II] FORESTS 105
action of sudden floods until such time as man, with the aid of
costly appliances, intervenes to restore equilibrium.
Forests in India have therefore a value to the state far Value of
in excess of their mere financial profits. The grazing which forests to
they annually afford to countless herds assumes a special value
in years of drought, when it renders material assistance in
saving from starvation the cattle upon which the agriculture
of the country depends. They afford to the villagers who in-
habit their vicinity a ready supply of material for house-building
and thatching, of fuel, and of minor forest products, which add
substantially to the comforts of their life. And the use of
forest leaves as manure for the cultivator's fields has already
assumed large dimensions, and is steadily spreading as the
increasing pressure of population renders agricultural practice
more intensive. Enough has been said to emphasize the
value of forests, indirectly as regulating the water-supply and
moderating the climate; directly as providing those products
which in the tropical, sub-tropical, or temperate portions of the
country are essential to the welfare of the inhabitants. Of the
Indian forests as a source of revenue to the state, as providing
timber and other products which are utilized throughout the
world, and as, in some cases, creating and maintaining special
industries, more will be said hereafter; but it is first desirable
to note what extent of forest land is under the direct manage-
ment of the state, and to judge therefrom to what degree the
beneficial influences of forests can affect the country as a
whole.
Statistics compiled in 90go show that 208,369 square miles Area of
may be thus classified, representing nearly 22 per cent. of the state
total area of British India. At first sight it might be inferred
that the proportion between forest and other land had been
duly maintained, and this would indeed be the case if the distri-
bution of forest areas were at all uniform. Provincial statistics
show, however, that the percentage of forest land varies from
3.86 in the United Provinces to 44.o6 in Assam, 61r.9 in
Burma, and 97.55 in the Andamans; and it may be generally
said that the denser the population and the more urgent the
demand for the local advantages that forests confer, the less
the extent to which these advantages can be enjoyed. The
difficulty is one which has been caused by the increase of
population and the wasteful practices of former generations.
To burn the forest for the welfare of the cattle of nomadic
tribes, to clear it for the purpose of temporary tillage, to destroy
it for the creation of permanent cultivation, has been the rule
|
![[Digital South Asia Library]](/graphics/thirdlevel.gif)
