Van Mahotsav, Social Forestry & Complete Revision
Van Mahotsav, social forestry, agroforestry, Green India Mission, REDD+, and complete Chapter 04 master revision checklist.
- Started in 1950 by K.M. Munshi (Kanaiyalal Maneklal Munshi), Union Agriculture and Food Minister
- Meaning: “Van” = forest; “Mahotsav” = festival โ Festival of Trees
- Celebrated during the first week of July every year
- Involves mass tree planting drives across India
- Objective: create awareness about importance of forests; increase green cover
- K.M. Munshi was also the founder of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and a key figure in drafting the Indian Constitution
๐ณ Social Forestry
Planting trees on community/government land (roadsides, wastelands, canal banks) for community benefit โ fuelwood, fodder, timber, shade.
๐พ Agroforestry
Growing trees alongside crops and/or livestock on the same land. Improves soil fertility, provides shade, additional income, reduces erosion.
๐ก Farm Forestry
Farmers plant trees on their own private land for commercial or personal use. Eucalyptus, Poplar, Teak commonly planted.
๐๏ธ Urban Forestry
Planting and managing trees in urban areas โ parks, roadsides, institutional land. Reduces urban heat island effect.
๐ Rehabilitation Forestry
Restoring degraded forests and wastelands through assisted natural regeneration and active planting.
๐ก๏ธ Protective Forestry
Planting trees specifically to protect against erosion, floods, desertification โ windbreaks, shelterbelts, watershed protection.
- Combines trees + crops (agrisilviculture), trees + livestock (silvopastoral), or trees + crops + livestock (agrosilvopastoral)
- Benefits: improved soil fertility (nitrogen fixation by leguminous trees), reduced erosion, microclimate regulation, additional income
- National Agroforestry Policy 2014: India’s first dedicated agroforestry policy
- Sub-Mission on Agroforestry (SMAF): under National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA)
- India has the largest agroforestry area in the world (~8.2 million ha)
- One of the 8 National Missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC)
- Launched: 2014
- Objectives:
- Increase forest/tree cover on 5 million hectares of degraded forest and non-forest land
- Improve quality of forest cover on another 5 million hectares
- Enhance ecosystem services (carbon sequestration, water, biodiversity)
- Increase forest-based livelihoods of ~3 million households
- Implemented by: MoEFCC in partnership with state governments and communities
- Convergence with MGNREGS for labour component
| Scheme | Focus Species | Key Details |
|---|---|---|
| National Bamboo Mission | Bamboo | Promote bamboo cultivation; bamboo reclassified as grass (not tree) in 2017 amendment to IFA 1927 โ farmers can now cut bamboo on their land without permit |
| Neem Mission | Neem | Promote neem cultivation; neem-coated urea to reduce fertiliser misuse |
| Sub-Mission on Agroforestry | Multiple species | Under NMSA; promote trees on farmland; provide planting material and support |
| CAMPA | Multiple species | Compensatory afforestation; funds from forest diversion used for planting |
| Van Mahotsav | All species | Annual tree planting festival; July first week; since 1950 |
- Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation
- UN mechanism under UNFCCC; developing countries receive payments for reducing deforestation
- “+” includes: conservation of forest carbon stocks, sustainable management of forests, enhancement of forest carbon stocks
- India’s National REDD+ Strategy developed by MoEFCC
- Generates carbon credits โ tradeable units representing 1 tonne of COโ reduced
Forest Resources โ All 6 Topics
โ Champion & Seth (1968) โ 16 major forest types
โ Tropical Wet Evergreen: >200 cm, W. Ghats, NE India, teak/rosewood/ebony
โ Tropical Moist Deciduous: most widespread, teak & sal, 100โ200 cm
โ Tropical Thorn: <70 cm, Rajasthan/Gujarat, khejri/babool
โ Montane Temperate: 2000โ3000 m, deodar/pine/fir/spruce
โ Alpine: >3500 m, dwarf shrubs, mosses, lichens
โ Mangrove: Sundarbans (largest), prop roots, pneumatophores, Sundari tree
โ ISFR by FSI, Dehradun โ biennial โ ISFR 2021 = 17th report
โ Total forest + tree cover: 80.9 Mha = 24.62%
โ VDF (>70%), MDF (40โ70%), Open Forest (10โ40%), Scrub (<10%)
โ Largest area: Madhya Pradesh; Highest %: Mizoram (~84.53%)
โ NFP 1988 target: 33% โ current: ~24.62%
โ Most important cause: agricultural expansion
โ Jhum = slash and burn; NE India; Podu (AP), Bewar (MP), Kumari (W. Ghats)
โ REDD+ = UN mechanism; carbon credits; under UNFCCC
โ Effects: soil erosion, biodiversity loss, COโ release, flooding
โ IFA 1927: Reserved > Protected > Village forests
โ FCA 1980: central govt approval for forest diversion; amended 2023
โ FRA 2006: tribal rights; individual + community + management rights; Gram Sabha
โ NFP 1988: 33% target; ecological priority; replaced NFP 1952
โ CAMPA Act 2016: compensatory afforestation funds
โ JFM: govt + community share forest management
โ Arabari (1972): West Bengal; A.K. Banerjee; Sal forest regeneration
โ JFM formalised: MoEF circular 1990
โ FPCs: village-level; usufruct rights; 1.18 lakh+ FPCs
โ Van Panchayats: Uttarakhand; 1931; oldest community forest governance
โ Chipko (1973): Uttarakhand; Gaura Devi, Sunderlal Bahuguna โ FCA 1980
โ Appiko (1983): Karnataka; Panduranga Hegde; Western Ghats
โ Bishnoi (1730): Rajasthan; Amrita Devi; first tree-hugging movement
โ Sacred groves: Dev vans, Orans, Sarna; 1 lakh+ in India
โ Van Mahotsav: 1950; K.M. Munshi; July first week
โ Social forestry: community/govt land; fuelwood, fodder, timber
โ Agroforestry: trees + crops; National Agroforestry Policy 2014
โ Bamboo: reclassified as grass in 2017 IFA amendment
โ Green India Mission: 8th NAPCC mission; 5 Mha target; 2014
โ REDD+: UN; carbon credits; India has National REDD+ Strategy