Contribution of Forestry to Poverty Alleviation - APFNet

The real challenge in Kuanrpur village is how to overcome the institutional failure in providing a venue
for people to organize themselves for collective community action. Due to multi-pronged disadvantages,
communities are not able to come together and fight for their rights, entitlements, and access to resources
in a meaningful and effective way. The government, especially the forest department, should facilitate
in institutionalizing community-based forest management in the village. In the short term, it could be
through re-organizing the currently defunct JFM structure. There is also a compelling need to start
building the capacity and awareness of, as well as trust among, the communities. Dibakar Mohapatra,
field manager of the newly-formed Marshal Cooperative concludes:
Community-owned organizations like cooperatives have high potential for ensuring
that NWFPs do not remain just a safety net but become a climbing rope for the poor to
come out of poverty. The Orissa Panchayat NWFP Act of 2001 allowed 67 NWFP items
free for collection by people. The time is ripe now to make this right become the prime
mover for strengthening community level trade channels, processing, value addition, and
marketing.
Conclusion
NWFPs are critical safety nets for the families of Kuanrpur village, though the extent of dependency
varies for the poor and relatively well-off families. Poor households depend more on NWFPs for cash
income to meet their needs including housing, children’s education, nutrition, health, and spiritual.
Forests in general and NWFP in particular help reduce poverty and provide livelihoods. NWFPs
are a natural safety net, especially when there is a bad crop due to rainfall fluctuation. But despite
this significant contribution to poor people’s daily lives, NWFP has yet to become a predictable and
sustainable income source for the poor. Institutional weaknesses lead to uneven market mechanisms
that benefit intermediaries and traders and siphon off the larger share of the value chain while the
poor continue to remain poor. Community-based organizations that can collectively trade the forest
produce can increase the returns from NWFP for the benefit of the poor. Government and nongovernment
organizations must endeavor to promote such community-based organizations and
enable establishment of proper infrastructure such as processing machines and storage facilities.
Commercial NWFP in Kuanrpur has great potential for alleviating poverty, but it has to be given
more support and focus with enabling interventions.
Case Study 3: Impacts of Ecotourism on Tribals in a Forest Village
in Kerala State
The Athirapally waterfall along Chalakudy River is the most well-known waterfall in Kerala state.
Popularly called the “Indian Niagara,” the scenic surroundings, lush green forests, and the sight of the
mighty river falling from a height of 80 feet make it a ‘hotspot’ for tourists. The surrounding forests
of Vazhachal area constitute one of the richest biodiversity areas in India 22 . The river and the forests
form a unique ecosystem of very high biodiversity value. The Vazhachal Tribal Settlement near the
ecotourism spot is inhabited entirely by the Kadar tribe. The Vazhachal settlement is made up of 52
households (total population of 164 people), all below the poverty line. Literacy rate is only 35% and
other HDI parameters are low compared to those of the non-tribal population. The Kadar tribe is one
of the forest dwelling non-agrarian tribes of Kerala and the Western Gahts who used to be nomadic
but who now live in settlements inside the forests. They do not practice agriculture or livestock-rearing
and are dependent on forests and the river for practically all their needs. Geetha, a young Kadar tribal
girl, relates,
The water and surrounding forests is our lifeline. The waterfall, the river, and the forests
provide livelihoods for all the people living here, without destroying the forests.
22 There are 24 endemic species of flowering plants of the Western Ghats (one of the biodiversity hotspots of
India) of which 10 are rare and endangered. The Chalakudy River supports 85 species of fresh water fish,
and 35 species are endemic and nine are endangered.
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