Question

Discuss the role of women and communities in protection and conservation of forests.

State the role of women and community in conservation.

Answer 1

1. Case study of the Bishnoi community: The Bishnoi community in Rajasthan strictly believes in the concept of living peacefully with nature. In 1731, the king of Jodhpur ordered his ministers to arrange wood to construct his new palace. For this purpose, the minister and the workers went to Bishnoi village. There, a Bishnoi woman called Amrita Devi, along with her daughter and hundreds of other Bishnois, showed the courage to step forward and stop them from cutting trees. They embraced the trees and lost their lives at the hands of soldiers of the king. This resistance by the people of the village forced the king to give up the idea of cutting trees.
2. The Chipko Movement: Chipko is a Hindi word that means 'to embrace' or "to stick. The Chipko Movement was started by the illiterate women of Tehri Garhwal in Uttarakhand state of India against the felling of trees by the contractors. A group of female peasants acted to prevent the cutting of trees and reclaim their traditional forest rights that were threatened by the contractor system of the state Forest Department. The movement began in Chamoli district in 1973 and spread throughout Uttarakhand in the Himalayas by the end of the decade.
3. Eco-clubs or green clubs: Eco-clubs are the voluntary groups of people who work for improving the environment. These clubs' aim is to heighten awareness about the world's environment. While deepening people's own understanding, eco-clubs foster thinking about the earth's environment and take it upon themselves to work towards building a new society. Nowadays, people are becoming more and more concerned about their environment. Through an eco-club, people can organise themselves to learn more about the environment and also take action to improve it.
4. Vanmahotsava: Vanmahotsava is a celebration of the plantation of trees. This follows the traditional Indian culture. Vanmahotsava is an annual event where large-scale tree plantations take place all over the country. It started in a simple way, but now, with the increasing awareness among the people and with the help of NGOs, the government, and some environmental institutes, Vanmahotsava is celebrated on a large scale. Plantation of trees through Vanmahotsava is another step in conservation. Unfortunately, while millions of saplings are planted during this period, not many survive or grow. There should be a proper way of caring for planted saplings.