Discuss how the changes in forest management in the colonial period affected shifting cultivators
The effect of changes in forest management in the colonial period on —
(a) Shifting cultivators: Also known as swidden agriculture, shifting cultivation is a practice wherein part of a forest is burnt for farming; this is done in rotation. With the emergence of forest management, shifting cultivators were dispossessed of their occupation and displaced from their homes. The government found it difficult to calculate their taxes. The forest officials considered burning the forest dangerous because it could spread further; they also considered it a waste of fertile land, which could instead be used for growing railway timber. Shifting cultivators were forced to change professions, while some participated in large and small rebellions opposing the changes.
(b) Plantation owners : They were also a happy lot like the timer-trading firms. The displaced nomadic and pastorals tribes were often recruited by plantation owners to work on their farms. Plantation owners made big profits, making the workers work for long hours and at low wages. Due to the new forest laws, the workers could not even protest as this was their sole means of earning a livelihood.
The effect of changes in forest management in the colonial period on —
(a) Shifting cultivators: Also known as swidden agriculture, shifting cultivation is a practice wherein part of a forest is burnt for farming; this is done in rotation. With the emergence of forest management, shifting cultivators were dispossessed of their occupation and displaced from their homes. The government found it difficult to calculate their taxes. The forest officials considered burning the forest dangerous because it could spread further; they also considered it a waste of fertile land, which could instead be used for growing railway timber. Shifting cultivators were forced to change professions, while some participated in large and small rebellions opposing the changes.
(b) Plantation owners : They were also a happy lot like the timer-trading firms. The displaced nomadic and pastorals tribes were often recruited by plantation owners to work on their farms. Plantation owners made big profits, making the workers work for long hours and at low wages. Due to the new forest laws, the workers could not even protest as this was their sole means of earning a livelihood.
