ABSTRACT
India has the largest number of poor in the world, many of whom depend directly or indirectly on forests for a living. It is estimated that 200 million people in India are partially or wholly dependent on forest resources for their livelihoods. Poverty, large and expanding human and livestock populations, the shrinking common property resource base, and unclear tenurial rights contribute to unrelenting pressure on the forests, resulting in severe degradation of the country's forest resources. Data on supply and demand for timber, non-timber forest products, and fuelwood are also unreliable because a large amount of forest extraction is unreported. A Center for International Forestry Research paper, quoting Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations sources, concluded that per capita consumption of all main wood products in South Asia in 1995 was low in relation to estimates for the entire Asia-Pacific region. The World Bank can contribute significantly to forest development and poverty alleviation in India in the future.
