The montane closed evergreen forests found at altitudes above 1,800 m in the Western Ghats of India possess a distinct vegetation type and are called shola forests. Despite the fact that these forests are located in relatively inaccessible areas, they are still under anthropogenic pressure leading to continued habitat degradation and loss of biomass and biodiversity. A case study was conducted in Mananvan shola, the largest shola forest in Kerala of Western Ghats, to recognize the impact of disturbance on vegetation structure, composition and regeneration pattern, to identify the socio-economic reasons for disturbance and to evolve strategies for its management. In the disturbed part of the forest, dominance of light demanding species in tree, shrub and herb communities has been recorded. Here even the dominance of exotic species in tree seedling, shrub and herb communities is prominent. Skewed girth class distribution of tree community with poor representation by the individuals of girth class 30.1 to 90.0 cm, is also an indication of the collection of small wood and poles from the forest. The RISQ (Ramakrishnan Index of Stand Quality) in the disturbed area of the forest is above 2.0 as against near to 1.0 in relatively undisturbed forest stands suggesting that the disturbance is intensive and thus natural recovery process would be slow. Socioeconomic analysis in villages located near the shola forest revealed the fact that the people depended heavily on this forest for their livelihood. Thus, the crux and the success of future management and conservation strategy depend on how one can reduce the dependency of people on the shola vegetation. Enrichment planting in disturbed parts of shola, enhancement of firewood by raising energy plantations, as well as development of lemongrass and firewood based agroforestry systems and reduction of grazing pressure by developing silvopastoral systems are the major strategies for the conservation of these shola forests.
The study assessed the annual consumption of raw drugs by the Ayurvedic medicine manufacturing industry in Kerala. Although, about 400 raw drugs are used in the manufacture of various medicines, for the present study, 230 items which are consumed at the rate of over one thousand kg per year were selected. There are 713 pharmaceutical units having drug license from the Industries Department. The study focuses on the consumption/requirement of the licensed units. Based on the annual turnover, the medicine manufacturing units were classified into small, (below 1 crore) medium (1-3 crores) and large (over 3 crores). The annual consumption of the 230 raw drugs studied is 20,517 tonnes, of which 48% is consumed by the large units, 37% by small units and 15% by medium units. Annual consumption of 27 items of raw drugs is over 200 tonnes; 28 items between 200-100 tonnes; 39 items between 100-50 tonnes; 53 items between 50-25 tonnes and 53 items between 25-10 tonnes; 30 items below 10 tonnes. Sida rhombifolia ssp. retusa (Kurumthotti) [1,194 tonnes] and Phyllanthus emblica (Nellikkai) [860 tonnes] are most abundantly consumed items. The raw drugs consumption is highest in Thrissur (6,276 tonnes) and Malappuram (4,433 tonnes) districts, as some of the larger units are located here. The lowest consumption is in Kasaragod (22 tonnes) and Wayanad (133 tonnes), where the manufacturing units are very less.
An attempt is made in this paper to assess the present status, particularly structure, cost of construction, long-term economic benefits and socio-cultural acceptability of traditional bamboo houses in Kerala and Karnataka states of India. It also examines the major constraints and policy changes required for the promotion of bamboo houses in the study areas. This study is based on a sample survey conducted among 360 selected households dwelling in bamboo houses. Although bamboos are widely available in the study areas, the housing sector experiences severe shortage of bamboos for construction, as the pulp and paper industry purchases bamboos on a large scale by offering higher prices. In the study areas, bamboo houses are either thatched with grass or leaves or tiled using country tiles. It is reported that about 95% of the dwellers prefer tiled houses because of its durability and low maintenance cost. It is also observed that the economic benefits and sociocultural acceptability of tiled bamboo houses are higher. Poor economic conditions of the dwellers, low availability of bamboos in the construction sector, high prices of bamboo and lack of title deeds of the land are some of the major constraints identified for the promotion of bamboo houses. It also suggests that bamboo houses in the study areas may become more popular by providing more amenities and better appearance for aesthetic satisfaction.
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