Joint Forest Management (JFM) is now a principal forest management strategy in India. The government views JFM as a pivotal strategy for addressing the national policy goal of achieving 33% forest cover by 2012. JFM represents one model of community based forestry in which the state engages with communities with forestry. Though the current JFM model is weighted in favour of State Forest Department control over planning, management, investment, harvesting and marketing. This book is an attempt to understand the evolution and introduction of the JFM principles and concepts of JFM. The combine influence of historical, social, economic, cultural and ecological factors along-with policy impacts in people’s participation in managing forest is illustrated by taking case of North West Himalayas. Over the past several decades, the focus in forestry has shifted towards forest protection and conservation and JFM represents a key policy thrusts in India. JFM is continued to be evolved as the experiences from different states across India are informing the process of JFM implementation so that policy and guidelines to improve the program are revised by the Central and State Governments regularly. The process approach is being followed so that forests are managed sustainably with people’s involvement in forestry programmes to improve the livelihoods of forest dependent people’s and reduced poverty. The studies have demonstrated that the potential economic benefits from improved forest productivity and policy reforms in favour of JFM are huge, both for people and government.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Hemant Kumar Gupta
Hemant K. Gupta was awarded Ph.D. in 2000 by university of Aberdeen, UK, Where he was a Common wealth Scholar between (1995-99), for his thesis entitled "A study of factors influencing participation in the Northwest Himalayas, India" Now it is published as a book with some editions. He is an officer of the Indian Forest Service belonging to the Himachal Pradesg cadre. He has played a key role in introducing JFM and community based approaches in the Northwest Himalays. Dr. Gupta has been associated with the formulation and implementation of rural livelihoods and watershed development projects and was involved in the forest sector reforms in Himachal Pradesh. Currently, he is regional Director, Forest Survey of India, North Zone, Shimla an organization under Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India. His assignment involves organizing field work for forest inventory and tress outside forests (rural & urban) across the northern states of India. His research interests includes trans-disciplinary approach by integrating ecological and social surveys using remote Sensing, GIS & field surveys structures questionnaires, PRA, contribute towards scientific knowledge of forest inventory and thus supports implementation of forest based sustainable livelihood programs. Dr. Gupta is a member of many professional and research organizations. he is a Deputy Coordinator for Ecological Economics in Forestry, a research group of International union of forestry research organization (IUFRO). He is a member of governing council of Commonwealth Forestry Association since 2004, International Society of Ecological Economics (ISEE), International association of study of common property (IASCP), International Society of tropical Foresters, Indian Society of ecological Economics (INSEE), Indian Society of Agro-forestry, Jhansi, Range management Society of India, Indian Society of tree Scientists, Nauni, Solan, Himachal Pradesh etc.
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