Agroforestry and its socio-economic impact

Agroforestry in India has been practiced since ancient times. Trees, bamboo fodder, grass, herbs etc have been grown by farmers for meeting their small timber and other needs like fuelwood, seeds, fruits, medicinal plants, house construction and the like besides giving additional income.

Presently most of the agroforestry practices are commerce-driven mainly catering to industrial needs like rubber, pulp, paper, plywood and other engineered wood, handicraft and toy making and construction industries. This is commonly seen in UP, Punjab, Haryana, MP, Odisha, Tamilnadu, Tripura, Assam Andhra, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala, Gujarat and Maharashtra. These states have got medium to large scale industries of the above kind which have pushed farmers to grow fast-growing splings like Euca, Poplar, Rubber, Acacia, Pines, Silver oak, subabool, Melia, mango, teak, paulownia, sandalwood etc. Most of these trees are fast-growing and hence are found ideal for the agroforestry sector where farmers want additional income.

There are two distinct types of agroforestry practicing farmers viz the small and marginal farmers (who practice singular or linear agroforestry on their bunds and backyards either as a pure crop or intermixed) and the big landholders, including absentee landlords who have got a vast swath of unproductive and degraded agriculture land which is diverted for tree cultivation as it is much more economical than leaving such lands fallow and prone to encroachment. This category of farmers raise block commercial tree plantations of fast-growing species and generally tie-up with the above-mentioned industries as raw material suppliers. Such plantation growers get a lot of support, both technical and financial from end-users as above. Both the categories of the farmers have benefitted significantly due to the adoption of properly guided and well-steered agroforestry policies and practices of govt as well as industries.

It is generally seen that additional income of Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 per ton is the gross income from these plantations adding substantial income to these farmers. The economic impact of these plantations has been seen by the author throughout the country. This has resulted in better housing, education and meeting other aspirational needs of such farmers. The general better living standard including improved nutrition and health is a common observation as accepted by the farmers themselves.

In many areas infrastructure in terms of schools, roads and lighting have also improved thanks to CSR initiatives taken by the end-user industries. In many states, fast-growing trees are planted at the birth of the child and they come in handy during the wedding or higher education needs of the children. The transformation of villages after villages thanks to rubber plantations in NE and Kerala are just one such example.

Besides improving socio-economic conditions, agroforestry has also brought about revolutionary changes in the mindset and knowledge of rural people who are exposed to new technologies and market dynamics, banking system and other interrelated disciplines, useful for their other vocations and professions besides adding to their traditional agriculture and soil knowledge.

But there are a lot of problems and challenges too.

Thanks to a constant push by govt and industries, agroforestry has been adopted enthusiastically by millions of farmers, resulting in a glut of their produce. On the other hand, not many wood-based industries have come up during the same time. Also due to many reasons, the agro wood market goes through cyclic higher and lower swings and uncertainties both in the minds of farmers and the industries. Then there are infrastructure, taxation and regulatory issues that are becoming major hurdles for the systematic growth of Agroforestry. These have caused adverse socioeconomic impacts and must be resolved quickly by all stakeholders, particularly govt and industries.

Environmental impact is another area that needs to be critically examined. With almost 80% of India’s wood requirements being met by trees outside forests, it is about time the glaring gaps in policy, market and regulations in the agroforestry sector are attended in a time-bound manner. This would also help India in reaching its climate goals pledged in Paris.

(The writer is a former PCCF and Head of Forest Force, Karnataka)

Check out latest DH videos here