Tendu collection process a reason behind forest fires in Maharashtra: Study

 

 

 

 

Tendu leaf collection practice caused significant climate impact and tendu-producing areas appear to have a very high susceptibility to forest fires in Maharashtra, claimed a study conducted by the International Forum For Environment, Sustainability and Technology (iFOREST). According to the findings of the study, forest area was burnt due to tendu-linked forest fires during 2011-2021 in around 4,767 sq km, almost one-third of the Maharashtra’s total forest fire area during the period. It claimed that in 2021, the tendu-linked fires were estimated to have contributed nearly 3.9 million metric tonne in carbon emissions, an equivalent to the annual emissions contribution of nearly 1.6 million cars. iFOREST with the help of satellite data gathered from NASA and ISRO, conducted the study to build an inquiry into forest fires focusing specifically on the practice of tendu leaf collection in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Odisha. These three States collectively account for 35% of the tendu collection in India, home to 36% of forest fires in the last fire season.

 

The study also mentioned that in Maharashtra, around 2.8 lakh standard bags (SBs) of tendu had been collected in 2021-22 which generated a revenue of Rs 72.5 crore. IFOREST surveyed around 385 tendu-collecting households in seven villages in Chandrapur district to find that the average earning of tendu-dependent households was around Rs 8,000 for 13 days of collection. Over 40% of Maharashtra forest area is extremely to moderately fire-prone. Meanwhile, 34,025 forest fires were recorded in the state during the last forest fire season (November 2020-June 2021), which was about 10% of India’s total, claimed the study. Viewed in the context of the growing forest fire incidences, the need to tackle the threat of Non Timber Forest Products (NTFP) related forest fires becomes imminent, the study suggested.

 

“To mitigate the threat of forest fires is to develop an environment for sustainable NTFP collection and phase out existing fire-linked practices of tendu and mahua collection,” stated the study. iFOREST released findings of the study during a programme held at Hotel Pride, Wardha Road, on Wednesday. Mandvi Singh, Programme Director, Energy and Climate Change, iFOREST presided over the event. Dilip Gode, Executive Director, Vidarbha Nature Conservation Society (VNCS) and Jayant Kulkarni, Director Conservation, Wildlife Research and Conservation Society were the keynote speakers of the event. Mandar Pingle, Deputy Director, Satpuda Foundation; Suresh Chopane, President, Green Planet Society; Satyajit Jena, Senior Programme Manager, Foundation For Ecological Security; and Sawan Bahekar, President, SEWA were the panelists.