Soon afterwards other appointments followed, and in 1864 an organized state department, presided over by the inspector-general of forests, was established. Since then the Indian Forest Department has steadily grown, so that it has now become of considerable importance for the welfare of the people, as well as for the Indian exchequer.
The first duty of the department was to ascertain the position and extent of the remaining forests, and more particularly of that portion which still belonged to the state. Then a special forest law was passed, which was superseded in 1878 by an improved act, providing for the legal formation of permanent state forests; the determination, regulation, and, if necessary, commutation of forest rights; the protection of the forests against unlawful acts and the punishment of forest offences; the protection of forest produce in transit; the constitution of a staff of forest officers, provision to invest them with suitable legal powers, and the determination of their duties and liabilities. The officers who administered the department in its infancy were mostly botanists and military officers. Some of these became excellent foresters. In order to provide a technically trained staff arrangements were made in 1866 by Sir Dietrich Brandis, the first inspector-general of forests, for the training of young Englishmen at the French Forest School at Nancy and at similar institutions in Germany. In 1876 the students were concentrated at Nancy, and in 1885 an English forest school for India was organized in connexion with the Royal Indian Engineering College at Cooper’s Hill. In 1905 the school was transferred to the university of Oxford. The imperial forest staff of India consisted in 1909 of—officers not specially trained before entering the department, 17; officers trained in France and Germany, 23; officers trained at Cooper’s Hill, 143—total 184.
In 1878 a forest school was started at Dehra Dun, United Provinces, for the training of natives of India as executive officers on the provincial staff. Since then a similar school, though on a smaller scale, has been established at Tharrawaddy in Burma. About 500 officers of this class have been appointed. In addition, there are about 11,000 subordinates, foresters and forest guards, who form the protective staff. The school at Dehra Dun has lately been converted into the Imperial Forest College.
The progress made since 1864 is really astonishing. According to the latest available returns, the areas taken under the management of the department are—reserved state forests, or permanent forest estates, 91,272 sq. m.; other state forests, 141,669 sq. m.; or a total of 232,941 sq. m., equal to 24% of the area over which they are scattered. At present, therefore, the average charge of each member of the controlling staff comprises 1266 sq. m.; that of each executive officer, 446 sq. m.; and that of each protective official, 21 sq. m. It is the intention to increase the executive and protective staff considerably, in the same degree as the management of the forests becomes more detailed. Of the above-mentioned area the Forest Survey Branch, established in 1872, has up to date surveyed and mapped about 65,000 sq. m. From 1864 onwards efforts were made to introduce systematic management into the forests, based upon working plans, but, as the management had been provincialized, there was no central or continuous control. This was remedied in 1884, when a central Working Plans Office, under the inspector-general of forests, was established. This officer has since then controlled the preparation and execution of the plans, a procedure which has led to most beneficial results. Plans referring to about 38,000 sq. m. are now (1909) in operation, and after a reasonable lapse of time there should not be a single forest of importance which is not worked on a well-regulated plan, and on the principle of a sustained yield. While the danger of overworking the forests is thus being gradually eliminated, their yield capacity is increased by suitable silvicultural treatment and by fire protection. Formerly most of the important forests were annually or periodically devastated by jungle fires, sometimes lighted accidentally, in other cases purposely. Now 38,000 sq. m. of forest are actually protected against fire by the efforts of the department, and it is the intention gradually to extend protection to all permanent state forests. Grazing of cattle is of great importance in India; at the same time it is liable to interfere seriously with the reproduction of the forests. To meet both requirements careful and minute arrangements have been made, according to which at present 38,000 sq. m. are closed to grazing; 19,000 sq. m. are closed only against the grazing of goats, sheep and camels; while 176,000 sq. m. are open to the grazing of all kinds of cattle. The areas closed in ordinary years form a reserve of fodder in years of drought and scarcity. During famine years they are either opened to grazing, or grass is cut in them and transported to districts where the cattle are in danger of starvation. The service rendered in this way by a wise forest administration should not be underrated, since one of the most serious calamities of a famine—the want of cattle to cultivate the land—is thus, if not avoided, at any rate considerably reduced. During 1907 the government of India established a Research Institute, with six members engaged in collecting data regarding silviculture, forest botany, forest zoology, forest economics, working plans, and chemistry in connexion with forest produce and production. The institute is likely to lead to further substantial progress in the management of the forests.
The financial results of forest administration in India for the years 1865 to 1905 show the progress made:
| Period. | Mean Annual Net Revenue. |
Percentage of Annual Increase during Period. |
| Rupees. | ||
| 1865–1870 | 1,372,733 | · · |
| 1870–1875 | 1,783,248 | 30 |
| 1875–1880 | 2,224,687 | 25 |
| 1880–1885 | 3,385,745 | 52 |
| 1885–1890 | 5,066,671 | 50 |
| 1890–1895 | 7,370,572 | 44 |
| 1895–1900 | 7,923,484 | 7 |
| 1900–1905 | 9,004,367 | 12 |
The highest percentage of increase occurred in the period 1880–1885. The revenue since 1886 has been considerably increased by the annexation of Upper Burma.
Apart from the net revenue, large quantities of produce are given free of charge, or at reduced rates, to the people of the country. Thus, in 1904–1905, the net revenue amounted to Rs. 11,062,094, while the produce given free or at reduced rates was valued at Rs. 3,500,661, making a total net benefit derived from the state forests during that year of Rs. 14,562,755, or in round figures one million pounds sterling. The out-turn during the same year amounted to 252 million cub. ft. of timber and fuel and 215 million bamboos. The receipts from the sale of other forest produce came to 9 million rupees, out of a total gross revenue of 24 million rupees.
These results are highly creditable to the government of India, which has led the way towards the introduction of rational forest management into the British empire, thus setting an example which has been followed more or less by various colonies. Even the movement in the United Kingdom during late years is due to it. Apart from India, substantial progress has been made in Cape Colony, Ceylon, the Straits Settlements and the Federated Malay States. Other British colonies are more backward in this respect. Energetic action is urgently wanted, especially in Canada and Australasia, where an enormous state property is threatened by destruction.
Literature.—The following works of special interest may be mentioned: W. Schlich, A Manual of Forestry (London) (vols. i., ii. and iii. by W. Schlich; vols. iv. and v. by W. R. Fisher; 3rd ed. of vol. i., 1906, of vol. ii., 1904, of vol. iii., 1905; 2nd ed. of vol. iv., 1907; 2nd ed. of vol. v., 1908); Baden-Powell, Forest Law (London, 1893); Brown, The Forester (ed. by Nisbet, Edinburgh and London, 1905); Broilliard, Le Traitement des bois (Paris, 1894); Huffel, Économie forestière (Paris, 1904–1907); Lorey, Handbuch der Forstwissenschaft (2nd ed. by Stoetzer, Tübingen, 1903); Rossmässler, Der Wald. (W. Sch.)
United States
The Forest Regions.—The great treeless region east of the Rocky Mountains separates the wooded area of the United
