Punjab State Board PSEB 9th Class Social Science Book Solutions History Chapter 7 Forest Society and Colonialism Textbook Exercise Questions and Answers.
PSEB Solutions for Class 9 Social Science History Chapter 7 Forest Society and Colonialism
SST Guide for Class 9 PSEB Forest Society and Colonialism Textbook Questions and Answers
I. Multiple Choice Questions :
Question 1.
In which continent did the Industrial Revolution begin?
(a) Asia
(b) Europe
(c) Australia
(d) North America
Answer:
(b) Europe.
Question 2.
Imperial Forest Research Institute is situated in
(a) Delhi
(b) Mumbai
(c) Dehradun
(d) Abohar.
Answer:
(c) Dehradun.
Question 3.
Who is considered as the founder of modern forestry in India?
(a) Lord Dalhousie
(b) Dietrich Brandis
(c) Captain Watson
(d) Lord Hardinge.
Answer:
(b) Dietrich Brandis.
Question 4.
The wood of which tree is considered to be the best for ship building?
(a) Babul
(b) Oak
(c) Neem
(d) Teak.
Answer:
(d) Teak.
Question 5.
Munda Movement occured in which area?
(a) Rajasthan
(b) Chota Nagpur
(c) Madras
(d) Punjab.
Answer:
(b) Chota Nagpur.
II. Fill in the Blanks :
Question 1.
______, ______ and ______ are very important resources for Man.
Answer:
Forest, Water, Land
Question 2.
The term ‘Colonialism’ has been derived from the Latin word ______
Answer:
Colonia
Question 3.
In Europe ______ was used for ship building.
Answer:
Oak
Question 4.
Birsa Munda was arrested from ______ on 8th August, 1895.
Answer:
Chalkat
Question 5.
______ is known as traditional method of cultivation.
Answer:
Jhoom (shifting)
III. Match the Columns :
Question 1.
| A | B |
| Birsa Munda | 2006 |
| Ship Building | Babul |
| Jand | Dharti Baba |
| Forest Right Act | Khajri |
| Malabar Hills | Teak |
Answer:
| A | B |
| Birsa Munda | Dharti Baba |
| Ship Building | Teak |
| Jand | Khajri |
| Forest Right Act | 2006 |
| Malabar Hills | Babul |
IV. Difference between :
Question 1.
Reserved Forests and Protected Forests
Answer:
Reserved Forests and Protected Forests
- Reserved Forest. Reserved forests were used for the commercial production of wood. Farming and animal grazing was completely banned in such forests.
- Protected Forests. There were certain restrictions on using these forests for farming and animal grazing. People had to pay some taxes for using these forests.
Question 2.
Scientific Forestry and Natural Forests
Answer:
- Scientific Forestry. Scientific forestry was a method of forest department in which old trees were cut down and new trees were planted in straight rows.
- Natural Forest. Many trees grow automatically due to climate and the fertility of soil. They do not grow with any human interference and grow randomly.
V. Very Short Answer Type Questions
Question 1.
What do you understand by the term Forest Society?
Answer:
Forest society is the group of people whose livelihood depends upon the forests and they live within or around forests.
Question 2.
What do you understand by the term Colonialism?
Answer:
Colonialism is a process in which any powerful country occupies the natural and human resources of the country or an area in a direct or indirect manner and uses them for its own interest.
Question 3.
Mention any two reasons Of deforestation.
Answer:
- Expansion of agriculture.
- Cultivation of commercial crops.
Question 4.
Which kind of wood was used to build Indian ships?
Answer:
Teak.
Question 5.
Name the ancient Indian emperor who prohibited the killing of animals.
Answer:
King Ashoka.
Question 6.
Which trees were planted on the Nilgiri hills?
Answer:
Babul.
Question 7.
Write down the name of four commercial crops.
Answer:
Cotton, Jute, Tea, Coffee, Rubber etc.
Question 8.
Which slogan was given by Birsa Munda?
Answer:
Self-rule in’ his own country (Abua Desh Mai Abua Raj).
Question 9.
Which community of the people prevented the king of Jodhpur from felling the trees by their sacrifice?
Answer:
Bishnoi Community.
VI. Short Answer Type Questions
Question 1.
What do you mean by Colonialism? Give an example.
Answer:
Colonialism is a process in which any powerful country occupies the natural and human resources of the country or an area in a direct or indirect manner and uses them for its own interests. The British occupation of India is the perfect example of the colonialism.
Question 2.
What is the relationship between forest and livelihood of the people?
Answer:
Forest tribes have been dependent on the forests for their livelihood and survival for centuries. They do hunting of birds and animals, fishing in ditches, ponds, etc. in and around the forests. They do cultivation on hilly slopes and nearby plains. They work as causal labourers in the forest department and in mines available near their place of living.
They hunt deer, jackal, sambhar, fox, wild goat for the purpose of eating. They do fishing and also catch turties and crabs for eating. They also hunt various kinds of birds like titir, hater, bageri, etc.
They do the collection of edible, roots, shoots, leaves, flowers and fruits. Fruits collected are generally Jamun, Mahua, Bair, Katahal, Amla, Imli etc. The varieties of roots, shoots, flowers, etc. collected vary from region to region.
There are other minor forest products that are collected for selling in the market or for using as folk medicine. They are seeds of Imli. Babul, Jamun, Mahua, Harer, Bahera, Honey, Lac, etc.
These include rope making, mat making broom making, basket making etc. During the off season, basketry and rope making from bamboo, Khajur, tar, etc. provide gainful engagement.
They rear animals for the purpose of eating flesh and milk and performing agriculture. They also sell them in the market. They rear goats for flesh and earn money by selling them in the market. They also rear hen, cock, ducks, etc. to get their eggs and flesh. They even sell them in the market for cash. Cows and buffaloes are reared to get milk and calves. Calves were sold to get money. Calves and buffaloes are also used to till the land.
Question 3.
How forests were used for the expansion of railways?
Answer:
During 19thf century, India was industrially lagging behind. Therefore, in the development of transportation, wood played a vital role. The first railway track was laid in 1853 in India. Wood was used as fuel to run locomotive and sleepers were required for tracks to hold them together tightly. As per estimate around 2000 sleepers were required to lay down only a mile of railway jjrack. Thus, it can be said that, in the decline of forest resources, railway played a vital role in India.
Question 4.
Describe the different categories of forests according to the Forest Law of 1878.
Answer:
- The 1878 Act divided forests into three categories
(i) Reserved forests,
(ii) Protected forests,
(iii) Village forests. - The best forests were called reserved forests. Villagers could not take any thing from these forests, even for their own use.
- For house building or fuel, they could take wood from protected or village forests.
Question 5.
What is the state of forests in Contemporary India?
Answer:
India is a land of saints. There had been a great relation between the saints and forests. That’s why there had been a tradition of protecting forests and its wildlife. King Ashoka on one of his inscription, engraved that no animal will be killed or sacrificed in his empire. Even those animals which are not consumable were protected as well such as parrot. Except this there had been a tradition of not firing the forests. Many people still worship a number of trees and forests. Many tribes consider trees as their totam, so they consider them sacred.
Question 6.
Write a note on ‘Jhoom System’.
Answer:
Before Colonialism, there had been a type of traditional agriculture called Jhoom Cultivation or Shifting Cultivation. According to this system of Cultivation, some part of forest was fired or cut down to clear the land. After Monsoon, the crop was sown which was cut down in October-November. A good crop was taken for next 2-3 years. When its productivity reduced then trees were planted again so that it can retain its fertility. Such forests were ready after few years. For agriculture, tribals moved to other places.
VII. Long Answer Type Questions
Question 1.
What are the causes of deforestation? Explain.
Answer:
With the advent of industrial revolution, the demand of raw material and food grains was increased. It also increased the demand of wood. Tnere was a continuous cutting of forests. That’s why the life of people living in forests was greatly affected. The European countries started looking towards those countries/ including, India, which were quite rich in natural resources. That’s why the Dutch, Portuguese, French and the British started cutting forests in their respective Colonies,
In short, the reasons of deforestation under Colonialism are given below.
1. Railways. During 19th century, India was industrially lagging behind. Therefore, in the development of communication wood played a vital role. The first railway truck was laid in 1853 in India. Wood was used as fuel to run locomotives and sleepers were required for tracks to hold them together tightly. As per estimate around 2000 sleepers were required to lay down only a mile of railway track. Thus, it can be said that, in the decline of forest resources, railway played a vital role in India.
2. Ship-building. As we know that wood is the raw material which is used in ship-building. In the 19th century, sea was the main route of trade and commerce. By 19th century, oak forests in England started disappearing. This created a severe problem of timber supply for the Royal Navy. For this reason in 1820. a timber search teaHa was sent to explore the forest resources in India. Within a decade, trees were being felled on a massive scale because vast quantities of timber were exported from India to England.
3. Agricultural Expansion. After the advent of the European especially the British, the exploitation of forest area increased. In order to supplement the need of food for the increasing population led t<J the rapid expansion of agricultural land. There were numerous reasons for this. They thought the forest as useless and so encouraged agriculture for revenue as well as to increase their income. Due to the increase in the demands of commercial crops required for industries, thus, the production increased as well as the cultivation area between 1880 and 1920 rose by 6.7 million hectares indicating progress in agriculture.
4. Commercial farming. The British Government accorded the Indian forestry the status of commerce for her own interests. Earlier forest was a means for the instenance of life and entertainment. But the colonial power used it for its own interest and exploited the forest commercially. They gave encouragement to the cash crops like jute, tea, rubber, sugar, cotton etc. These crops were in great demand in Europe to feed its growing urban population as well as increase its industrial production.
5. Tea/Coffee Plantation. The land revenue was the main source of income of the colonial power. Natural forests which had lots of different types of trees were cut down. In their place/ one type of tree was planted in straight rows. This is known as plantation. To increase the income from land, they allotted vast forest areas to European plantation owners. As a result, this led to the reduction of forest areas. Gradually, plantation became a major source of income. There were a number of workers employed in this sector. For the accommodation of these workers forests had also to be cleared.
6. Adivasis and other peasant users. The British Government imposed certain Forest laws in India but Adivasis and other peasant users were able to dodge laws by inbous means. They stole wood from the forest and grazed their cattle stealthy. If they were caught they bribed the forest guards. Even women continued to collect firewood. The police officials and forest guards demanded favours from the Adivasis and peasant users for illegal falling of trees etc.
Question 2.
What was the impact of the forest laws on the forest society during the Colonialism? Explain.
Answer:
1. Shifting cultivators. One of the major impacts of European colonialism was on the practice of shifting cultivation or swidden agriculture. This is a traditional agricultural practice in many parts of Asia, Africa and South America. In shifting cultivation, parts of the forest are cut and burnt in rotation. Seeds are sown in the ashes after the first monsoon rains and the crop is harvested by October-November.
European foresters regarded this practise as harmful for the forests. They felt that land which was used for cultivation every few years could not grow trees for railway timber. When a forest was burnt, there was the added danger of the flames spreading and burning valuable timber. Shifting cultivation also made it harder for the government to calculate taxes. Therefore, the government decided to ban shifting cultivation. As a result, many communities were forcibly displaced from their homes in the forests. Some had to change occupations; while some resisted through large and small rebellions.
2. Nomadic and pastoralist communities. The, worst sufferers were nomadic and pastroralist communities. The British Government declared some forests as reserved, some others as protected. This limited their access to the forest. They could not graze their herds in forest and they could not collect forest produce like, fruits, roots and fuel and timber. For medicines, they could not collect the herbs. They had to give up hunting and fishing in the forest areas.
3. Effects on firms trading in timber and forest produce. The colonial , rule affected the timber trading in many ways. Firstly, the British Government enacted rules for forest reservation. Under this rule, people were not allowed to cut trees and collect timber from forest. Secondly, by the early 19th century, oak forests in England were disappearing. This created a problem of timber supply for Royal Navy. Thirdly, now the people were not allowed to get other forest products like ivory, silk, coconuts, bamboo, spices, resins, gum etc. for trading. Fourthly, only a few European trading firms were given the right to trade in the forest products of particular areas. General firms had to suffer owing to this measure.
4. Effect on plantation owners. The concept of plantation agriculture emerged in India with the colonial rule. The owners of the plantation fields were mostly Europeans. Therefore, rules and regulations regarding the plantation were made by keeping in view the interest of the Europeans. Large areas of natural forests were also cleared to make way for tea, coffee and rubber plantations to meet Europe’s growing need for these commodities. The colonial government took over the forests, and gave vast areas to European planters at cheap rates. These areas were enclosed and cleared of forests and planted with tea or coffee. The planters were given a free hand to manage and regulate the farms. The labourers were exploited to the hilt and were paid low wages.
5. Effect on Kings/British officials engaged in Shikar. Under the colonial rule, the scale of hunting increased to such an extent that various species became almost extinct. The British saw large animals as signs of a wild, primitive and savage society. They believed that by killing dangerous animals the British would civilise India. They gave rewards for the killing of tigers, wolves and other large animals on the grounds that they posed a threat to cultivators. Over 80,000 tigers, 150,000 leopards and 200,000 wolves were killed for reward in period 1875-1925. Gradually, the tiger came to be seen as a sporting trophy. The Maharaja of Sarguja alone shot 1,157 tigers and 2,000 leopards up to 1957. A British administrator, George Yule, killed 400 tigers. Initially certain areas of forests were reserved for hunting. Only much later did the environmentalists and conservators begin to argue that all these species of animals needed to be protected and not killed.
Question 3.
Write a detailed note on Munda Tribe.
Answer:
Munda movement occupies an important place amongst the movements for tribal rights on land, water and forests. This movement was carried on under the leadership of Birsa Munda. The British were depriving the tribals from their water forests and land by making laws. Tribals worshipped forests as father and land as their mother. They were deprived of all these with the help of law. The Christian priest Doctor Notrate inspired the people to adopt Christianity and promised to give their lands back. But later on, the government did not fulfil the promise. With the help of his ideas, Birsa Munda organised the tribals,. First of all he included three aspects—social, economic and cultural, in his movement. He tried to educate the people to shun their superstitions. He connected the people by talking about the security of water-forest land or tribal rights on all these. Except these he also talked about protecting their culture by raising the slogan of saving the religion and culture.
In 1895, a movement was initiated to waive off forest related tax but the government completely refused it. Birsa Munda raised the slogan of ‘Self rule in his own country’ (Abua Desh Main Abua Raj) and started struggle against the British. On 8th August, 1895, Birsa was arrested from chalkat and imprisoned for two year. When Birsa got free from jail, there occured famine in the region. Birsa along with his people served the people and he started creating awareness amongst people. People started worshipping him as ‘Dharti Baba’. But there started confrontation between him and the government. That’s why in 1807 A.D. around 400 Munda rebels attacked the Khuti police station. In 1898 A.D., the rebels pushed back the British army in the region of Tanga river but the British army killed hundreds of tribals.
On 14th December, 1899, Birsa Munda declared a war agaiftst the British which by January 1900, spread in the whole region. The British announced the reward on Birsa. Few locals helped the British to arrest him and he was sent to a prison in Ranchi. He was poisoned over there and died on 9th June, 1900 A.D.. To prevent the anger of Munda tribe it was pretended that Birsa was died of cholera. His family members were tried in court and were given severe punishments.
PSEB 9th Class Social Science Guide Forest Society and Colonialism Important Questions and Answers
Multiple Choice Questions :
Question 1.
What do you mean by deforestation?
(a) Appearance of forests
(b) Reappearance of forests
(c) Burning of forests
(d) Disappearance of forests.
Answer:
(d) Disappearance of forests.
Question 2.
Construction of railway tracks in India created huge demand for
(a) Timber
(b) Iron
(c) Elephants
(d) Bamboos.
Answer:
(a) Timber.
Question 3.
Which plantation was the most important during the colonial period?
(a) Coffee
(b) Rubber
(c) Tea
(d) Tobacco.
Answer:
(c) Tea.
Question 4.
When was the Indian Forest Service set up?
(a) 1863
(b) 1864
(c) 1865
(d) 1866.
Answer
(6b) 1864.
Question 5.
Where was the Imperial Forest Research Institute set up?
(a) Dehradun
(b) Shimla
(c) Delhi
(d) Kathmandu.
Answer:
(a) Dehradun.
Question 6.
What were the best forests called?
(a) Protected forests
(b) Village forests
(c) Reserved forests
(d) Unreserved forests.
Answer:
(c) Reserved forests.
Question 7.
What is shifting cultivation called in Sri Lanka?
Answer:
(a) Chena
(b) Penda
(c) Jhum
(d) Podw.
Answer:
(a) Chena.
Question 8.
Which British officer was the most famous tiger hunter?
(a) Lord Reading
(b) George Yule
(c) John Kelvin
(d) Metcalfe.
Answer:
(b) George Yule.
Question 9.
Where is Bastar located?
(a) M.P.
(b) A.P.
(c) T.N.
(d) Chhattisgarh.
Answer:
(d) Chhattisgarh.
Question 10.
When did the first rebellion take place in Bastar?
(a) 1912
(b) 1910
(c) 1915
(d) 1940.
Answer:
(b) 1910.
Question 11.
When was the Indian Forest Act passed?
(a) 1865
(b) 1864
(c) 1871
(d) 1872.
Answer:
(a) 1865.
Question 12.
Which of these is the cash crop?
(a) Jute
(b) Sugarcane
(c) Cotton
(d) All of these.
Answer:
(d) All of these.
Question 13.
Who was the tribal leader of Chota Nagpur?
(a) Birsa Munda
(b) Sidhu
(c) Kanhu
(d) Alluri Sitaram Raju.
Answer:
(a) Birsa Munda.
Question 14.
Who was the leader of rebellion of Bastar in the British Rule?
(a) Gunda Dhur
(b) Kanhu
(c) Birsa Munda
(d) Sidhu.
Answer:
(a) Gunda Dhur.
Question 15.
Who did implement scientific forestry in Indonesia?
(a) English
(b) French
(c) Dutch
(d) Russian.
Answer:
(c) Dutch
Question 16.
Which river flows across Bastar from east to west?
(a) Godawari
(b) Krishna
(c) Kauveri
(d) Indramati.
Answer:
(d) Indramati.
Question 17.
Which of these is the forest product?
(a) Silk
(b) Gum
(c) Wood
(d) All of these.
Answer:
(d) All of these.
Fill in the Blanks:
Question 1.
The first railway was started in ______ A.D.
Answer:
1853
Question 2.
______ live in forests.
Answer:
Tribals
Question 3.
Length of railway track in 1890 was ______ km.
Answer:
25000
Question 4.
______, ______ and ______ were major commercial crops.
Answer:
Tea, Coffee, Rubber,
Question 5.
Lord Dalhousie promoted the plantation of ______ in Malabar.
Answer:
teak
Question 6.
Indian Forest Act was amended in ______ A.D.
Answer:
1878.
True/False:
Question 1.
In 1878, four categories of forests were created.
Answer:
False
Question 2.
In 1906, The Imperial Forests Research Institute was formed at Dehradun.
Answer:
True.
Question 3.
Forest policy was formed in 1952 A.D.
Answer:
True.
Question 4.
Birsa Munda was born in 1857 A.D.
Answer:
False
Question 5.
Birsa Munda died in 1900 A.D.
Answer:
True.
Very Short Answer Type Questions
Question 1.
What is deforestation?
Answer:
Disapperance of forest is called deforestation.
Question 2.
Define plantation.
Answer:
Mechanized farming of single species planted in straight lines on large fields.
Question 3.
When was Indian Forest Service set up?
Answer:
1864.
Question 4.
When and where was the Imperial Forest Research Institute set up?
Answer:
In 1906, at Dehradun.
Question 5.
When was the Indian Forest Act passed?
Answer:
1865.
Question 6.
How many wolves, tigers and leopards were killed between 1875 to 1925?
Answer:
2 lakh wolves, 1.5 lakh leopards, 80 thousand tigers.
Question 7.
Name any five forest products.
Answer:
Silk, gum, wood, bidi, ivory and hides.
Question 8.
Mention the length of railway tracks in India in 1946.
Answer:
765,000 km.
Question 9.
The disappearance of which tree caused problem of timber supply for Royal Navy?
Answer:
Oak.
Question 10.
Who was the First Inspector General of Forests in India?
Answer:
Dyetrich Brandis.
Question 11.
When was the Forest Act 1865 amended?
Answer:
It was amended twice-1878 and 1927.
Question 12.
What were the reserved forests?
Answer:
The best forests were called reserved forests. It was out of bound for villagers.
Question 13.
What were the three needs of villagers to be satisfied by forests?
Answer:
Fuel, fodder and leaves.
Question 14.
What is the use of Mahua tree?
Answer:
Oil for cooking and to light lamps can be pressed from the fruit of Mahua tree.
Question 15.
Name the tribal leader of Chottanagpur.
Answer:
Birsa Munda.
Question 16.
Where is Bastar located?
Answer:
Bastar is located in Chhattisgarh bordering Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Maharashtra.
Question 17.
Name the tribal communities of Bastar.
Answer:
Masia, Musria, Gonds, Dhurwas, Bhatras and Halbas.
Question 18.
Which river flows across Bastar from east to west?
Answer:
Indrawati.
Question 19.
What is mann?
Answer:
If people from a village in Bastar want to take some wood from the forest of another village they pay small fee called mann.
Question 20.
Who was Gunda Dhur?
Answer:
He was the leader of Bastar tribal movement in 1910.
Question 21.
Name three forest products.
Answer:
Dyes, gum and honey are three forest products.
Question 22.
For which type of crops the Indian forests were cleared to meet the demands of Europeans?
Answer:
For tea, coffee and rubber crops, the Indian forests were cleared to meet the demands of Europeans.
Question 23.
Who was appointed the First Inspector General of Forests in India?
Answer:
A German expert, Dietrich Brandis was appointed as the First Inspector General of forests in India.
Question 24.
When was Indian Forest Act passed?
Answer:
In the year 1865, India Forests Act was passed.
Question 25.
Where and in which year was the Imperial Forest Research Institute established?
Answer:
At Dehradun, in the year 1906, the Imperial Forest Research Institute was established.
Question 26.
What is shifting cultivation?
Answer:
In shifting cultivation, parts of forests are cut and burnt in rotation. A mixture of crops are grown on these plots.
Question 27.
How much percentage of total forest area of world disappeard between 1700 and 1995?
Answer:
9.3% of total forest area of world disappeared between 1700 and 1995.
Short Answer Type Questions
Question 1.
What were the reasons for the expansion of cultivation in the colonial period?
Answer:
There were various reasons for the expansion of cultivation in the colonial period as :
- The European powers encouraged the cultivation of commercial corps like cotton Indigo, Jute, tea, sugar, coffee, surgarcane, etc for feeding the’towns people and to supply raw materials for their home industries.
- The British encouraged plantation agriculture like tea, coffee, and rubber as they were in great demand in Europe. Plantation farms were large and extensive employing scientific means to increase the produce.
- It was the firm belief of the colonial masters that forests were unproductive and did not contribute in the income of the state. Therefore, cultivation had to be extended and encouragement at the cost of forest.
Question 2.
After 1820, Indian forests were cut down on a large scale. What were its reasons?
Answer:
During the decade of 1820, the British government needed of strong and durable timber. This increasing demand of timber and consequently deforestation had following reasons :
- The British Royal Navy’s Ships were made with Oak tree. But the oak forests in England were disappearing. This created a problem of timber supply for the Royal Navy. So, Indian forests were explored and vast quantities of timber were being exported from India.
- The spread of railway started during the decade of 1805’s. It increased the demand and need of timber. To run locomotives, wood was needed as fuel and to lay railway lines, sleepers, were necessary to hold the tracks together. As early as the 1850s, in the Madras Presidency alone, 35,000 trees were being cut annually for sleepers.
- To continue with the wood’s supply, the British government gave contract to private companies and they out trees indiscriminately.
Question 3.
Under scientific forestry, which steps were taken for the forest management?
Answer:
Under scientific forestry, the following steps were taken for the forest management.
- Natural forests which had lots of different types of trees were cut down.
- In their place, single type of trees was planted in straight rows which is , called plantation.
- Forest officials surveyed the forests, estimated the area under different types of trees and made working, plans for forest management.
- They planned how much of the plantation area to cut every year. The area cut was then to be replanted so that it was ready to be cut again in some years.
Question 4.
There were conflicting interests of the colonial forest officials and villagers about forests. Clarify.
Answer:
It is true that they both had conflicting news regarding the usage of forests. Villagers needed wood for fuel, grass and leaves. So, they wanted the forests with mixed variety of trees.
On contrary to this, forest officials were in favour of such forests which could cater their needs of ship building and the expansion of railways. That’s why they wanted to plant strong and durable trees which could reach its height. That’s why they cleared the mixed forests and planted teak and Sal trees.
Question 5.
Forest Laws brought many difficulties for the villagers and local communities. Explain it.
Answer:
Forest products were the means of livelihood for the tribals and villages. But forest laws restricted them from cutting wood, collecting fruit and roots, animal grazing, hunting and catching fish. So, they were forced to steal wood from forest. If they were caught, they had to pay bribe to forest officials. Women who collected fuel wood were especially worried. It was also common for police constables and forest guards to harass people by demanding free food from them.
Question 6.
Why was shifting agriculture stopped? What was its impact on local communities?
Answer:
Shifting agriculture was stopped due to three major reasons :
- European foresters regarded this practice as harmful for the forests. They felt that land was used for cultivation every few years could not grow trees for railway timber.
- When a forest was burnt, there was the added danger of the flames spreading and burning valuable timber.
- Shifting cultivation also made it harder for the government to calculate taxes.
- Impact. Many communities were forcibly displaced from their homes in the forests. Some had to change occupations, while some resisted through large and small rebellions.
Question 7.
Which new changes came in forestry after the decade of 1980?
Answer:
Forestry completely changed from the decade of 1980. Now forgot conservation was made the objective by local people instead of collecting wood from the forests. Government also came to know that public participation is necessary for forest conservation. That’s why dense forest from Mizoram till Kerala are safe in India. People consider their security as their duty, Some villagers care these forest themselves. Even every family gives duty for its security. So there is no role of forest guards in these forests. Now local communities and environments and thinking about giving new form to the forest management.
Long Answer Type Questions
Question 1.
Who was the first Inspector General of Forests in India? What were his views about forest management? What did he do for this?
Answer:
The first Inspector General of Forests in India was Dietrich Brandis. He was a German specialist. He had following views about forest management.
- Brajidis realised that proper system had to be introduced to manage the forests and people had to be trained in the science of conservation.
- Under this system, legal sanctions had to be implemented.
- Rules about the use of forests had to be framed.
- Forests could be preserved for timber production. Falling of trees and grazing had to be restricted.
- Anybody who cut trees without following the system had to be punished.
To implement his ideas Brandis established Indian Forest Service in 1964 and helped in formulating the Indian Forest Act 1865. Imperial Forest Research Institutions was set up at Dehradun in 1905. The system they taught here was scientific forestry. Later on many people felt that this system is not scientific at all.
Question 2.
How did the tribal people use the products available in the forests?
Answer:
In forest areas, tribals use forest products, such as roots, leaves, fruits and tubers in many ways.
- Fruits and tubers are nutritious to eat especially during the monsoon before the harvest has come in.
- Herbs are used for medicine.
- Wood is used for agricultural implements like yokes and ploughs.
- Bamboo is used to make excellent fences. It is also used to make baskets and umbrellas.
- A dried scooped out goured can be used as a portable water bottle.
- Almost everything is available in forests such as
- Leaves can be stiched together to make disposable plates and cups.
- The Siadi (Bauhinia vahlii) can be used to make ropes.
- The thorny bark of Semur (silk cotton) tree is used to grats vegetables.
- Oil for cooking and to light lamps can be pressed from the fruits of mahua tree.