tamil nadu forest department
DESCRIPTION
Tamil Nadu Forest Department - Wikipedia, The Free EncyclopediaTRANSCRIPT
12/11/13 Tamil Nadu Forest Department - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Head office of the Tamil Nadu Forest
Department is in the Panagal
Maaligai or Panagal Building in
Saidapet, Chennai.
Tamil Nadu, India
Tamil Nadu Forest DepartmentFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Tamil Nadu Forest Department was established as the MadrasForest Department in 1855 by Dr. Hugh Francis Cleghorn, "the father ofscientific forestry in India". The department is responsible for managing allthe protected areas and forests plus environmental and wildlife relatedissues of Tamil Nadu state in South India. The objective of the TamilNadu Forest Department is to conserve biodiversity and eco-systems offorests and wilderness areas to ensure water security and food security ofthe state.
The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) is the head of theTamil Nadu Forest Department. The Chief Wildlife Warden, fiveAdditional Principal Chief Conservators of Forests and eight ChiefConservator of Forests function under the PCCF in the head office atPanagal Maaligai (pictured), Saidapet, Chennai. All the ChiefConservators of Forests are assisted by the Conservators of Forests andDeputy Conservator of Forests who have regional and specialised
responsibilities.[1]
All officials of the Tamil Nadu Forest Department, down to the level ofAssistant Conservator of Forests, are graduates of Lal Bahadur ShastriNational Academy of Administration and the Indira Gandhi NationalForest Academy and are members of the Indian Forest Service, entitledto use the formal suffix IFS after their name. There are total of 9,188
employees of the department.[2]
Contents
1 History2 Objectives
3 Strategies
4 Geographic divisions
5 Management
5.1 Principal Chief Conservator of Forests
5.2 Chief Conservator of Forests
5.2.1 Forest Regions and Circles
5.3 Conservator of Forests
5.3.1 Forest divisions
6 References
History
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Dr. Hugh Cleghorn,
founder of Madras
Forest Department,
1856
Dietrich Brandis,
reorganised Madras
Forestry Department
in 1882
H. A. Gass,
Conservator of
Forests about 1906
Teak tree, 1870 by
Douglas Hamilton
Lord Ripon, Viceroy
of India, 1880-1884
In 1855 Dr. H. F. Cleghorn (pictured) was asked to organisethe Madras Forest Department and started systematic forest
conservancy in India.[3] On 19 December 1856 he was
appointed Conservator of Forests in Madras Presidency.[4]
His persistent campaigning with the Government resulted in thebanning of shifting cultivation in the Madras Presidency in
1860.[3] Cleghorn organised the new Madras ForestryDepartment with such energy and success that he was askedto extend his operations into the Punjab. He also afforded Mr.Dietrich Brandis, CIE, FRS, CIE, (pictured), efficientassistance in introducing and systematically working forest
conservancy in the forests of Bengal.[5] Cleghorn has been
called "the father of scientific forestry in India"[6][7]
On 10 January 1865, a public resolution by the Governmentof India, designated Dr. Cleghorn as the founder of ForestConservancy in India, and added: "His long services from thefirst organisation of forest management in Madras have withoutquestion greatly conduced to the public good in this branch of
the administration".[8]
Douglas Hamilton was very interested in forest conservation inSouth India, and often visited his old friend General JamesMichael who was organising an experimental forestconservancy in the Annaimalai Hills. In 1854, he wasappointed to temporarily manage the conservancy and showedgreat aptitude for these new forestry duties. Douglassucceeded permanently to the appointment and for the nextthree years was in charge of the Annaimalai forests, supplyingteak lumberfor shipbuilding at the Bombay Dockyard. Duringthis period, he became Assistant Conservator of Forests underDr. Hugh Francis Cleghorn who recently established theMadras Forest Department and whose work led to the
establishment of the Forest Department of India in 1864.[5][9]
In 1857 Douglas Hamilton had to return to his Regiment. Theassistant conservator vacancy at Anamalai was filled by Lieutenant Richard HenryBeddome, who was an excellent explorer and who had a good knowledge of botany. Hewas recommended to Dr. Cleghorn because of his powers of observation and
description.[10] He succeeded Cleghorn in 1860 and remained Chief Conservator until
1882.[11]
After the retirement of Beddome, upon the direction of the Viceroy of India, GeorgeRobinson, 1st Marquess of Ripon (pictured) and with the strong support of M. E. Grant Duff, Governor of
Madras, Dietrich Brandis reorganised the Forestry Department as it operated smoothly thereafter.[12] J. A. Gamblefollowed R. H. Beddome as the conservator of forests. Gamble's successor was Horace Archibald Gass(pictured). Gass is now remembered for establishing the Gass Forest Museum. Gass was succeeded by F.A.
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Lodge and then by J.A. Master.[13]
In 1868, The Forest College and Research Institute was first established as part of the Agricultural School atSaidapet, Chennai (Madras). In 1916, it moved to Coimbatore. In 1989, Masters program in forestry wasintroduced at the Forest College & Research Institute, new campus at Mettupalayam. In 1990, a Doctoral program
was also introduced.[3]
In 1969, Madras State was renamed Tamil Nadu (land of the Tamils) and the name of the department was likewisealso changed.
Objectives
The overall objective of the Tamil Nadu Forest Department is to conserve biodiversity and eco-systems of forestsand wilderness areas to ensure water security and food security of the state. Wildlife and wildlife habitats should beconserved and sustainably managed to meet the social, economic, ecological, cultural, recreational and spiritual
needs of the present and future generations of people in the state.[14]
The forests in Tamil Nadu are managed with the following objectives:
Ensure environmental stability by restoring ecological balance in forest ecosystems.
Increase forest and tree cover to 33% of the state, and enhance the quality of forests.Conserve the wide array of bio-diversity through scientific management and improve habitat conditions for
improved forest health.Protect and develop the forest catchment area of rivers, lakes, reservoirs and all aquatic eco-systems.
Meet the local requirements of fuel, fodder, non-timber forest products and small timber to the extentpossible on a sustainable basis through the principles of watershed development and Joint Forest
Management.Sensitise all sections of the society for forest/tree conservation through planning, interpretation, integration
and collaboration.Increase forest based entrepreneurship to support improved livelihood and develop efficient marketingstrategies.
Make traditional forest produce available to the tribal people living inside the forests and make them partnersin forest management.
Develop alternative renewable energy sources to meet the energy requirement of remote villages.Increase scientific management of forests for multiple objectives and to strengthen growth, yield and
productivity systems.
Stabilize coastal eco-systems to ensure protection from natural calamities such as cyclones and tsunamis.[15]
Strategies
Strategies adopted by the Forest Department to achieve these objectives are:
Provide absolute protection to forested area from all factors causing degradation, depletion and destruction
of wildlife and wildlife habitats, by strict enforcement of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 and the TamilNadu Forest Act, 1882.
Undertake Eco-development works to provide benefits to the occupants of habitations and villages in and
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Management sign at entrance to Mukurthi National
Parkencouraging wildlife conservation
around protected areas and enlist and maintain their support and willing participation in wildlife conservation.Facilitate empowerment of women for sustainable forest management.
Facilitate education and awareness creation facilities including creation of Education and interpretationcentres for the benefit of all sections of population,
especially students.
Create awareness of the need to conserve our
natural bio-resources through various mass mediaand other means (pictured).
Undertake fire prevention and control measures in
and around protected areas through specificprogrammes.
Undertake habitat restoration, afforestation and
improvement measures wherever necessary.
Relocate human settlements from Protected Areas.Prevent outbreak of contagious diseases among wild
animals by taking prophylactic disease prevention
measures among domestic animals entering
Sanctuaries and National Parks.Develop ex-situ conservation centres such as
zoological parks, breeding and nursery programs and
gene gardens.Construction of crop protection structures like fences, trenches and walls, etc.
Identify and restore wildlife corridors to facilitate free movement of animals between, through and around
Protected Areas.
Award adequate compensatory_damages to affected persons for death or damage caused by Human-wildlife conflict.
Restrict and regulate pollution causing industries and activities in a radius of 25 kilometres (16 mi) around
protected areas as per the Environment Protection Act.
Integrate the wildlife Protected Areas on a watershed or landscape basis with other sectors such as RuralDevelopment, Animal Husbandry and Social Forestry for the sustained conservation and development of the
area.
Ensure that each and every Protected Area has a management plan in place.Conserve the medicinal plants in protected areas by creation and management of Medicinal Plants
Conservation Area (MPCAs).
Promote wildlife tourism for the Parks and not Parks for tourism. Tourism demands are subservient to
conservation interests of the protected areas.Encourage appropriate monitoring and research works to develop working programmes and plans, to tackle
identified problems in achieving objectives.[14]
Geographic divisions
The Forest Department is responsible for managing an area over 3,305 km2 (1,276 sq mi), constituting 2.54% of
the geographic area and 17.41% of the 22,643 km2 (8,743 sq mi) recorded forest area of the state.[14] The ForestDepartment is organised in a geographic hierarchy ranging from Regions, Forestry Circles, Forestry Divisions and
Forest Ranges to Beats and Watches. Each geographic category has its own level of management.[2]
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Forest Cover in Tamil Nadu
Management
The Forest Department is organised in an administrative hierarchy ranging from Principle Chief Conservator ofForests to Forest Watchers, Mahouts and others.
Principal Chief Conservator of Forests
The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) is in overallcontrol of the whole Forest Department. All significant orders,permissions, declarations and authorisations of the department arepersonally reviewed, approved and signed by him.
The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests & Chief WildllifeWarden (PCCF & CWLW) is the principal assistant to the PCCFand is responsible for all wildlife matters of the department. There isalso an Eco-development officer directly advising the PCCF.
Five Additional Principal Chief Conservators of Forests (APCCF)are separately responsible for central administration of Afforestation,Planning & Budgeting, Research & Working Plan, Forest
Administration and the Forest Conservation Act.[1][2]
Chief Conservator of Forests
There are 13 Chief Conservator of Forests (CCF), each of whom manages a Forest region in addition to managinga separate technical aspect of Forest Department responsibility statewide. The separate technical aspects areTamilNadu Afforestation Project (TAP), Planning and Development, Personnel and Vigilance, Social Forestry andExtension, Biodiversity, Wildlife, Department Working Plan (WP), Headquarters, Research, Extension, TamilNadu Forest Academy (TNFA), Field Director - Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (KMTR) and Director -
Arignar Anna Zoological Park (AAZP).[1][2]
Forest Regions and Circles
The state is divided into 6 forest regions, each composed of two forest circles. The wildlife matters of each region,including the 5 National Parks in Tamil Nadu, are the responsibility of a regional wildlife warden. There are 12territorial Forest circles. These Regions and Forest circles plus the KMTR, AAZP, TNFA and WP are the allottedresponsibility of the following CCF:
Chennai region: Chennai Circle & Vellore Circle, CCF (Social Forestry)
Trichy region: Trichy Circle & Villupuram Circle, CCF (Personnel and Vigilance)
Madurai region: Madurai Circle & Dindigul Circle, CCF (Planning & Development)Salem region: Salem Circle & Dharmapuri Circle, CCF (Headquarters)
Tirunelveli region: Virudhunagar Circle & Tirunelveli Circle, CCF (Wildlife)
Coimbatore region Coimbatore Circle & Erode Circle, CCF (TAP)AAZP, Director & CCF
KMTR, Project Tiger Field Director & CCF
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Wildlife Warden office sign at Ooty, Nilgiri North and South
Divisions, Coimbatore Circle, Tamil Nadu Forest Department
Special Region, Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve (GOMBRT) CCF and Trust Director
TNFA, Director & CCF. There is also a Principle TNFTC and 2 Additional Directors TNFA
WP, Working Plan CCF (WP)[1][2]
Conservator of Forests
There are 26 Conservator of Forests (CF) under the CCFs, with one locally responsible for each of the 12 ForestCircles, 4 for Working Plans, and one each responsible for Planning & Development, Protection, ProjectFormulation, Forest Consolidation, Publicity,GIS, HRD, TAP-I, TAP-II and Research.There are also 49 Assistant Conservator of
Forests, who are usually new IFS officers.[1][2]
Forest divisions
Within each Forest Circle there are 2 or moreForest divisions managed by one or more of 17Divisional Conservator of Forests (DCF) or 18Deputy Conservator of Forests and 30 District
Forest Officers (DFO).[2]
Each Forest division has several Forest rangesthat are managed locally by Forest range officers (FRO). Each Forest range is divided into beats, each of which isthe responsibility of one of the 585 Forest Rangers in the state.
Each beat is divided into Forest watches, each of which is the responsibility of one or more of the 1,353 Forestwatchers in the state. In addition there are 2,421 Forest guards to assist patrolling the forests.
There are 39 Mahouts and 44 Cavady to manage and train the working elephants (Kumki) owned and used by theForest Department. There are 1,320 Foresters employed to physically manage the trees in the states forests. In
addition, there are 3,256 ministerial staff and other employees in the department.[2]
References
1. ̂a b c d e CITIZEN'S CHARTER – Forests (http://www.tn.gov.in/citizen/forests.pdf), Chinnai: Environment andForests Department, 2006, pp. 2–4, retrieved 15 February 2011
2. ̂a b c d e f g h Organizational Structure(http://www.forests.tn.nic.in/administration/organizational_structure.html), Chinnai: Tamil Nadu ForestDepartment, retrieved 9 January 2011
3. ̂a b c MUTHIAH, S. (5 November 2007). "A life for forestry"(http://www.hindu.com/mp/2007/11/05/stories/2007110550080500.htm). Metro Plus Chennai (The Hindu).Retrieved 9 March 2009.
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4. ^ H.F. Cleghorn (1905), "Pioneers of Indian Forestry" (http://books.google.com/books?id=vw9EAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA228-IA2&lpg=PA228-IA2&dq=%22James+Michael%22+madras+teak&source=bl&ots=dq30w-Llsx&sig=oz4Nlv1jo8Qnoh4zQHv01cw0e1o&hl=en&ei=7tVjTb6AAoH-8AbZvP34Cw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22James%20Michael%22%20madras%20teak&f=false), The Indian forester (Inspector General of Forests), Volume 31, Issue1: 231, retrieved 22 February 2011
5. ̂a b Oliver, J.W. (1901). "Forestry in India" (http://books.google.com/?id=2U8YAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA623&dq=%22Douglas+Hamilton%22+madras++-johnson+-elephant+-whale+-
william+1862). The Indian Forester v.27 (Original from Harvard University, Digitized 4 April 2008 ed.). Allahabad:R. P. Sharma, Business Manager, Indian Forester. pp. 618–623.
6. ^ Oliver, p. 620
7. ^ "The Hill Forests of Western India, p.731-739" (http://books.google.com/books?id=EVVDAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA734&lpg=PA734&dq=The+father+of+scientific+forestry+in+India&source=bl&ots=hluGDKZT3S&sig=rMCbB2SXDG0Nftn2TA6hlZJrlg4&hl=en&ei=bMxiTcChM4K88gaip4irDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CCUQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=The%20father%20of%20scientific%20forestr
y%20in%20India&f=false), Journal of the Society of Arts (London: Society of Arts (Great Britain)) 47, 4 August1899: 735, retrieved 21 February 2011
8. ^ H.F. Cleghorn p.234
9. ^ Indian Forest Service, An Introduction (http://ifs.nic.in/), New Delhi: Ministry of Environment and Forests,retrieved 9 January 2011
10. ^ Cleghorn, Hugh Francis Clarke (1861). The Forests and Gardens of South India(http://www.worldcat.org/wcpa/oclc/301345427?page=frame&url=http%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3D_ZbC9FY1JqIC%26checksum%3D374d90c92770a514a51708f07461f0b3&title=&linktype=digitalObject&detail=) (Original from the University ofMichigan, Digitized 10 February 2006 ed.). London: W. H. Allen. pp. 18, 46. OCLC 301345427(//www.worldcat.org/oclc/301345427).
11. ^ Godwin-Austen, H. H. (1912), "the death of Colonel Richard Henry Beddome"(http://mollus.oxfordjournals.org/content/10/2/51.full.pdf), Mollus. Stud. 10(2): OBITUARY NOTICES.(Malacological Society of London): 51–52, retrieved 9 February 2011
12. ^ Oliver, pp 616-617
13. ^ "History of Gass Forest Museum" (http://iwst.icfre.gov.in/database/Xylarium/ifgtb/general/history.htm),Database/Xylarium (Institute of Wood Science and Technology), retrieved 15 February 2011
14. ̂a b c Wild Biodiversity (http://www.forests.tn.nic.in/WildBiodiversity/wildbiodiversity_home.html), Chinnai:Tamil Nadu Forest Department, retrieved 9 January 2011
15. ^ CITIZEN'S CHARTER, p.1
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