone produces around 30% of lac cultivated in India. India has a big producer of lac in the world. Around 45% of the total production alone comes from India.

SERICULTURE

             The production of silk from the silkworm by rearing practices on commercial scale is called sericulture. Although silk is very beautiful and fancy gift of nature but its commercial production is much complicated and is a tough job. The raw silk is used in the manufacture of woven materials and the knitted fabrics. The fibers are used in making parachutes, fishing lines, sieve for flour mills, and insulation coil for telephone and wireless receivers and tyres for racing cars.

             Mainly the silk is of two type – Mulberry and Tasar silk. Mulberry is the cultivated variety while Tasar is typically a wild variety. Tasar (Antheraea paohia) is found in a great number in the forests of Hazaribag. The caterpillar feeds on ber, oak, sal trees. The cocoon produced by this moth is hard and of hen’s egg size which produces reelable brown colored silk. The cocoon has to be collected from forest. (G.S Shukla and V.B Upadhayay,1988).

 Life history

            Silk moth has very short life span. After copulation the male dies. The female lays eggs on the leaf. From the eggs the caterpillar comes out after 10 days. The caterpillar starts feeding on the leaves of host plants. After 20-22 days of feeding the caterpillar stop feeding and moves towards the corner of the stem and makes a hard shell around it. The cocoon is generally hanging around the twigs. The caterpillar then starts secreting silk threads inside the cocoon. The pupal period lasts around 10-12 days. On the 9-10^th day the cocoon is collected for the silk. After 10-12 days the Tasar silk worm emerges out by diluting one end of the cocoon. For getting better quality of silk the cocoon is boiled to kill the caterpillar so that it does not destroy the threads by cutting.

 Collection

 The collection is done by almost all the members of the family. However the collection is confined only to a month of time. The collected cocoon is boiled and then sold to the mills through a proper channel. Generally the local people at Sanctuary are not concerned with the cloth weaving.  Central Tasar Research and Training Institute, Ranchi has organized many camps and trained the villagers the methods of collection, identification and processing of the Tsar cocoon.

            Now a day the people are more and more interested in the collection of the tsar cocoon as it gives a good source of income to the family and also it is not so much time consuming. (As told by villagers)

         India is the second largest manufacturer of silk in the world. In 1949 the Central Silk Board was established which is concerned with research, development and marketing of the silk. In India now 65% of the silk is woven by handloom and thus encouraging the village and cottage industries.

TENDU PATTA

             Beedi leaf commonly known as Tendu or Kendu leaf is the leaf of Diospyros melanoxylon which is used for wrapping tobacoo in Beedi manufacture. Tendu leaves form the biggest single item of MFP giving maximum revenue to the Forest deptt. Bidi collection is now nationalized. Since 1953 all the Tendu bearing areas are divided into convenient units. The agents are appointed by the Government for collection of leaf and the purchasers by calling traders for purchasing leaf in respective units.

                        The leaves of Diospyros melanoxylon has the specialty that on drying also they do not produce cracks. So it is used in making Bidi as the wrapping is done in making Bidi. (Mehta Tribhawan, 1981)

 Collection method

At Hazaribag only Tendu is collected. Bidi manufacturing is not done here. The collection is commenced by about 3^rd week of April to June last week. Generally it is stopped before monsoon. Women and children go in the early hours for collection of leaves. Leaves are generally collected by hands. Generally a bundle of 100 leaves are made. The bundles taken are allowed to pass hot air. These bundles are dried for 3-4 days. Then small amount of water is sprinkled on the bundles and left for whole night. It is covered by gunny bags. In the morning the gunny bags are removed and the excess moisture is allowed to remove. The leaves are then sold to agents. He maintains the daily accounts and gives the payments. The price is fixed by the government according to which the payment is generally made.

BAMBOO PREPARATIONS

             Bamboo is the poor man’s timber. It is considered as one of the most valuable forest product. The villagers at Hazaribag Sanctuary are making various products for sale in the markets. The bamboo is provided to them at very nominal cost by the forest department. The bamboo is also a chief ingredient in house making in villages. The various preparations made by bamboo are as follows:-

• Used in making house and the roof
• Used in making baskets of various size
• Used in making match sticks
• Used as furniture building material
• It is used in making mats
• Used in fencing
• Used in making cage of  hen
• Used in making flute
• Used as firewood
• Used in making heat insulators of roof
• Used in making handles for agricultural appliances

 (Saxena N.C , 2001)

EARTHEN POTS AND TOYS

 Making terracotta items are a very ancient practice. The villagers at Hazaribag sanctuary are making a large range of products. Most common are Surahi, Ghadaa, small utensils, lighting lamps, toys etc. It fetches a good source of income to them. Usually in the peak seasons the income is very high.

            A very important house building material “Khaprail”  is also made by them. It is a very important roof making item in villages. It also fetches a good amount of money.

            The raw material is clay. It is very easily available in the area. The fuel wood is also available to the villagers very easily in the forest area. Mostly male members are associated with this work. The marketing is also mostly done by the male members. The markets chosen are generally near as transportation is very costly and risky.

KATHA AND KUTCH

Katha and cutch are produced from the heart wood of Acacia catechu. It is a common tree found in the tropical deciduous and thorn forests of India. Katha is mainly used in betel leaf (Pan) as masticatory and valued for its catechin content. Cutch, the bye product of Katha industry is largely used for dyeing, colouring pulp in paper industry, water softening and in deep oil drilling operations.

 Process –

The heartwood of khair is converted into thin fine chips by axe. Eight to Nine Kg. of heartwood chips are taken in a wire-net cage to avoid direct contact of the chips with heated surface of extractor. The cages  are placed in extractors along with 25-27 liters of water for each extraction. Two extractions of 3 hrs each are made by boiling the chips with water. The second extract can be used for the first extraction of the fresh chips. The extracts are mixed after filtration through muslin cloth and concentrated to a density of 1.07 to 1.08 in an open pan. Then the pan is left to stand aside in shade for crystallization of Katha for a couple of days.

            After complete crystallization the mass is passed through a filter pres operated by hand. The aqueous solution containing cutch is pressed again using a screw press in a wooden frame. Katha is then cut into uniform tablets. 

Cutch - The mother liquid after the removal of katha is further concentrated in an open pan till it becomes viscous mass in poured into wooden frame of suitable size. Cutch takes comparatively longer time to dry in shade.

Uses of Katha and Cutch –

Katha - It mainly contains Catechin. Katha is an important ingredient of “Pans”.  Katha is also used in medicines as an astringent and digestive. Externally it is applied as a cooling application to ulcers, boils and eruptions of the skin.

Cutch – It mainly contains Tannic acid. It is an important commercial product and is used as a dyeing and preserving agent. Cutch is also used for dyeing canvas for boat sails to reddish brown color. It is also a valuable raw material for plywood industries. (Mehta Tribhawan, 1981)

Collection –

Katha and cutch is an item of trade and adds a great value. It is collected by almost all family members. However the villagers are not allowed to collect it. The production is always government controlled. At Hazaribag sanctuary it is totally banned due to the risk of illegal felling. The Katha and cutch fetch a very good price in both normal and grey market. However the locals are involved in illegal production and trade of Katha and Cutch. (As told by villagers)

TAUNGYA METHODS

Taungya is a method of raising forest plantation in combination with field crop, otherwise known as Agri-silvi method or Agri-silviculture, and to the plantations themselves. Along with the agricultural crops, forest plantation in lines is raised. After the forest crop is fixed the agricultural cropping is stopped at that place.

            The taungya look after the forest crops and carry out tending operations. After sowing or planting, they weed the forest crop while weeding the crop. They keep their crop a little away from the line of the forest plants so that it may not suppress them. The forest crop is also irrigated by the agricultural crop. The period for which the agricultural crops are raised in the interspaces depends upon the spacing of lines and the rate of height growth of the forest plants. Generally, this period is from 2 to 5 years.

            The conditions on which the taungya cultivators are allowed to raise agricultural crops in forest plantation are incorporated in an agreement deed. The cultivators either collect the seed from forest or the forest department provides them. As  there is heavy animal damage in the forest, the cultivators protect their crop and the forest plants are also automatically protected. (Bairathi Sashi, 1997)

Advantages of Taungya –

1. From financial point of view, artificial regeneration is obtained cheaply by taungya method as compared to departmental plantations.
2. It solves labor problem and provides work to the landless labor.
3. It utilizes the site fully and helps to augment food production of the country.

At Hazaribag sanctuary the taungya method is not practiced. As the regeneration is usually coppice system, the regeneration is usually not a problem. The population is also very high so allowing taungya operation will lead to illegal felling. However some agricultural practices are done also inside the forest but they are permanent agricultural lands which are generally issued to the villagers at nominal charge. (As told by DFO, Hazaribag West Division)

AGRICULTURE & SHIFTING CULTIVATION

  Shifting cultivation is a primitive form of crop growing prevalent in many part of the world, particularly in the densely forested hills inhabited by tribals. It is so named because cultivators do not use a particular patch of land year after year. A patch of land is selected of all vegetation which is left to dry in the sun and then set on fire.  This clearing thus obtained is taken up for cultivation.

                        The areas which are under shifting cultivation are left to fallow after being cultivated for 2 or 3 years. Thereafter, these are taken up for cultivation again after 15-20 years. One peculiarity of areas which have been under shifting cultivation is that the nutrients taken up by the crop are not replenished except by the ashes from the burnt debris that is left in the field. Thus, the crop yields from such ashes begin to diminish from the second year onwards.  It falls sharply after the third year and this forces the cultivators to move to a fresh patch of land. Soon, a vegetative cover reappears on this land, helped largely by the heavy precipitation. The cultivators return to this land after some years. (Bairathi Sashi, 1997)

            Shifting cultivation is a major problem in India. In 1975 it was estimated that about 2.6 million tribal people living in the interior hilly areas practiced shifting cultivation in India. At Hazaribag shifting cultivation is totally banned. The wasteful practice of shifting cultivation is now replaced as expenditionously as possibly by restoring to agro-silvicultural methods apart from other methods. (Stephenson Joanne, 1987)

            The National Forest Policy 1988 states that “Shifting cultivation is affecting the environment and productivity of land adversely. Alternative avenues of income suitably harmonished with the right use and practices should be devised to discourage such cultivation within the area already affected by propagating improved agricultural practices. Area already damaged by such cultivation should be rehabilited through social forestry and energy plantations….”.

            At Hazaribag sanctuary the shifting cultivation is totally banned. Almost nowhere in the past 10 years are the reports of this practice. However practice of agriculture on fixed lands around the villages is practiced here. Some people are also practicing on the illegal way.

            However some amount of land is given to the villagers to do the agriculture. These lands are either their property from past years or given to them on lease. The farmers practice agriculture on those lands. The income from agriculture adds a considerable amount of income to the family.

GRAZING

             All living organisms are alike in that they are kept going by the continuous inflow of energy. Man keeps livestock as they are of functional significance to them. They provide milk and milk product, meat, hides, bones, etc. They also provide draught power and manure. They are the immediate source of wealth, food, fiber and related commodities. To nomadic and aadiwasi people the livestock is the chief source of livestock, often in large numbers because of its numerous uses.

            Hazaribag sanctuary has a large no of human population so as the livestock population is also very high. A large number of villages are in and around the forest area. Almost every house has more than 10 livestock. The people are having cow, buffalo, goat, poultry etc. The livestock population is more than 10000 in the area. Almost all the cattle population is dependent on the forest for food. The grazing is thus very heavy. The first effect is on the plant community. The animals first tend to graze which they find best, then to less preferred plants. They act as a big competitor for the wild animals especially the deer and other herbivores.

            Grazing is one of the major factors of forest deterioration at Hazaribag Sanctuary. Grazing here being the most serious threat to early stages of forest crop regeneration. Except for smaller patches of forests which are being cared and saved by the villagers with need-pressed awareness the protection of vegetation of the Division from grazing is at mercy of randomness of cattle choice.

            Receding greeneries from around the forest villagers draw cattle deep inside the forest of the division. Yet in years stray cases of mauling on mortality of cattle due to wild feline members are also reported*.

            The indirect damage caused by the grazing is mainly on the forest soil itself. The effect being by no means always in proportion to the size or weight of the animal, each kind behaving in its own way as it moves from one place to other. Palatable grasses are repeatedly and ruthlessly browsed by cattle again and again, and this repeated removal of herbage during the grazing period weakens the plants and delays the resumption of growth in the next growing period, retards the time of flower production, reduces the number of stalks produced, retards the time of seeds maturity, thus gradually eliminating the species altogether by hungry cattle which are let loose immediately after the first shower when the soil is wet**.

            This fact makes interesting in rural economy but so dangerous for the forests. The animals endanger forests by destroying seedlings, killing young trees, climbing on shrubs resulting in breakage, thus preventing forests from regenerating naturally or artificially. In the forests of Hazaribag where the soil is moist - the grazing hardens the soil due to trampling and puddling thereby increasing the risk of erosion. As the land is hilly and soil is red soil, the run off of the soil is very great. The run off of the soil is so great at some places that the vegetation is completely washed off. The natural regeneration is greatly affected. The results of trampling by herds for even a month can only be made good by a complete rest for at least 3 years.

* Hazaribag working plan 2000-2001

** Grazing in forests-an ecological liability by Dr. Ram Prasad & Pratibha Bhatnagar.

 Table :- Biomass productivity and soil properties of protected (S1) and grazed (S2) grasslands.

 Table No - 4

*Dr. Ram Prasad, 1985

The data clearly shows that the height growth of seedlings is more in the protected areas than in the unprotected areas.

FOREST BASED INDUSTRIES

Forest based industries are those which directly depend on forests as a source of raw material. Forest is a big sector and government gains a big amount of revenue from it. At Hazaribag forest based industries are functioning in the small and medium being owned by private sectors only. They provide a good employment opportunity to the local people. Wood based industries industry use wood and small wood as the raw material. In today’s economy, special importance is being attached to forest based industries for the following reasons:

1. Employment generation
2. Processor of raw material
3. Producer of finished gods
4. Contribution to the national income

 There are many small scale forest based industries in the Chhottanagpur area. Different forest based industries prevailing around Hazaribag sanctuary is as follows –

 Saw Milling

A saw mill is a plant with various types of mechanical saws and other machinery  that are used for sawing logs of wood into readily useable forms such as planks, baulks and scantlings. There are a number of saw mills in the area. Around 45 saw mills are located at Barhi, Vishnugarh, Ranchi, Hazaribag etc. Most of them are small scale. Their average capacity is about 3000cu.mts with about 10 logs per day.

            At Hazaribag as the felling is rare so these industries do not get adequate raw material for processing.The main species being processed are sal, shisham, teak, rosewood, semal, eucalyptus, etc. The product from these mills is usually used for construction, joinery, furniture, box wood etc. (Mehta Tribhawan, 1981)

 Wood seasoning and Preservation

Wood is seasoned for lowering its moisture content which may be as high as 90% in green condition. Proper seasoning reduces it into around 12%. There are two bsic methods for seasoning viz – Steam heated kilns and Solar heated kilns.

            At Hazaribag since the felling is rare this industry is nowhere. The seasoning is generally done with the ancient methods. Generally forest department is doing this job and no worker is employed from outside. This is also causing a heavy loss to the valuable timber.

            For the preservation however there are many steps taken by both the forest department and the private operators. Attack from atmospheric agents, insect and fungal is treated with proper methods. The damage through fire is also minimized as full care is taken by the forest department.

 Pulp and Paper

There is no pulp and paper industry near about the Sanctuary. However the Rohtas Paper Industry situated at Ranchi has a demand of raw material from the Sanctuary. The demand of Eucalyptus and bamboo is sometimes fulfilled by auction of the material. But it is rare. Bamboo is the chief and best raw material for these industries. Due to variety of local uses of bamboo the local demand is itself for bamboo is much more than that which is produced in this division.

 Wood working industry

Wood working units at Hazaribag are in the small sector usually owned by articians and small businessmen. These units have been manufacturing various products for domestic use and in some cases also for export. The main products of these wood working industries are listed below –

• Furniture – Chairs, tables, beds, cabinet work, shelves, bentwood furniture
• Door and window frames, shutters, partitions, etc.
• Wood carvings and other utility articles.
• Umbrella handles
• Walking sticks
• Packing cases
• Agricultural implements

 These industries are numerous at Hazaribag, Barhi and Ranchi. They provide a large employment opportunity to a large number of people.

 Match industry

There are rare match industries near Hazaribag division. All the match are made from wood or products derived from wood. Mostly species such as Bombax ceiba are used in the manufacture of match sticks. The availability of this species are good in the area. There are only 3 match industries situated. One at Hazaribag and two at Vishnugarh. (As told by ACF, Hazaribag West Division)

 Lac industry

There are many small units extracting, processing of shell ac at Hazaribag and Ramgarh. Most are small units. 

COLLECTION  METHODS

Minor Forest Produce has certain inherent disadvantages with regard to exploitation. They are bulky and most of them also do not occur in compact areas but widely scattered making economic exploitation difficult. They are often found in difficult and inaccessible terrain where mode of transport is either non existent or primitive. All these factors are bound to increase the cost of collection and transport. As most of these are easily perishable commodities, they present serious problems in harvesting and storage. Lack of precise information on the best season and proper methods of collection, their processing, drying, grading and storage and such other factors have stood in the way of proper exploitation and utilization of a number of products. (Krishnamurty T, 1988)

            The right of collection of minor forest products is sold by a system of auction or lease and it is only in few cases like Tendu leaf where a systematized and controlled collection of material is attempted through departmental agency. The products are sold singly or in groups. Usually those which are of greater commercial importance are sold singly. The areas are put up to auction by the forest department. The lease period is usually for one year but in rare cases depending on the nature and value of produce it may be longer or shorter. The lessee having taken the area on lease engages agents who in turn approach the villagers to collect and deliver the produce to them. Wages are paid usually on a quantity basis. Collection of the produce is a secondary occupation for the villagers. The products are then sold to the whole sale dealers. These products pass through several hands before they actually reach the consumer.

            The Hazaribag sanctuary has a very good system of roads all along in the forest area. Most of the roads are generally Murram. The roads are maintained by the forest department. The villagers use donkeys, cycle and head load to bring the collected material from the site to the village or the collection centre. Some products are also sold directly in the market by giving certain amount of royalty to the forest department.    Usually all the members of the family including children are engaged in the collection of MFP’s all round the year. In the agricultural season usually the adult are engaged in the fields but the children are busy with the MFP’s if available within their reach.

            The whole family excluding the old persons usually enters the forests in the early hours and start collecting the products. Some products like Mahua is to be collected in the early hours only. This all points are taken into the mind. The family returns before the sun sets. The collected products are then processed. If necessary like Tendu Patta has to be dried up etc. The medicinal plants are also processed. The valued parts are selected and the rest parts are thrown away. Some are the items which are to be sold immediately to the market like fruits etc. These items are as soon as possible handled to the agents or directly sold in the market with the permission of the forest department.

            But again it is seen that the full utilization of all the forest produce is not done. Many products are left unutilized. It is very difficult to utilize the all produce. Many products are also not known to the villagers. Some are the areas which are not accessible. This is one of the biggest problems. As the people have to return till dusk they cannot more to the remote places. (Alexander K.C, Prasad R.R, Jhagirdhar M.P, (1999)

MARKETING OF MINOR FOREST PRODUCE

 Forestry sector adds a large amount of revenue to the government. The marketing and trade in forest products has assumed considerable importance in the past few decades as during the past three decades, the value of wood and other forest products consumed all over the world has doubled. Effective commercialization and market development leads product development. Marketing is a vital link between the production and consumption of goods, in which various functions are involved such as distribution, pricing, promotion and sale.

            Since the beginning of civilization, NTFP’s have been harvested and used by local communities. The trade is unorganized. Even now many products are left untouched.  These products are collected, bartered and traded by the local communities living in and around the forest areas. Many products such as Tendu leaves and Sal seeds have been brought under the monopoly trade of the states to protect against exploitation of the primary collector. Many agencies and organizations have been created for the marketing and trade of these products. They include –

• Primary level cooperatives
• Large Area Multipurpose Societies(LAMPS)
• Tribal Development Federations
• MFP Trade Development Federations

(Gupta Tirath and Geleria Amar, 1993)

 The market price also depends upon various factors. There are vast fluctuations in the market prices of MFP’s. The various factors on which the price generally depends are :-

• Locality
• Season
• Demand and Supply
• Quality of the product
• Marketable product
• Availability of market

 At Hazaribag the price determining body is Jharkhand State Forest Development Corporation. The local markets available for MFP’s are at Barhi, Tilya, Vishnugarh, Ichak, Katkamsandi, Dand, Bahimar and Ranchi. Many products are directly sold to local markets of Ichak and Vishnugarh. Mostly the products are sold directly to the markets by the male members of the family. The well organized sale is limited for some specialized goods only. The sale is also dependent upon certain unpredicted demands.

            Very often the MFP’s collected haphazardly. Some products are of inferior quality. Therefore efforts are needed for collecting material of good quality. It has been seen at Hazaribag sanctuary that the collectors do not know where and to whom to sel their product. They make a haphazard collection of the produce and sell locally at whatever price is offered to them.

 The various price offered to the villagers of the common MFP,s are listed below:-

Table No - 5

* Source – as told by villagers.

INCOME FROM WORKING UNDER GOVT. OPERATIONS

Government has made a separate department for the maintenance of the forests. As a matter of fact, it would not be possible to produce any goods on a sustainable and economic basis without labor input in any form. Forest labor is an important part of the total manpower deployed in forestry and allied operations. It may further be divided into the following categories on basis of the level of their skill.

 The forest department has a lot of work to do in the forest. The basic works done in the forests are as follows –

• Silvicultural operations
• Maintenance of roads and bridges
• Felling
• Special operations

 These all operations require additional labor requirement. The forest department deploys the local people for all these purposes. Forest labor is employed or engaged in the following manner.

• On contract basis (directly)
• On daily paid basis
• Through forest labor cooperative societies
• Departmental labor employed at on a more or less regular basis by either the state forest deptt. or the concerned forest cooperation.
• Landless labors or the farmers.

 The minimum wages is fixed by the government. The labors are divided into the following categories on the basis on the level of their skill.

1. Semi-skilled – this category or group of forest labors include those having a certain level of skill which is required for performing the job assigned to them. The various function done are usually – felling, construction of forest roads, seed collection, resin tapping, fire fighting, enumeration of trees etc.
2. Unskilled – unskilled labors perform all manual works in which no special skill is required. Different jobs which may be performed by unskilled labors are – nursery site preparation. Soil working, sowing of seed, construction of roads and buildings, digging, felling etc.

 Minimum wages – State government fix the minimum wages to be paid to forest and other labors. These are revised form time to time and are just enough for the labors. (Working Plan, Hazaribag West Division, 2000-2001)

 In all the conditions the local people are preferred. In the non agricultural season they are engaged in these operations. These add to the additional income to them. At Hazaribag Sanctuary the villagers residing in the areas are always preferred. The wages are low but uniform throughout the sanctuary. As Hazaribag Sanctuary has a good population in and around so there is surplus of labor available in almost all seasons. The workers get a considerable 100 days work in the Sanctuary. This adds a fairly good income to the family. Both male and female individuals are involved in the work. The main works in the sanctuary is construction of reads, enumeration, tending operations, collection of MFP etc.

 Almost 80 days of work the local people get throughout the year.(Data supplied by Forest Deptt. Hazaribag West Div). The various wages fixed by the government of Jharkhand is as follows –

• Unskilled –      65 Rs/Day
• Skilled -           80 Rs/Day
• Fully Skilled – 130 Rs/Day

 Thus a person earns almost 5000 to 10000 Rupees in a year. This is a fairly good amount for a family living inside the forest. Almost 2-3 members of the family go for the work. The work is directly provided by the forest department and also the payments are made on the daily or weekly basis.

GOVERNMENT ENCOURAGEMENT

             Forestry has an important role in socio-economic and rural development, particularly in a developing country. Generation of employment is one of the main direct benefits of forestry. India has a huge labor surplus and any additional generated through forestry helps in poverty eradication and socio economic development. There is an increase in the average household income with as increase in the number of man-days of employment in a year. Generation of income is to a considerable is the macro-economic implications of forestry activities. Nevertheless, there is a definite positive effect on the living standard of the local population through these forms of income generation. 

            Special rural development and socio-economic programs have been undertaken by the central and state governments from time to time. Forestry has both directly and indirectly has been a part of such programs whose broad aim has been to bring about socio-economic upliftment in the rural areas. These programs have been a part of five year plans. 

            For the development and encouragement for the villages at Hazaribag Sanctuary the Government and specially the local forest department has taken much steps. They have been organizing various training camps based on the collection methods and setting up of village and cottage industries based on forest products.

Various programs run by the Government –

(1) Training of Rural Youth for Self-Employment (TRYSEM) – It has been implemented since 1979 under the ministry of Rural Development. The main goal of the scheme is to provide rural youth with the necessary skill and technology to enable them to seek self-employment. The target group comprises people between 18 and 35 years from the family of marginal agricultural laborers.

            The training scheme consists of training programs in activities such as manufacturing hand made papers, making coir products, silk spinning and weaving, fine works, carpentry, honey processing, working in bamboo and cane, repair and maintenance of agricultural instruments, animal husbandry and related topics.

            The programs are carried out for 3-6 months and are conducted by existing organizations run by central and state government. Various organizations such as Industrial Training Institutes (ITI), Nehru Vikas Kendra (NYKs), Khadi and Village Industries Training Institutes (KVIT). Sometimes specially trained personnel are also called for the training. The youths are given stipend and financial assistance also. 

 (2) Jawahar Rozgar Yojna (JRY) – This was an integrated employment generation scheme that was launched during the VII^th  five year plan. Now it has been modified and a total of 100 days of employment is given in a year. The main aim is to generate additional employment on productive works which would either be of sustained benefit to the poor or can make contributions to the creation of basic infrastructure in the rural and forest areas. In the past few years, this program has become the most important employment generation and rural development program in India. Forestry activities such as afforestation, construction and maintenance of forest roads, carrying out of tending operations and felling in the forest area form a part of the program.  (Negi S.S, 1988)

Government involvement in marketing of forest produce –

Systems for extraction of forest produce from a forest and for its disposal afterwards are many. Government has made many forest produce as Nationalized. So marketing of these products is not a problem as there is a proper channel of sale of the product at the right cost. The main systems of marketing are classified under three main heads:

1. By Government agency
2. By Government and purchaser combined
3. By Purchaser alone.

 The government at Hazaribag Sanctuary is adopting many systems under which the minor forest produce is purchased and sold. These are generally –

1. Sale by tender
2. Sale by public auction
3. Payment on outturn

 All these methods are applied. Different methods are applied for different products. The local collectors generally sell their products directly to the government or the agents or private sellers deployed by the government. This ensures the better price to the collectors. Minor Forest Produce is mostly sold through the process of Payment on outturn. The government also fixes a minimum sale price of some common collections. This price varies with the season.

Training Programs organized by various agencies

(1) Nehru Yuva Kendra – These provide various training programs. Sometimes they provide training on the request of the local people. These kendras also help to arrange money for starting the project. At Hazaribag the Nehru Yuva Kendra has arranged many camps to train villagers in the field of identification of medicinal plants, Lac culture, Apiculture etc.

 (2) Holy Cross Society for Rural Development – The Holy Cross society situated near Canary Hills at Hazaribag is a NGO working in the field of village development. They are providing training in the field of Apiculture, Lac Culture, Sericulture, Horticulture, and Small Scale Industries.

THE VILLAGE - Kaili (Kaile)

There are a number of villages inside the Hazaribag Sanctuary. As by the law they should not be there but government has failed to rehabilitate these village and families to outside the Sanctuary. One of the villages is “Kaili”. The village is situated near “Rajderwa”-the tourist complex situated inside the Sanctuary. Politically the position and status of village is as follows:-

 Table no - 6

* Data supplied by DFO, Hazaribag West Division. 

 It was the nearest village for me to visit and analyze. It is a small village and surrounds dense forest. A small river flows near to the village. The village is small and has some land also for practicing agriculture. The village has a large no of livestack and all the families living are mostly literate. The main source of income of this village is as follows:

• Collection and marketing of Minor Forest Produce
• Processes collections as making Bamboo baskets etc.
• Selling milk and other animal products
• Agriculture
• Working as labor

 The main income comes from the collection of Minor Forest Produce. Almost all the family members are associated with the collection. The collection is mainly of two types:

• For own bonafide  use
• For commercial purpose

                        The family requires many things from the forests for their own use. They collect small poles, bamboo for construction of their house, agricultural instruments, their cattle graze in the forest area, they collect fuel wood for their purpose, and other miscellaneous useable items. However the type of collections is very less. They collect only those products which are Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG). The villager do not take risks and collect only those items which they are sure of being consumed in the market. 

             The village has a small population less than 100. The main source of income comes from collection of MFP, agriculture, working labor, cattle and cattle products. Most of the families have their own house. They have small lands on which they practice agriculture. They have a good amount of cattle population also. They use to sell milk and milk products also. In the lean season they used to work in the government operations and other works. One of the important sources of income is collection and sale of MFP. The main things collected are edible fruits, gum, mahua, neem, satawar, khus, honey, lac, silk cocoon, fibers, medicinal plants etc. The basic time of collection of MFP’s are:-

 Table No - 7

* As told by villagers

 The Survey - The primary survey revealed that all the members especially women and children go to the forests in search of the MFP. However involvement of particular members of the family in the collection depends upon the nature of products. Products like gum, honey, bark, bamboo which are difficult male members are involved. For taking out the earning of the average family of the village, 4 families were selected at random. Almost all the families in the village have equal status and the literacy rate is fairly high. Two types of castes are living in the village. They are Mahto and Uraon. Both castes are scheduled as Other Backward Castes by the state government.  Mahto considers themselves upper than Uraon. Their income for 2 years for all the 4 families was taken out. A set of general questions were asked to all the families. Then the average income was taken out. A ratio of the income from various sources is also taken out. Thus the results were found.

            The various families, their heads, their no of members other findings are given below:                 

 Table no – 8

* Field survey

 The general questions asked from the families were:-

1. What are the MFP they collect from the forest.
2. Price offered to them by the forest deptt. and in the market.
3. What is the amount of collection
4. How many and which type of cattle they possess.
5. How many family members are involved in the collection
6. How they are selling their products.
7. Amount they are giving as tax to the forest deptt.
8. Amount of yield from the milk and other animal products
9. Amount of work they get through working as labors.
10. What type of processed collections they are doing.
11. Income from Agriculture and the lands they possess.
12. Other sources of income if any.

OBSERVATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS

 The earnings of the families are much dependent on the Minor Forest Products. A detailed case study revealed the following data. They are represented in the ratio form of the total earning by the particular family –

Table No -23

Observation – It was observed that the earnings from Minor Forest Produce contributes around 30 % to the household income. Processed collection which also comes under MFP also adds more than 6 % to the house hold income. Milk and animal products adds 32 % to the household income.

A graph of the income ratio from the main sources of income of families reciding at Hazaribag Wildlife Sanctuary is as follows.

Table No – 24

The other social and economic observations found are as follows:

• The participation of the women and children in subsidiary occupation is high.
• The average duration of time of collection of MFP is more.
• Most of the household items are extracted from the forests.
• The literacy rate in the village was found fairly good
• The main source of income comes from animal products.
• There is heavy grazing in the forests due to heavy live tack population.
• The collection of MFP is limited to some specific products
• The collection of Medicinal Plants is negligible due to less market demand
• The government encouragement is neglected.
• Men are mostly doing works in agriculture fields, marketing and labor

Conclusion – It was thus revealed from the survey that almost all the income source of the families living in the forest are directly or indirectly dependent on the forest only. More than one-third of the income comes directly from the Minor Forest Products. All the families are dependent on the forests for all the purposes like their Income source, Fuelwood, House construction, Livestack grazing etc. All the life is dependent on the forests itself. Alone livestack and MFP contributes to around 70% to the household income.

            Thus it is noted that Non Forest Products which are often neglected also acts a major source of income and adds a large amount of revenue to both forest department as well as to the common people. There are large types of articles which are of great use for us. NTFP’s should be so encouraged and special attention should be given to it. 

ACHIEVEMENTS

Hazaribag Sanctuary was established in 1952 as National Park. Since then it was given special attention. The Bihar Forest department paid special attention for the development of forests and the people living inside. Previously it was proposed to settle all the inmates outside the forest area. But due to heavy population it became impossible. However government has done many works to protect the forest and to do all possible works for the benefit of the local people.

            Most of the timbers produce like Sal poles, miscellaneous hardwood and fuel wood is mostly consumed by the local people. There is no felling done here on the commercial scale. Fuel wood demand in the local market is very less due to the presence of coal mines present around the area. Bihar State Forest Development Corporation now changed into Jharkhand State Forest Development Corporation has done many works for the development of local people. The main achievements are as follows –

 Development of Jharkhand State Forest Development Corporation Division – The division has done much significant work in every area. It is an autonomous organization under the State Forest Deptt. It has made much development in marketing and organizational work.

 Sale of Minor Forest Produce – The forest department has done many works for the marketing of the MFP’s. Materials like Tendu Patta, Bamboo have been regulated and there is a proper channel of the collection of these materials. Government has deployed several agents for the purchase of the MFP’s. Every year the rates for MFP’s are fixed by the government and forest department. This ensures better price for the collectors. The government has established many markets. The various markets especially at Ichak Wednesday market, Barhi Sunday market have been developed for the sale of minor Forest Produce.

Raw material – There are many Forest based industries in the area. Main raw material used is bamboo, small timber, Khus, stones etc. These are supplied to the local people by the forest department at cheaper rates. These materials are richly available in the forests of Hazaribag Sanctuary. Bamboo preparations, Khus mats, stone items like statue, grinding instruments are in much demand in the local market. Government supplies these items to the local people on their demand and on routine basis also.

 Jobs -The Central Government, State Government and the forest department have launched many programs for the employment of the local people especially in the leisure season. Many schemes and programs are being run for the employment. The local people are employed generally in the construction of forest roads, building constructions, tending operations, enumeration and census etc. The people are also employed in the various coal mines, coke industries prevailing in the area.

 Training – Both state forest department and the local NGO’s are providing training to the local people for the better production of MFP’s. They are trained for Apiculture, Sericulture, Lac Culture.

             Indian Lac Research Institute-Ranchi, Tasar Silk production and Research Lab-Ranchi (ICAR) has arranged many training camps for the better cultivation of these items. Nehru Yuva Kendra and Holy Cross Society for Rural Development, Hazaribag has provided much training in the field of medicinal plants, other collection and preservation of the MFP’s. The state government also arranges training camps for establishing Small Scale Industries.

 Collection methods – The collection is a major part of MFP. The government has encouraged for quality product collection and collection form remote areas as well. The government has provided better transport facility. Good forest roads cover all the Sanctuary area. This promotes collection of MFP’s on a larger scale and less wastage of the material.

 Development of Ichak Development Co-operative Bank – The local people and the State Forest Deptt. has established a Co-Operative bank which provides loans to the local people and especially for purchasing raw materials, agricultural purpose and establishing small scale industries.                                                                                                  

PROBLEMS

Minor Forest Produce is one of the important sources of income to the local people residing in the area.at Hazaribag Sanctuary it is a good practice of collection and sale of MFP. There are many problems regarding the collection and marketing of the Minor Forest Produce. There are basic three problems in the collection and marketing of forest produce. These are as follows –

The restrictions of Law – The collection and marketing of any product form the reserve forest are protected by the law. This is done to save the forests from overexploitation. As to make the law effective they are made hard. This creates some problem. The people cannot collect and sale it directly the MFP’s to the market. This causes harm to the product as it sometimes gets spoiled and discourages the collectors as they are harassed by the forest officers. The most important problems are –

·        Many products like medicinal plants, bamboo, resin, gum etc cannot be sold in the market as there are restrictions of collection on the commercial scale.

·        The tax collected is sometimes high and the officers are always problematic and non cooperative.

·        The forest department makes tenders of only few items and many small items are left uncollected. This is the wastage of the products.

·        Commercial collection of many important products is totally banned in the protected forest and they are wasted.

·        The amendments in the law according to the situation are always made late and sometimes it is too late. The forest officers also sometimes cause the delay.

Problems in Marketing – The market and the revenue collected is the ultimate aim of the collection. The market also creates sometimes much problems and discouragement to the collectors. The basic problems at Hazaribag is as follows –

• The quality of goods collected is many times bad and the price thus offered is bad.
• The proper channel of marketing is absent, so the collectors are not able to sell the product.
• The markets are much far away so sale becomes sometimes difficult.
• The price offered in the market is many cases are much discouraging.
• The price set by the government is sometimes not given by the agents.
• Sometimes the products are left unsold due to many reasons.

Problems in collection – The collection method is still very primitive and done in a non commercial method. The basic problems are –

·        The collection is made only from the near by places. Remote places are left. This caused the wastage of material

·        Sometimes the inferior quality of products is collected and thus makes a bad impression in the market as well as it fetches less price.

·        The collections are done unscientifically and cause the spoilage of materials.

Problem of training – The lack of proper training for collection, marketing and conversion of the forest product is a major problem. Now there are various developed methods of collection, modified instruments are there. There are modified methods of collection of honey, lac, etc. There is lack of proper training to the local people. The training offered is also limited to some villages only.

            Many collectors even do not know about the products. They do not know the various values of the trees or which parts to be used. Some of them do not recognize the plants. They should be provided proper training.

  Problems in getting jobs in government operations – Working in government operations is a good source of income to the villagers. But there is lack of jobs due to the heavy population residing in the area. Also there is partiality done with the villagers and the agents prefer the persons who are ready to do work on lower wages.

 Problems of non-availability of raw materials – Sometimes the raw materials are not provided by the government or they are provided at higher prices. The raw materials such as bamboo and other materials are not provided on time and the manufacturers are at a loss. Sometimes the price is not suitable.

Problems in practicing agriculture – The villagers generally face many problems in agriculture. They generally do agriculture on a very small land. They do not use costly fertilizers nor do they use improved seeds. They generally face problems of irrigation etc.

RECOMMENDATIONS

 The pilot study reveals that the whole tribal and forest life is woven together in a remarkable way with forests. Since they are dwellers of the forest since long they have learned to rely on the forest resources for their living pattern and income. They rely on forests for their need of materials for housing, agricultural implements, medicines etc. Forests for them are also storehouse for fodder and fuelwood. The activity of collecting MFP also provides them with employment opportunities.

             There are many drawbacks in collection, marketing, overexploitation etc. Some main recommendations are –

• Proper training for medicinal plant and its collection should be given.
• Special depots for Minor Forest Produce should be established.
• Amla, Harra, Behra, Imli, Lac, Honey like common and other important products should also be nationalized like Tendu Patta
• Encouragement should be done for processed collection.
• There should be observers from the deptt. of Forests in the markets of MFP’s so that they check for the quality and the price offered.
• Supply of raw material to the villagers must be regulated and the price should be affordable.
• Officers should be cooperative and should not harass the collectors.
• Proper field training and encouragement should be given on the site.
• Special transport and temporary sale depots should be made near to the village in the collection seasons.
• The Forest officers should regularly visit the villages.
• Excess of grazing in the forest should be discouraged. Instead they are encouraged for keeping good yielding varieties of livestock.
• The use of forest produce should be  encouraged among the people
• Artificial regeneration of more exploited species should be done.
• Even employment system or circular employment system should be done so that everyone gets equal job.
• Proper payments of wages should be done and checking should be done from time to time. 
• Proper marketing of bamboo made products, honey, silk should be done.
• Special attention and encouragement should be done for Apiculture, Sericulture and Lac culture as they fetch good price in the market.
• Special attention should be made to check for soil erosion, illegal felling and unauthorized practicing of agriculture should be done.

Project Work of M.Sc. Forestry, Guru Ghasidas University  - Bilaspur, Session -2000-02.

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