CH- FOREST AND WILDLIFE RESOURCES

QUESTION- ANSWERS
Question 1. Describe the steps taken by the government to protect the species from becoming extinct.
Answer: The following are the steps taken by the government to protect the species from being extinct.
1. Implementation of Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act in 1972. According to it a list of protected
species in India was published to protect the endangered species.
2. Hunting and trade in wildlife has been banned to give legal protection to their habitat.
3. Various national parks and wildlife sanctuaries have been established to give natural habitat to
the species facing extinction.
Question 2. How are forests classified under different categories? Explain with examples.
Answer: Forests are classified under different categories as follows:
1. Reserved forests: More than half of the total forest land has been declared as reserved forests.
They conserve forest and wildlife resources and are regarded as the most valuable. .
2. Protected forests: As declared by the Forest Department, one-third of the total forest area is
declared as protected forests. They are protected from any further depletion.
3. Unclassed forests: They are forests and wastelands belonging both to the government and
private individuals and communities.
Question 3. How has the destruction of forests and wildlife resulted into the loss of cultural diversity?
Explain.
Answer: The destruction of forests and wildlife resulted into the loss of cultural diversity in the following
ways:
1. The destruction of forests and wildlife has affected the liveliood of many communities, who are
dependent on forests.
2. In some areas women are involved in fuel collection, fodder for their animals and water for their
domestic needs. Due to deforestation these products are not available to them. It adversely
affects the lives of such people.
3. The destruction of forests has resulted in severe droughts and floods, which has affected forest-
dependent communities. People live in extreme poverty.
The conservation of forests and wildlife is essential to provide a better quality of life.
Question 4. When was the Indian Wildlife Protection Act implemented? Describe its main objectives.
Answer: The Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act was implemented in 1972 for protecting habitats. An all-
India list of protected animals was also published.
Its main objectives are as follows.
1. To protect the remaining population of certain endangered species by banning hunting, giving
legal protection to their habitats and stopping trade in wildlife.
2. The central and state governments established national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.
3. The central government also announced various projects like Project Tiger and Project Rhino for
protecting specific animals, which were gravely threatened.
Question 5. Nature worship is an old-age belief. Explain how it has helped in the conservation of forest
and wildlife.
Answer: Nature worship has helped in the conservation of forest and wildlife in the following ways.
 1. The tribals believe in nature worship, which is based on the fact that all creations of nature have
to be protected. Such beliefs have protected several forests from decay, cutting and felling of
trees. They are called Sacred Groves. Sacred qualities are also ascribed to mountains, springs
and plants.
2. Certain communities revere a particular tree like Mundas and Santhal of Chhota Nagpur region
worship mahua and kadamba trees respectively.
3. The tribals of Bihar and Odisha worship the tamarind and mango trees respectively during
weddings.
Question 6. Distinguish between endangered species and vulnerable species of wild animals. Give one
example of each.
Answer: Endangered species: Endangered species are the species which are in danger of extinction. If
the negative factors, which have caused their decline, continue to operate, then survival of such species
is difficult. For example, blackbuck. Vulnerable species: Vulnerable Species are the species whose
population has declined so much that they may move into the category of endangered species in the
near future, if the negative factors continue to operate. For example, blue sheep.
Question 7. Evaluate the role of large-scale development projects in accelerating the loss of forests in
India.
Answer: Large-scale development projects have contributed to the loss of forests:
1. Since 1951, over 5000 sq km of forests have been cleared for river valley projects.
2. Clearing of forests for Narmada Sagar Project would inundate 40,000 hectares of forest.
3. Multi-purpose projects have also led to social movements like Narmada Bachao Andolan and
Tehri Dam Andolan, whose original focus was on the trees that would be submerged under dam
water.
Question 8. Distinguish between rare species and vulnerable species of animals with examples.
Answer: Rare species: Rare species have a small population and can move into endangered or
vulnerable category, if the negative factors affecting them continue to exist, For example, Asiatic
buffalo.
Vulnerable species: Vulnerable Species are the species whose population has declined so much that they
may move into the category of endangered species in the near future, if the negative factors continue to
operate, for example, blue sheep.
Question 9. Evaluate the role of large-scale developmental projects in accelerating the loss of forests in
India.
Answer: Large-scale developmental projects have contributed significantly to the loss of forests.
1. Since 1951, over 5,000 sq km of forests were cleared for river valley projects.
2. Clearing of forests is still continuing because of new projects like the Narmada Sagar Project in
Madhya Pradesh.
3. Mining activities are also disturbing the national habitats of major species, who live in forests.
Question 10. Distinguish between rare species and endemic species. Give one example of each category.
Answer: Rare species: Rare species have a small population and can move into the category of
endangered or vulnerable species, if the negative factors affecting them continue to exit. For example:
Asiatic buffalo.
Endemic species: Endemic species are only found in certain areas, which are isolated by geographical or
natural barriers. For example: Nicobar pigeon.
Question 11. Why do we need to conserve our forests and wildlife? Explain any two steps taken by the
government to protect forest and wildlife resources.
Answer: We need to conserve our forests and wildlife because of the following reasons:
1. Conservation preserves the ecological biodiversity and our life support systems—water, air and soil.
2. It also preserves the genetic diversity of plants and animals for better growth of species and
breeding.
3. If protection is not given then many plants and animals can move into the categories of vulnerable
and endangered species.
To protect forests and wildlife resources the government has taken the following steps:
1. Central and state governments established natural parks and wildlife sanctuaries. They also
took up projects like Project Tiger.
2. In 1972, the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act was implemented, with various provisions of
protecting habitats.
3. Steps have been taken to protect the remaining population of certain endangered species by
banning hunting, giving legal protection to their habits and restricting trade in wildlife.
Question 12. Analyse the involvement of different traditional communities to conserve their own
natural habitats in India.
Answer: Conservation strategies are not new to India. Local communities have been struggling to
conserve their natural habitat. In Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan, villagers have fought against mining
by citing Wildlife Protection Act. They themselves protect their habitats. Villagers in Alwar district of
Rajasthan have declared 1,200 hectare of forest as Bhairodev Dakav Sonchuri and do not allow hunting.
The famous Chipko Movement in Himalayas is the result of community participation in protecting their
habitat.
Question 13. How have human activities affected the depletion of flora and fauna? Explain with three
examples.
Answer: The following points sum up the role of human activities in the depletion of flora and fauna.
1. People directly or indirectly collect wood, barks, leaves, rubber, medicines, dyes, fuel, fodder,
manure, etc. For them forests are resource-obtaining areas.
2. Mining has contributed largely to the depletion of flora and fauna.
3. Development projects also have played an important role in the depletion of flora and fauna.
4. Effluents from the industries make the soil degradable.
Question 14. Enumerate the features of Joint Forest Management Programme.
Answer: The following are the features of Joint Forest Management Programme, which came into
existence in 1988.
1. Formation of local or village institutions, that undertake activities on degraded forest land,
managed by the forest department.
2. Local communities involved in the management and restoration of degraded forests.
3. Intermediary benefits like non-timber forest produce and the share in the timber harvested
given to the members of the communities in return.
Question 15. Describe the methods of forest conservation.
Answer: The forests can be conserved by the following ways.
1. The cutting of trees in the forests must be stopped.
2. Afforestation or special programmes like Vana Mahotsava should be launched on grand scale.
3. Forest conservation Act 1980 should be strictly implemented to check deforestation
Question 16. Write a brief note on ‘Project Tiger’.
Answer: Project Tiger’ was one of the well-published wildlife campaigns in the world, launched in 1973.
Initially it has shown an increase in tiger population till 1989 but in 1993 the tiger population had
dropped. There are 27 tiger reserves in India covering an area of 37,761 sq km. Tiger conservation has
been viewed not only as an effort to save an endangered species but with equal importance as a means
of preserving biotypes of sizeable magnitude. Corbett National Park, (Uttarakhand), Sundarbans
National Park (West Bengal), Bandhavgarh National Park (Madhya Pradesh), Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary
(Rajasthan), Manas Tiger Reserve (Assam) and Periyar Tiger Reserve (Kerala) are some of the tiger
reserves in India.
Question 17. How is biological loss of forest and wildlife correlated with loss of cultural diversity?
Answer: Biological loss of forest and wildlife correlated with loss of cultural diversity in the following
ways:
1. Destruction of forests and wildlife has affected the livelihood of many communities which are
directly dependent on forests.
2. They depend on forests for their food, medicine, water, livelihood and cultural traits.
3. In certain societies, women are involved in fuel collection, fodder for animals and water for their
basic needs. Due to large-scale deforestation these forest products are not available to them
and the life of these people, especially women, is largely affected.
4. Women have to go in search of food, water and fuel over long distances leaving their family for
a long time resulting in social tensions.
5. It has resulted in severe droughts and floods which has affected these communities adversely.
These people live in extreme poverty, which is the direct result of the environmental
degradation. Conservation of forests and wildlife is essential to provide better quality of life and
environment.
Question 18. Analyse any four reasons for the depletion of forest resources in India
Answer: The following are the four reasons for the depletion of forest resources in India:
1. Large-scale development projects have contributed to the loss of forest. Since 1951, 5000 sq km
of forest was cleared for river valley projects.
2. Agricultural expansion has been one of the major causes of depletion of forest resources.
According to the Forest Survey of India, between 1951 and 1980, over 26,200 sq km of forest
area was converted into agricultural land.
3. A large part of the tribal belts in north-eastern and central India have been deforested or
degraded because of shifting cultivation, a type of slash and burn agriculture.
4. Rapid urbanization and industrialization have led to clearing of forests