Ch 04 - Forest Society and Colonialism9th History
The Global Scale of Deforestation (1700-1995)
What was the scale of global deforestation between 1700 and 1995, and what were its primary drivers?
What was the scale of global deforestation between 1700 and 1995, and what were its primary drivers?
Scale of Global Deforestation
- Area Cleared: An estimated 13.9 million square kilometers of forest were cleared between 1700 and 1995.
- Percentage: This massive clearance represents 9.3 percent of the world's total land area.
- Drivers: The primary reasons for this deforestation were industrial uses, agricultural cultivation, the creation of pastures, and the extraction of fuelwood.
Prism Memory Hook
13.9 Million Sq Km equals 9.3 Percent
The Colonial Perspective on Indian Forests
Why did the British colonial state in the early 19th century fundamentally consider Indian forests to be 'unproductive'?
Why did the British colonial state in the early 19th century fundamentally consider Indian forests to be 'unproductive'?
The Commercial View of Wilderness
- The Perspective: The colonial state viewed uncultivated forests as mere 'wilderness' that yielded no direct commercial profit or agricultural tax revenue.
- The Objective: They believed these forests had to be aggressively cleared and brought under cultivation.
- The Benefit: Expanding cultivation would simultaneously increase the production of agricultural cash crops and boost land revenue, thereby maximizing the income of the colonial state.
Prism Memory Hook
A premium mnemonic for this topic is available in the Prism App.
The Rapid Expansion of Cultivation (1880-1920)
By how much did the cultivated area in India expand between 1880 and 1920, and what drove this expansion?
By how much did the cultivated area in India expand between 1880 and 1920, and what drove this expansion?
Agricultural Expansion at the Cost of Forests
- The Increase: The cultivated land area in India rose by 6.7 million hectares between 1880 and 1920.
- The Driver: The British colonial government actively encouraged the expansion of agriculture because they viewed uncultivated forest land as unproductive.
- The Consequence: This rapid expansion of cultivated land came directly at the cost of extensive, indiscriminate deforestation across the subcontinent.
Prism Memory Hook
6.7 Million Hectares
Also in this chapter
26 more cards to study in Prism
- 4The Impact of English Oak Depletion
- 5The Railway Demand and 'Sleepers'
- 6The Rise of Commercial Plantations
- 7Dietrich Brandis and the IFS
- 8The Imperial Forest Research Institute
- 9The System of 'Scientific Forestry'
- 10The Classifications of the 1878 Forest Act
- 11Indigenous Utility: Mahua and Siadi
- 12Global Terminology for Shifting Cultivation
- 13The Colonial Ban on Shifting Cultivation
- 14Colonial 'Shikar' and Ecological Devastation
- 15The Geography of Bastar
- 16The Spiritual Ecology of Bastar
- 17The Preservation of Sacred Groves
- 18Indigenous Resource Exchange in Bastar
- 19The Famines Preceding the Bastar Rebellion
- 20The Trigger for the Bastar Rebellion (1910)
- 21The Leadership of Gunda Dhur
- 22The Kalangs of Java and the Mataram Split
- 23The Dutch 'Blandongdiensten' System
- 24The Saminist Challenge to State Ownership
- 25The Dutch 'Scorched Earth' Policy in Java
- 26The Impact of World Wars on Indian Forestry
- 27Post-Independence Conflict: State vs. Forest Dwellers
- 28Case Study: The Bastar Pine Controversy (1970s)
- 29The Paradigm Shift in Global Forestry (Late 20th Century)
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9th History
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