Question

What is called a village forest?

Answer 1

Hint: Village forest is a type of forest that belongs or is controlled by villagers around it. The word village refers to a community that is larger than a hamlet and smaller than a town.

Complete answer: The forest act of 1878 divided the forest into three main types. They are classified as reserved forests, protected forests, and villages forest. A forest governed by local communities in a way compatible with sustainable development in India is called a “Common Important Forest”. Such forests are commonly called the village forest or panchayat forest. The administration and resource use of the forest takes place at the village or panchayat level. The administration of such forests is done by hamlets, villages, and communities of villages. A locally elected body undertakes the responsibility of the management of such community forest and they are called the Forest Protection Committee, Village Forest Committee, or the Village Forest Institution. The village forest is guarded by the villagers. They are also allowed to stay in reserved forests on the condition that they will work free of cost for the forest department in cutting and transporting trees and protecting the forest from fire. In addition to it, they were not allowed to take anything from the forest for their personal use.

Note: Staff training and Funding for such communal forest management comes from the Government of India, but often comes from external non-governmental agencies. Several large amounts of loan for the purposes of accomplishing such projects, including a statewide co-operative drive in Andhra Pradesh in 2002 has been put forward by the World Bank.