Vinod Rishi , Shashi Paul

Abstract

Forestry Education and Training for new entrants to the Indian Forest Service consists of the ex-situ 'institutional training' and the in-situ 'hands-on field training'. The paper discusses the critical role the in-situ 'range training' plays in capacity building of the officers to manage forests, and the need to strengthen it for the benefit of forest and wildlife conservation in India.

Keywords

Forestry Education, Institutional Training, Range Training, Capacity Building, Forest Manual

Full Text

     

Shashi Paul

Abstract

Syllabus of IFS training which was notified in 1968 has been revised four times in 1971, 1983, 1995 and 2007. Major components of training as well as their proportion has remained almost same in all these years. Tours and exercises have undergone changes. Qualifying tests have remained more or less same. In theory and practicals some subjects have been renamed and in some cases redistribution of contents has been made. New subjects have been added and some subjects have been done away with. In case of wildlife management, environmental conservation, forest policy and law, NTFP, forests and people contents have been enriched by addition of new topics. Subjects like botany, engineering, forest protection, wood technology, harvesting and industries, working plan and forest engineering are reduced in terms of contents. In terms of weightage soil science, geology, botany, silviculture, forest survey, forest management, utilization, forest protection, forest engineering have gone down. Weightage has increased for mensuration, forest policy and law, wildlife management, forests and people and environmental conservation. Training curriculum of IFS probationers in independent India has been revised periodically to respond to the new challenges but the changes made are far less and a lot more needs to be done by looking into all aspects.

Keywords

Indian Forest Service, Probationer, Training, Syllabus and Weightage

Full Text

     

Shashi Paul , T. Rabikumar

Abstract

Present Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy (IGNFA) was established as Indian Forest College, as a part of Forest Research Institute, in the year 1938, for training of senior most cadre of forest service of the country. This institute started with a small number of trainees for Superior Forest Service (SFS) but soon became the centre for catering the training needs of neighbouring countries also. Syllabus of training and infrastructure supporting training activities underwent many changes, in the journey of 74 years. It became a centre for training of Indian Forest Service (IFS) probationers when service was reconstituted in 1966. In 1987, it became an institute directly under Ministry of Environment and Forests and was upgraded to the status of academy from college and was renamed as Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy. Though it still fulfills the basic mandate of training initial recruits to IFS, but it has also taken up the responsibility of training of in-service officers of IFS, to keep them updated. In 21^st century, its mandate has further been expanded to include the sensitization programmes for other stakeholders like police officers, revenue service officers, administrative service officers and judicial officers, etc.

Keywords

Indian Forest College (IFC), Superior Forest Service Training (SFS), Indian Forest Service (IFS) Training

Full Text

     

Shashi Paul , Pramod Chand Lakra

Abstract

Forest resources of India which are mainly under the control of Government are managed by Forest Department. Indian Forest Service (IFS), State Forest Service (SFS) and Range Officers (ROs) are the three services ment for the management of the forest were constituted by British Government and are more than one hundred years old. For the initial professional training of these three services Union Government is responsible and for this purpose there are specialized institutes established in different parts of country. Entry level requirements for these three services are almost same but there is a difference in the level of competition. Training pattern is different for these three services but otherwise similar in their contents with few differences in details. On the whole, there does not look any coordination in development of curriculum of these three trainings. They need a better co-ordination and synchronization, keeping in view the job requirements at three levels. A unified command for three trainings below the level of Ministry of Environment and Forests may prove to be helpful in this direction.

Keywords

Indian Forest Service (IFS), State Forest Service (SFS), Range Officers (ROs)

Full Text

     

Shashi Paul ¹

Affiliations
1 Regional Plant Resource Centre, Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar (Odisha), IN

Abstract

Sambalpur, one of the western most districts of present Odisha state was part of Central Province till 1904. Forest conservancy efforts started in the second half of 19^th century and the forest division went through many changes like bifurcation into two divisions in 1928 and again unification in 1959. Again in 2003, it was divided. In 1985, Debrigarh Sanctuary was carved out of the division. Forests mainly fall under the category of dry and moist deciduous forests with bamboo brakes. Forest management through working plans started in the year 1895-96. In the initial years, forests were worked under coppice, selection and conversion to uniform silvicultural systems. Later on, towards the end of 20^th century coppice system was discontinued and improvement and rehabilitation systems were given more coverage with very small part under selection system. More or less the forest management has progressed as per broader policy guidelines from time to time, except balancing of production and conservation under 1988 National Forest Policy. By the start of the 21^st century, production has gone down drastically though demand has gone up manifold. Obviously, this might have led to more supply from illegal sources. Wildlife management was almost totally missing from working plans of pre-independence period but after independence it has gained its due place in forest management. Other aspects which gained importance over time are afforestation activities and minor forest produce or non-timber forest produce (NTFP).

Keywords

Forest Management, Silviculture System, National Forest Policy, Sambalpur.

Full Text

     

Shashi Paul ¹

Affiliations
1 Regional Plant Resource Centre, Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar (Odisha), IN

Abstract

Eria meghasaniensis is one of the endemic Orchids of Odisha with a single population of nearly 150 plants found in Simlipal area of Odisha. It needs immediate measures to ensure its recovery and survival. On examination of various provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and the Odisha Forest Act, 1972, it is seen that they are not very helpful in rehabilitation of such species. Section 38 of the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, takes care of such species. However, the mechanism in place to implement this section to its full scope needs strengthening. For this purpose the Endangered Species Act (ESA) of USA and Species At Risk Act (SARA) of Canada were examined and it is found that they have good provisions to focus on rehabilitation of species at risk and to save them from extinction. It is highly required to develop a robust mechanism to implement the provisions of section 38 of the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, by using acts like ESA and SARA as guiding features. By developing an open and transparent process, based on scientific data available, with an actionable and time bound recovery plan and with the involvement of all stakeholders, it may be possible to save species like Eria meghasaniensis from extinction.

Keywords

Eria meghasaniensis, Threatened Species, Biological Diversity Act, 2002.

Full Text