1. (i) Location of Bastar: Bastar is located in the southernmost part of Chhattisgarh and borders Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Maharashtra. The central part of Bastar is on a plateau' To the north of this plateau is the Chhattisgarh plain and to its south is the Godavari plain. The river Indrawati windsRead more

    (i) Location of Bastar: Bastar is located in the southernmost part of Chhattisgarh
    and borders Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Maharashtra. The central part of Bastar is on a plateau’ To the north of this plateau is the Chhattisgarh plain and to its south is the Godavari plain. The river Indrawati winds across Bastar east to west.
    (ii) Bastar’s communities : A number of different communities live in Bastar such as Maria and Maria Gonds, Dhurwas, Bhatras and Halbas. They speak different languages.
    (iii) Customs and beliefs in Bastar:
    (a) They share common customs and beliefs.
    (b) They believe that each village was given its land by the Earth, and in return, they look after the Earth by making some offerings at each agricultural festival.
    (c) They show respect to the spirits of the river, the forest and the mountain.
    (iv) System of administration of villages in Bastar:
    (a) The local people look after all the natural resources of the village.
    (b) If people from a village want to take some wood from the forests of another village, they pay a small fee called devsari, dand or man in exchange. Some villages also protect their forests by engaging watchmen and each household contributes some grain to pay them. Every year there is one big hunt where the headmen of villages in a pargana meet and discuss issues of concern, including forests.

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  2. The causes for deforestation in India were as follows: (i) The British directly encouraged the production of commercial crops like jute, sugar, wheat and cotton because the demand for these crops increased in Europe due lo increase in population. In addition to this raw materials were required for iRead more

    The causes for deforestation in India were as follows:
    (i) The British directly encouraged the production of commercial crops like jute, sugar, wheat and cotton because the demand for these crops increased in Europe due lo increase in population. In addition to this raw materials were required for industrial production.
    (ii) They thought that forests were unproductive. They were considered to be wilderness that had to be brought under cultivation so that the land could -yield agricultural products and revenue and enhance the income of the state. So between 1880 and 1920, cultivated area increased by 6.7 million hectares.
    (iii) With the shortage of oak forests in England in the early nineteenth century, trees were felled on a massive scale and vast quantities of timber was exported from India to meet the timber supply of Royal Navy.
    (iv) The spread of railways too created an additional demand of timber. Wood was
    required to run locomotives and sleepers for laying railway lines.
    (v) Large areas of natural forests were cleared for tea. coffee and rubber plantations to meet Europe’s growing need for these commodities.
    (vi) The expansion of cultivation was seen as a sign of progress but for land to be brought under the plough, forests had to be cleared.

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  3. (i) Since 1980s, the governments in Asia and Africa have realised that scientific forestry and the policy of keeping forest communities away from forests has resulted in many conflicts. So, conservation of forests has become an important goal. Thus, the governments are following the policy of involvRead more

    (i) Since 1980s, the governments in Asia and Africa have realised that scientific
    forestry and the policy of keeping forest communities away from forests has resulted in many conflicts. So, conservation of forests has become an important goal. Thus, the governments are following the policy of involving the people who live near the forests.
    (ii) In many cases, across India, from Mizoram to Kerala, dense forests have survived only because villages protected them in sacred groves Known sarnas, devarakudu. kan, rai, etc. Some villages have been patrolling their own forests.

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  4. Around 1890, Surnotiko Samin of Randublatungm village, a teak forest village, began questioning state ownership of the forest. He argued that the state had not created the wind, water, earth and wood, so it could not own it. Soon a widespread movement developed. Amongst those who helped organise itRead more

    Around 1890, Surnotiko Samin of Randublatungm village, a teak forest village, began questioning state ownership of the forest. He argued that the state had not created the wind, water, earth and wood, so it could not own it. Soon a widespread movement developed. Amongst those who helped organise it were Samin’s sons-in-law. By 1907, 3,000 families were following his ideas. Some of the Saminists protested by lying down on their land when the Dutch carne to survey it, while others refused to pay taxes or fines or perform labour.

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  5. (i) Java is in Indonesia. (ii) The population of Java was 3.4 million in 1600. (iii) There were many villages in the fertile plains, but there were also many communities living in the mountains and practising shifting cultivation. (iv) Kalangs was its famous community. It was a community of skilledRead more

    (i) Java is in Indonesia.
    (ii) The population of Java was 3.4 million in 1600.
    (iii) There were many villages in the fertile plains, but there were also many communities living in the mountains and practising shifting cultivation.
    (iv) Kalangs was its famous community. It was a community of skilled forest cutters and shifting cultivators. They were so valuable that in 1755 when the Mata ram kingdom of Java split, the 6,000 Kalang families were equally divided between the two kingdom. Without their expertise, it would have been difficult to harvest teak for the kings to build their palaces.

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