Working Papers

This paper demonstrates the use of LISS III and PAN merged data in evaluating social forestry scheme of Ambala district of Haryana state. The study also evaluates the joint forest management programme of the study area. In the technical front, LISS III and PAN data were digitally fused using principal component analysis technique in Geomatica software. Prior to that, geometric corrections were done for data of both the sensors. After classifying the data using the maximum likelihood algorithm, it was imported into ArcGIS for further analysis. Ground truth information was incorporated in refinement of training sites selection during final classification of image. About 95 percent accuracy level was achieved through intensive fieldwork. Detailed consultations with forest officials and beneficiary farmers were made for proper evaluation of the social forestry programme. It was found that LISS III and PAN merged data are very useful in the delineation of tree cover and assessment of social forestry. The study revealed that Ambala district has only 8.95 percent of tree cover of the total geographical area. Over 96 percent of them lie outside the recorded forest area. Tree cover in the district shows a mix of farm forestry, agro-forestry and strip plantations. There is a wide gap between what is and what ought to be essentially because economic motives have overridden environmental concerns, the rich have benefited more than the poor and the landless who were targeted. Farm Forestry has scored over community forestry because it has become entrepreneur oriented rather than people oriented programme. The exotic plant species became more common than the indigenous ones. The programme under process of implementation has suffered serious distortions and needs to be reoriented so as to be more meaningful. Effective policy and legal framework should not only be made but also enforced along with various incentives and awareness campaigns with more and more community involvement.