History Solution Class 9 Chapter 4

4. Forest society and colonialism

Syllabus

a) Relationship between forests and livelihood.

b) Changes in forest societies under colonialism. Case studies; focus on two forest movements-one in colonial India (Bastar) and one in Indonesia.

Facts that Matter

·         In India deforestation started many centuries ago, but under colonial rule it became more systematic and extensive.

·         The British needed forests in order to build ships and railways. They were worried about the use of forests by local people and the reckless felling of trees by traders would destroy forests. So, they invited a German expert, Dietrich Brandis for advice and made him the first inspector General of Forests in India.

·         Brandis realised that a proper system had to be introduced to manage the forests and people had to be trained in the science of conservation. Felling of trees and grazing had to be restricted so that forests could be preserved for timber production.

·         Brandis set up the Indian Forest Service in 1864 and helped formulate the Indian Forest Act in 1865. He introduces scientific forestry in which natural forests were cut down and in their place; one type of tree was planted in straight row.

·          The Forest Act of 1865 was amended twice, once in 1878 and then in 1927. The 1878 Act divided forests into three categories- reserved, protected and village forests. The best forests were called ‘reserved forests’. The villagers were not allowed to enter these forests. They could take wood from protected or village forests.

·         The Forest Act made life of the villagers across the country very tough. After the Act was enforced, all their routine activities such as grazing, hunting etc. became illegal. People now forced to steal wood from the forests, and if they were caught, they had given bribes to the forest guards.

·          Shifting cultivation was a traditional agricultural practice in many parts of Asia including India. But European forests did not like this practice. They felt that land which was used for cultivation every few years could not grow trees for railway timber. When a forest was burnt, there was the added danger of the flames spreading and burning valuable timber. Therefore, the government banned shifting cultivation. As a result, many communities were displaced from their homes in the forests.

·         The forest laws also deprived people of their customary rights to hunts animals like deer, partridges etc. But at the same time hunting of big game became a sport. The British saw large animals such as tigers, leopards etc. as signs of a wild, primitive and savage society. They believed that by killing those dangerous animals the British would civilise India. Hence, they gave rewards for killing such animals.

·         Forest communities of India and of the world rebelled against the changes that were being imposed on them. One such rebellion which took place in the kingdom of Bastar in 1910 is worth-mentioning. The people of Bastar were worried when the colonial government proposed to reserve two-third of the forest in 1905 and stop shifting cultivation etc. They, however, tolerated for a few years, but ultimately rebelled in 1910 against the British. Bazaars were looted; the houses of officials and traders, schools and police stations were burnt and robbed. The British sent troops to suppress the rebellion and it took three months for them to regain control. However, work on reservation was temporarily suspended.

·         The story of Indonesia was the same were the colonial power were the Dutch. Java in Indonesia is where the Dutch started forest management. Like the British, they wanted timber from Java to build ships.

·         In Java, there were many communities which lived in mountains and practiced shifting cultivation. The Kalangs were a community of skilled forest cutters and shifting cultivators. They were so valuable that without their expertise the Dutch could not harvest teak. Hence, they tried to make the Kalangs work under them. The Kalangs work under them. The Kalangs resisted but finally they were suppressed.

·         The Dutch also enacted forest laws in Java, restricting villagers access to forests. Villagers were punished for grazing cattle in young stands, transporting wood without a permit, or travelling on forest roads with horse cart or cattle.

·         This enraged them. They became ready to protest under the leadership of Surontiko Samin of Randublating village, a teak forest village. Samin began questioning state ownership of the forest. He argued that the state had not created the wind, water, earth and wood, so it could not own it. Soon a widespread movement developed. The Saminists protested by lying down on their land when the Dutch came to survey it.

·         The two world wars had a major impact on forests. In India, working plans were abandoned at this time, and the forest department cut trees to meet British war needs. In Java, the Dutch destroyed sawmills burnt huge piles of giant teak logs. Soon afterwards, the Japanese began to exploit the forests recklessly for their own war industries, forcing forest villagers to cut down forests.

·         Conservation of forests has now become an important goal for governments across Asia and Africa. It has been recognised that in order to meet this goal, the people who live near the forest must be involved. They should not be kept away from forests.

Words that Matter

·         Sleepers: Wooden planks lay across railway tracks.

·         Scientific Forestry: A system of cutting trees controlled by the forest department, In which old trees are cut and new ones planted.

·         Deforestation: Disappearance of forests.

·         Shifting cultivation: It is a type of cultivation in which parts of the forests are cleared. After the trees have been cut, they are burnt to provide ashes. The seeds are then scattered in the area and left to be irrigated by the rain.

·         Criminal tribes: Pastoralist and nomadic communities were labelled as criminal tribes because they stole wood from the forests.

Dateline

·         1850s: Railways spread rapidly.

·         1856: Dietrich Brandis introduces scientific forestry in India.

·         1864: The Indian Forest Service is set up.

·         1865: The Indian Forest Act is enacted.

·         1890: Surontiko Samin of Randublating village questioned state ownership of the forest.

·         1906: The Imperial Forest Research Institute is set up.

NCERT textbooks questions solved

1. Write a few lines about

i) Shifting cultivators:

They were forcibly displaced from their homes in the forests. Some had to change occupations, while some resisted through large and small rebellions. E.g. Birsa Munda of Chhotanagpur, Siddhu and Kanu in the Santhal Parganas.

ii) Nomadic and pastoralist communities:

Grazing and hunting by nomadic and pastoralist communities were restricted. As a result, many of them like the Korava, Karacha and Yerukula of the Madras Presidency lost their livelihood. Some of them began to be called ‘criminal tribes’ and were forced to work instead in factories, mines and plantations under government supervision.

iii) Firms-trading in timber/forest produces:

The British administration gave European firms the sole right to trade in forest products. This proved to be a boon for firms trading in timber and other forest produce. They began cutting trees indiscriminately and earned good profit. Forest around the railway tracks started fast disappearing.

iv) Plantation owners:

Large areas of natural forests were cleared to make way for tea, coffee and rubber plantations to meet Europe’s growing need for these commodities. The colonial government took over the forest and gave vast areas to European planters at cheap rates. These areas were enclosed and cleared off forests and planted with tea or coffee. These planters earned huge profits by engaging with workers at low wages.

v) Kings/British officials engaged in shikar:

The British saw large animals as signs of a wild, primitive and savage society. Hence, they encouraged hunting of wild animals. They gave rewards for the killing of tigers, wolves and other large animals. As a result, kings and British officials got engaged in these activities and earned huge rewards.

2. What are the similarities between colonial management of the forests in Bastar and in Java?

The forests in Bastar were managed by the British colonial power while those in Java were managed by the Dutch colonial power. But there were many similarities in the laws for forest control in Bastar and Java.

i) Like the British, the Dutch wanted timber from Java to build ship. They restricted villagers from practising shifting cultivation and their across to forests.

ii) Both the colonial powers enacted laws in their own favour and exploited forests on a massive scale.

iii) Both imposed these laws on the villagers or the forest dwellers with great severity. The forest law deprived people of their customary rights to forest products such as roots, leaves, fruits etc. They were fined if they dared to enter the forest without permission.

iv) The policies of both the colonial powers were to severe to satisfy the villagers. As a result, the villagers became aggressive in due course. They began to view their masters as their enemies. They began to resist them through large and small rebellions.

3. Between 1880 and 1920, forest cover in the Indian subcontinent declined by 9.7 million hectares from 108.6 million hectares to 98.9 million hectares. Discuss the role of the following factors in this decline.

i) Railways:

Railways were essential for colonial trade and for the movement of imperial goods. To run locomotives wood was needed as fuel, and to lay railway lines sleepers were essential to hold the tracks together.

From the 1860s, the railway network expanded rapidly. By 1890, about 25,500 km of track had been laid. In 1946, the length of the tracks had increased to over 7, 65,000 km. As the railway tracks spread through India, a larger and larger number of trees were felled. Forests around the railway tracks started disappearing.

ii) Ship building:

Ship building was one of the most important factors that led to the depletion of forests in India. It is worth-mentioning here that the imperial power could not be protected and maintained without ships. But the fact was that oak forests in England began disappearing by the early 19^th century. This created a problem of timber supply for the Royal Navy. Now it became difficult to build English ships without regular supply of strong and durable timber. By the 1820s, search parties were sent to explore the forest resources of India. Within a decade, trees were being exported from India.

iii) Agricultural expansion:

In the early 19^th century, the colonial state thought that forests were unproductive. They were considered to be wilderness that had to be brought under cultivation so that the land could yield agricultural products and revenue and enhance the income of the state. So between 1880 and 1920, cultivated area rose by 6.7 million hectares.

iv) Commercial farming:

The British needed commercial crops like jute, sugar, wheat and cotton. The demand for these crops increased in 19^th century Europe were food grains were required to feed the growing urban population and raw materials were required for the industrial production. As a result, forests were cut on a large scale to bring land under plough.

v) Tea/Coffee plantations:

Large areas of natural forests were cleared to make way for tea, coffee and rubber plantation to meet Europe’s growing need for these commodities. The colonial government took over the forests and gave vast areas to European planters at cheap rates. These areas were enclosed and cleared of forests and planted with tea or coffee.

vi) Adivasis and other peasant users:

They also played a major role in the depletion of forests. They got everything from forest such as fuel, fodder and leaves. This badly affected the forest cover. Many Adivasis practised shifting cultivation. In this type of cultivation, parts of forest are cut and burnt in rotation. Seeds are sown in the ashes after the first monsoon rains and crop is harvested by October-November. This process was harmful for the forests. There was always a danger of forest fire.

4. Why are forests affected by wars?

i) Forests are badly affected by wars. Both the World Wars played havoc with the forests. In India, working plans were abandoned during these wars and the forest department cut trees freely to meet British war needs.

ii) In Java, just before the Japanese occupied the region, the Dutch followed a scorched earth policy, destroying saw mills and burning huge piles of giant teak logs so that they would not fall into Japanese hands.

iii) The Japanese then exploited the forests recklessly for their own war industries forcing forest dwellers to cut down forests.

iv) Many foresters and villagers used this opportunity to expand cultivation in the forest. After the war was over, it became difficult for the Indonesian forest service to get this land back.

More questions solved

I. Multiple choice questions:

Choose the correct option:

1. What per cent of the world’s total area was cleared between 1700 and 1995 for industrial uses, cultivation, pastures and fuel wood?

a) 8.5 %           b) 9.3 %           c) 11.8 %         d) 10.3 %

2. Why were forests cleared off rapidly during the colonial period?

a) To fulfil the demand of commercial crops

b) Forests were considered to be wasteland

c) To fulfil the demand of timber

d) All the above

3. How many trees were being cut annually for sleepers in 1850s in the Madras Presidency?

a) 38,000 trees            b) 35,890 trees            c) 37,990 trees           

d) 35,000 trees

4. Where was the imperial Forest Research Institute set up in 1906?

a) Dehradun   b) Bastar         c) Bangalore   d) Nagpur

5. When was the Indian Forest Act passed?

a) In 1869        b) In 1855        c) In 1865        d) In 1860

6. Which of the following is the local name of shifting cultivation in Sri Lanka?

a) Milpa          b) Chitemene              c) Chena         d) Podu

7. Over 80,000 tigers, 1, 50,000 leopards and 2, 00,000 wolves were killed for reward in the period………

a) 1815-1920      b) 1885-1995            c) 1805-1923          d) 1875-1925

8. Which new trade was created due to the introduction of new forest laws?

a) Cultivation  b) Collecting latex from wild rubber trees

c) Hunting       d) None of the above

9. Where is Bastar located?

a) Chhattisgarh          b) Andhra Pradesh      c) Orissa          d) Madhya Pradesh

10. What is Java now famous for?

a) Wheat producing Island                 b) Rice producing Island

c) Maize producing Island                  d) Tea producing Island

11. People living in forests earn money from the sale of……….

a) Mahua flowers       b) Tendu leaves         c) Timber        d) Fruits

12. Shifting cultivation is also known as………

a) Mixed cultivation                b) Primitive agriculture

c) Swidden agriculture          d) Modern cultivation

13. Which forest community are found in central India?

a) Karachas     b) Koravas       c) Banjaras      d) Baigas

14. The Kalangs belonged to

a) Bastar         b) Java                        c) Indonesia                 d) Chhattisgarh

15. The Kalangs were known for their skills in……………

a) Forest cutting        b) Giving training to forest cutting

c) Fluent speaking       d) Farming

16. The forest management in Java under the…………

a) British         b) Dutch         c) French         d) Portuguese

II. Very short answer type questions

1. Why were forests cleared off rapidly during the colonial period? Give two reasons.

i) To fulfil the demand of commercial crops.

ii) To fulfil the demands of timber.

2. What is deforestation?

The disappearance of forests is referred to as deforestation.

3. Name of the commercial crops that were in great demand in the nineteenth century Europe.

Jute, sugar, wheat and cotton.

4. How did the colonial state view forests in the early nineteenth century?

In the early 19^th century, the colonial state viewed forests as unproductive. They were considered to be wilderness that had to be brought under cultivation.

5. What are sleepers?

Sleepers are wooden planks laid across railway tracks. They hold the tracks in position.

6. What created a problem of timber supply for the Royal Navy by the early 19^th century?

By the early 19^th century, oak forests in England were disappearing. This created a problem of timber supply for the Royal Navy.

7. How was expansion of railways responsible for deforestation in India?

From the 1860s, the railway network expanded rapidly. As the railway tracks spread through India, a large and larger number of trees were felled.

8. Who was Dietrich Brandis?

Dietrich Brandis was a German forest expert whom the colonial government invited for advice and made him the first Inspector General of Forests in India.

9. What did Dietrich Brandis do after being the Inspector General of Forest in India?

He set up the Indian Forest Service in 1864 and helped formulate the Indian Forest Act in 1865.

10. What was done under scientific forestry?

Natural forests which had lots of different types of trees were cut down. In this place, one type of tree was planted in straight rows.

11. The 1878 Act divided forests into three categories. Name them.

i) Reserved                  ii) Protected                iii) Village Forests

12. What happened after the forest act was enacted?

The villagers’ hardships increased. All their everyday practices-cutting wood for their houses grazing their cattle, collecting fruits and roots, hunting and fishing became illegal.

13. What is shifting agriculture?

In shifting agriculture, a clearing is made in forest, usually on the slopes of hills. After the trees have been cut, they are burnt to provide ashes. The seeds are then scattered in the area, and left to be irrigated by the rain. Once the soil loses its fertility, the farmers shift to another forest.

14. Why were the European foresters not in favour of the continuation of shifting agriculture? Give one reason.

The European forests fell that land which was used for cultivation every few years could not grew trees for railway timber.

15. How did ban on shifting agriculture affect the concerned communities?

They were forcibly displaced from their homes in the forests. Some had to change occupations.

16. How were men and women from forest communities exploited on tea plantations in Assam?

They were given low wages. The conditions under which they worked were very bad. They could not return easily to their home villages.

17. Where is Baster located?

Baster is located in the southernmost part of Chhattisgarh and borders Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Maharashtra.

18. Name the communities living in Baster?

Maria and Muria Gonds, Dhurwas, Bhatras and Halbas.

19. What do the people of Baster think about the earth?

They think that each village was given its land by the earth, and in return, they look after the earth by making some offering at each agricultural festival.

20. Why were the people of Baster worried? Give two reasons.

i) The colonial government proposed to reserve two-third of their forests in 1905.

ii) It decided to stop shifting cultivation, hunting and collection of forest produce.

21. On what condition were some villages of baster allowed to stay on in the reserved forests?

OR Explain ‘forest villages’.

Some villages were allowed to stay on in the reserved forests on the condition that they worked free for the forest department in cutting and transporting trees, and protecting the forest from fires. Subsequently, these came to be known as ‘forest villages’.

22. Who was Gunda Dhur?

Gunda Dhur led the Baster Forest rebellion in the 1910.

23. What was the consequence of the Baster forest led by Gunda Dhur?

Work on reservation was temperory suspended on the area to be reserved was reduced to roughly half of that planned before 1910.

24. Who started forest management in Java?

The Dutch started forest management in Java.

25. What is Java famous for?

Java is famous for bumper rice production.

26. Which forest community is found is central India?

Baigas are found in central India.

27. What were the Kalangs known for?

The Kalangs were known for their skills in forest cutting.

28. What was ‘a scorched earth’ policy?

It was a policy followed by the Dutch during the First World War. Under this policy the Dutch destroyed saw mills, and burnt huge piles of giant teak logs so that they would not fall into Japanese hands.

III. Short answer type questions:

1. What were the reason for the expansion of cultivation in the colonial period? Explain any two.

In the colonial period, cultivation expanded rapidly for a variety of reasons of which two are given below:

i) The British directly encouraged the production of commercial crops like jute, sugar, wheat and cotton. The demand for these crops increased in 19^th century Europe were food grains were needed to feed the growing urban population and raw materials were required for industrial production.

ii) In the early 19^th century the colonial state thought that forests were unproductive. They were considered to be wilderness that had to be brought under cultivation so that the land could yield agricultural products and revenue and enhance the income of the state.

2. For what purpose did the British invite Dietrich Brandis, a German expert? What did he do to manage the forests of India?

i) The British needed forests in order to build ships and railways. They were worried about the use of forests by local people and the reckless felling of trees by traders would destroy forests. So, they invited a German expert, Dietrich Brandis for advice and made him the first Inspector General of Forests in India.

ii) Brandis realised that a proper system had to be introduced to manage the forests and people had to be trained in the science of conservation. Hence, he set up the Indian Forest Service in 1864 and helped formulate the Indian Forest Act of 1865.

iii) Soon after the enactment of this Act, felling of trees and grazing began to be restricted in order to preserve the forests for timber production. It was made punishable to cut trees without following the system.

3. What were the provisions of the Indian Forest Act of 1878?

i) As per this Act forests were divided into three categories- reserved, protected and village forests.

ii) The best forests were called ‘reserved forests’. Villagers could not take anything from these forests, even for their own use. For house building or fuel, they could take wood from protected or village forests.

4. How do people in forest areas make use of forest products?

Or

How are forest products useful for the forest people?

i) Forest products such as roots, leaves, fruits and tubers are very useful things for the people living in the forest areas. Fruits and tubers are nutritious to eat.

ii) Herbs are used for medicine, wood for agricultural implements like yokes and ploughs; bamboo makes excellent fences and is also used to make baskets and umbrellas.

 iii) A dried scooped-out gourd can be used as a portable water bottle.

iv) Leaves of different trees can be stitched together to make disposable plates and cups, the siadi creeper can be used to make ropes and the thorny bars of the semur tree is used to grate vegetables.

v) Oil for cooking and to light lamps can be pressed from the fruit of the mahua tree.

5. What happened after the enactment of the Forest Act?

Or

How did the Forest Act affect the life of the villagers across the country?

i) The enactment of the Forest Act gave way to a very difficult life for the villagers. All their routine practices such as cutting wood for their houses, grazing their cattle, collecting fruits and roots, hunting and fishing became illegal.

ii) People were now forced to steal wood from the forests and if they were caught, they were at the mercy of the forests guards who would take bribes from them.

iii) Women who collected fuel wood were especially worried. Police constables and forest guards used to harass people by demanding free food from them.

6. Explain why European foresters regarded the practice of shifting cultivation as harmful for the forests.

Or

How did European foresters view the practice of shifting cultivation?

Or

Why did the colonial government decide to ban shifting cultivation?

i) European foresters needed forest for timber production. They felt that land which was used for shifting cultivation every few years could not grow trees for railway timber.

ii) When a forest was burnt, there was the added danger of the flames spreading and burning valuable timber.

iii) Shifting cultivation also made it difficult for the government to calculate taxes. Therefore, the government decided to ban shifting cultivation. As a result, many communities were forcibly displaced from their homes in the forests.

7. The people of Bastar speak different languages but share common customs and beliefs. Explain.

i) It is the common belief among the people of Bastar that each village was given its land by the earth and I return, they look after the earth by making some offering at each agricultural festival.

ii) In addition to the earth, they show respect to the spirit of the river, the forest and the mountain. Since each village knows where its boundaries lie, the local people look after all the natural resources within that boundary.

iii) If people from a village want to take some wood from the forests of another village, they pay a small fee in exchange.

iv) Some villages also protect their forests by engaging watchmen and each household contributes some grain to pay them.

8. What was the Blendongdiesten system?

Like the British, the Dutch wanted timber from Java for ship building and railways. In 1882, 2, 80,000 sleepers were exported from Java alone. However, all this required labour to cut the trees, transport the logs and prepare the sleepers. The Dutch first imposed rents on land being cultivated in the forest and then exempted some villagers from this rents if they worked collectively to provide free labour and buffaloes for cutting and transporting timber. This was known as the Blendongdiesten system.

9. What was Surontiko Samin’s opinion about state ownership of the forest? How did the Saminists protest against the Dutch?

Surontiko Samin argued that the state had not created the wind, water, earth and wood so it could not own it. Soon widespread movement developed. Samin’s son-in-law were among those who helped organise this movement. By 1907, 3,000 families were following his ideas.

The Saminists protested against the Dutch in their own way. They lau down on their land when the Dutch came to survey it, while others refused to pay taxes or fines or perform labour.

10. Write a short note on shifting cultivation.

i) Shifting cultivation is a traditional agricultural practice in many parts of Asia, Africa and South America. In shifting cultivation, parts of the forest are cut and burnt in rotation.

ii) Seeds are sown in the ashes after the first monsoon rains, and the crop is harvested by October-November.

iii) Such plots are cultivated for a couple of years and then left fallow for 12 to 18 years for the forest to grow back.

iv) A mixture of crops is grown on these plots. It has many local names such as lading in Southeast Asia, milpa in Central America, chitemene or tavy in Africa and chena in Sri Lanka.

v) In India, dhya, penda, bewar, nevad, jhum, podu, khandad and kumri are some of the local terms for shifting agriculture.

11. Who were called the criminal tribes and what activities they got involved into?

i) Nomadic and pastoralist communities who were caught stealing wood were called the Criminal tribes.

ii) Due to the changes brought in by forest management, nomadic and pastoralist communities could not cut wood, graze cattle, collect fruits and roots and hunt or fish. All this was made illegal.

iii) As a result, they started stealing the wood, bribing the forest guards to allow them to hunt, collect wood or graze their animals.

12. How did the villagers and foresters differ in the ideas of a good forest?

i) After the Forest Act was enacted in 1865, the forest department wanted trees which were suitable for building ships or railways. They needed trees that could provide hard wood and were tall and straight. So particular species like teak and sal were promoted and others were cut.

ii) The villagers on the other hand wanted forests with a mixture of species to satisfy different needs- fuel, fodder and leaves.

13. What are the new developments in forestry?

Since the 1980s conservation of forests has become am important goal rather than collecting timber. The government has recognised that in order to meet this goal, the people who live near the forests must be involved. In many cases, across India, from Mizoram to Kerala, dense forests have survived only because villages protected them in sacred groves known as sarnas, devarakudu, kan, rai etc. Some villages have been patrolling their own forests, with each household taking it in turns, instead of leaving it to the forest guards. Forest officials surveyed the forests, estimated the area under different types of trees and made working plans for forest management.

IV. Long answer type questions:

1. What is deforestation? Mention the causes of deforestation in India during the colonial period.

The disappearance of forests is referred to as deforestation. Deforestation is not a recent problem. It started many centuries ago. During the colonial period deforestation was more systematic and extensive. This problem occurred due to the following reasons:

i) Expansion of cultivation: As population increased over the centuries and the demand for food went up peasants extended the boundaries of cultivation by clearing forests. In the colonial period, cultivation expanded rapidly. The British encouraged the production of commercial crops like jute, sugarcane, wheat and cotton. The demand for these crops increased in 19^th century Europe where food grains were needed to feed the growing urban population and raw materials were required for industrial production. Thus, the expansion of cultivation resulted in the shrinkage of the forest cover.

ii) Increased demand for timber: The British wanted strong and durable timber for ship building and railways. By the early 19^th century, Oak forests in England were disappearing. This created a problem of timber supply for the Royal Navy. By the 1820s search parties were therefore sent to explore the forest resources of India. Within a decade, trees were being felled on a massive scale and vast quantities of timber were being exported from India.

From the 1860s the railway network increased rapidly. By 1890 about 25,000 km of track had been laid. In 1946 the length of the tracks had increased to over 7, 65,000 km. As the railway tracks spread through India, a larger and larger number of trees were failed. As a result, forests around the railway tracks fast started disappearing.

iii) Europe’s growing need for plantation crops: This also became a major factor for deforestation in India. Large areas of natural forests were cleared to make way for tea, coffee and rubber plantation to meet Europe’s growing need for these communities. The colonial government took over the forests and gave vast areas to European planters at cheap rates. These areas were enclosed and cleared of forests and planted with tea or coffee.

2. Describe the rebellion which took place in the kingdom of Bastar in 1910. How was it suppressed? What were its consequences?

The people of Bastar were already worried due to the severe forest policies of the colonial government. In 1905, when the colonial government proposed to reserve two-thirds of the forest, they were deeply shocked. For long, they had been suffering from increased land rents and frequent demands for free labour and goods by colonial officials. Then they were caught in the grip of the terrible famines in 1899-1900 and again in 1907-08. Reservations proved to be the last straw.

People began to gather and discuss these issues in their village councils, in bazaars and at festivals or wherever the headmen and priests of several villages were assembled. The initiative was taken by the Dhurwas of the Kanger forest, where reservation first took place. Although there was no single leader, many people speak of Gunda Dhur, from village Nethanar, as an important figure in the movement.

In 1910, mango boughs, a lump of earth, chillies and arrow, began circulating between villages. These were actually messages inviting villagers to rebel against the British. Every village contributed something to the rebellion expenses. Bazaars were looted, the houses of officials and traders, schools and police stations were burnt and robbed and grain redistributed.

The British sent troops to suppress the rebellion. The Adivasi leaders tried to negotiate but the British surrounded their camps and fired upon them. After that they marched through the villages flogging and punishing those who had taken part in the rebellion. Most villages were deserted as people fled into the jungles. It took three months for the British to regain control. However, they never managed to capture Gunda Dhur.

Although the rebellion was suppressed, it was not without consequence. Work on reservation was temporarily suspended and the area to be reserved was reduced to roughly half of that planned before 1910. It was a major victory for the rebels.

3. Write short notes on the following:

i) Scientific forestry: In scientific forestry natural forests which had lots of different types of trees were cut down. In their place, one type of tree was planted in straight rows. This is called a plantation. Forest officials surveyed the forests, estimated the area under different types of trees and made working plans for the forest management. They planned how much of the plantation area to be cut every year. The area cut was then to be replanted so that it was ready to be cut again in some years.

ii) The Kelangs of Java: The Kelangs of Java were a community of skilled forest cutters and shifting cultivators. They were so valuable that in 1755 when the Mataram kingdom of Java split, the 6000 Kalang families were equally divided between the two kingdoms. Without their expertise, it would have been difficult to harvest teak and for the kings to build their palaces. When the Dutch began to gain control over the forests in the 18^th century they tried to make the Kalangs work under them. In 1770, the Kalangs resisted by attacking a Dutch fort at Joana, but the uprising was successfully suppressed.

1. How can we conserve forests? Explain with three examples.

Forests are valuable assets for any nation. They provide a variety of things to us. They bring rain and check soil erosion. They provide shelter to a number of birds and animals. Hence, their conservation is important. We can take the following steps in this regards:

i) Indiscriminate cutting of trees should be checked.

ii) A forestation should be encouraged.

iii) Rapid growth of population should be controlled.

2. A number of different communities live in Bastar such as Maria and Maria Gonds, Dhurwas, Bhatras and Halbas. Give any three values which can be reflected from these communities.

These communities speak different languages but share common customs and beliefs. Three values which they reflect are:

i) Fraternity

ii) Solidarity

iii) Respect for one another

These values bind them together and create an atmosphere of security around them.

3. Give three values reflected from Surontiko Samin’s challenge to the Dutch.

When the Dutch enacted forest laws in Java and restricted villager’s access to forests, Surontiko Samin could not remain silent. He began questioning state ownership of the forest. He, with the help of his followers including his son-in-law started a movement to restrict the Dutch, who were taking root in Java. Three values which are reflected from Samin’s  challenge are:

i) Team work

ii) Patriotism

iii) National-integration