•We share this planet with millions of other living beings, starting from micro-organisms and bacteria, lichens to banyan trees, elephants and blue whales. This entire habitat that we live in has immense biodiversity. We humans along with all living organisms from a complex web of ecological system in which we are only a part and very much depend on this system for our own existence.

•For example the plants, animals and micro-organisms re-create the quality of the air we breath, The water we drink and the soil that produces are food without which we cannot survive.

•Forests play a key role in the ecological system as these are also the primary produces on which all other living being depend.

Flora and fauna refer to plant and wildlife, respectively. The term is often used to refer to the indigenous plant and wildlife of a geographical region. Both are collective terms, referring to groups of plant or wildlife specific to a region or a time period. For example, the flora and fauna of a warm region may consist of tropical to warm-temperate vegetation and exotic species of birds.

The flora and fauna of any given region are usually explained in biological terms to include the genus and species of plant and animal life, their preferred growing or breeding habits, and their connection to one another in the environment as well. In addition to geographical groupings, environment also helps further their classification. For example, aquatic flora and fauna of a region refers to the plant and animal life found in the waters in or surrounding a geographic region.

In botany, flora has two meanings.The first meaning refers to all plant life in an area or time period.The second meaning refers to a book or other work which describes the plant species in an area or time period, with the aim of allowing identification.The term flora comes from Latin language Flora, the goddess of flowers in Roman mythology. The corresponding term for animal life is fauna.Plants are grouped into floras based on region, period, special environment, or climate. Regions can be geographically distinct habitats like mountain vs. flatland. Floras can mean plant life of an historic era as in fossil flora.

Fauna is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora. Flora, fauna and other forms of life such as fungi are collectively referred to as biota.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "SonoranDesert fauna" or the "Burgess Shale fauna".

Deforestation is when forests are lost and not replanted. Sometimes deforestation happens when people change the land into farms, ranches and cities. A lot of deforestation is from removal of all the trees from a forest for wood or fuel. Without the forest, the habitats of the animals are lost and many animals die. It also results inglobal warming.The opposite of deforestation is afforestation.

Normal Species: Their population levels are normal for their survival. E.g. Cattle, rodents etc.

Endangered Species: They are in danger of extinction as their population is fast dwindling. E.g. Black buck, Indian wild ass, Indian rhino, lion, crocodile etc.

Vulnerable Species: Their population has decreased to the level of being endangered in the near future. E.g. Asiatic elephant, blue sheep, Gangetic dolphin etc.

Rare Species: Species those are very small in number. May become endangered or vulnerable in future. E.g. Hornbill, Himalayan brown bear, wild Asiatic buffalo, desert fox etc.

Endemic Species: The species that are found only in a particular region and are isolated by natural barriers are called endemic species. E.g. Andaman teal, Nicobar pigeon, Andaman wild pig etc. Extinct Species: These species no longer exist on Earth. E.g. Asiatic cheetah, pink head duck etc.

Impact of human beings in transforming nature into a store house of forest and animal resource such as wood, leaves, fodder, fuel wood, barks, rubber, dyes, organic manure and medicinal plants on one hand and animal skin, hair, hide, milk (dairy farm) meat, animals used in agricultural and transport activities.

One of the historical factors causing damage to our forest resource was during British time when they started expanding commercial agriculture, mining activity, railways and roadways to exploit Indian resources. It continued to expand even after independence as our population grew over a period of time.

Data given shows the zone. Between 1951 and 1980, according to the forest survey of India, over 26,200 sq. km of forest area was converted into agricultural land all over India. Substantial parts of the tribal belts, especially in the north-eastern and central India, have been deforested or degraded by shifting cultivation, a type of slash and burn agriculture.

Tribal WOMEN using bamboo saplings in a nursery at Mukhali near Salient Valley

Tribal women selling minor forest produce

Leaf litter collection by women folk