Skip to main content

Reaping the benefits by Milking rather than slaughtering it: Zhasela Community Forest



One day, trying to axe down the most formidable tree in the forest, the poor woodcutter chanced upon a resident spirit who gifted him the goose. The goose which lays the golden eggs was gifted for sparing his abode. The foolish woodcutter once home, slaughtered the goose and enjoyed the chicken menu in the dinner that evening. This should not be the case with their Community Forest is what the CFMGs of Zhasela CF firmly believes in.   
To the members of the Zhasela Community Forest Management Group, their forest is like the red lactating cow whose benefits can be enjoyed perpetually by milking it rather than foolishly slaughtering for one time benefit. They do not only draw what is required for them but also has strategies and mechanism to payback by executing numerous management activities aimed towards sustainable development of the forest. The CFMGs has over the last five years, contributed free labour in implementing many management activities inside the Community Forest area.
The free labour contribution were provided mainly in carrying out the activities such as creation of fire line, weeding, clearing, cleaning & other tending operations, Tending operations such as Clearing, cleaning and weeding which involves removal of unwanted grasses and herbaceous plants that competes with the desired species for space, sunlight and minerals are done regularly as prescribed by the approved Community Forest Management plan. This is basically done to encourage speedy and better growth and development of the desired species. The clearing and management also includes removal of dead, diseased and dying trees which are allotted as firewood, quantity of which has been already mentioned in earlier part of the report. The clearing, cleaning and removal of unwanted bushes and climbers are also done to improve the forest condition in overall. Towards this, almost 15 acres of the clearing has been carried out till date.
The thining was also carried out as part of management. The firewood and fencing posts are marked in the congested stocks to create space for the remaining trees. The management activities such as harvesting of Drashing, Cham and Dangchung are also carried out quantity of which has also been already mentioned above. The overall silviculture system practiced is single tree system whereby single tree is marked and removed. The total of 86 mandays has been contributed in the course of five years and five months of operation by the Community Forest Management Group towards clearing and management of the Community Forest area.
Other activities include harvesting for domestic use and sale of surplus, CF Nursery raising to fulfill the need of seedlings for enrichment plantations to be carried out inside the CF area and sell the surplus seedlings to generate more income through diversified fund sources. The six bedded Nursery was constructed which include 4 transplant beds and 2 mother beds. The labour was contributed by the CFMG themselves while the technical backstopping was provided by the Dzongkhag forestry sector through geog forestry extension agent. The cost of materials & transportation charges were incurred from the accumulated CF Fund. The CFMGs spend atleast 45 mandays constructing the 6 bed CF Nursery.
The enrichment plantation was carried out inside the Community forest area. The main objective of doing the plantation was to replace and replenish those utilized by the CFMGs. There is also need to improve the forest condition through plantation as mentioned in the Management plan.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Long, long, long journey to Education

“Root of the education is bitter but the fruit is sweet” no one would know about it better than Kado. The fatigue of having to toddle to the school, fever of unending exams, the torture of having to burn the midnight oil, dozing in classes and the stern rigors are hard to endure, few even give up on the way but many endure it with utmost determination and commitment, because deep inside everyone knows it pays later. “Root of the education is bitter but the fruit is sweet” no one would know about it better than Kado Kado in the tender age of 12 is negotiating the lazily meandering footpath along the steep mountain. His school bag, full of books, pulls him back. His black naughty boy school shoe is all soiled, indication of how many times he has trudged that same footpath. He is on his way to the primary school in his village, almost 5 kilometers away. He has to make sure he is in the school before morning social work starts; else he gets penalized. Unlike the students who reside nearb...
Post a Comment
Read more

Defining Tsa-Wa-Sum in One’s own Perspective

If I am asked, I would boldly answer, “The Tsa-Wa-Sum is “Gyeb, Gyelkhab and Meser”, (King, Country and People). But not everyone knows about what tsa-wa-sum is. Hence, when the superior ask them, they are left to conceive their own tsa-wa-sum. Once a meeting was convened by the Dzongdag. In a large congregation of illiterate rural people, the Dzongdag thundered, “do you know what tsa-wa-sum is?” “Can anyone from the crowd tell me?” The crowd went to pin drop silence and no one seems ready to answer. Are they scared of Dasho or no one has the slightest idea what it is? Suddenly, a Ngalop man sitting in the last bench, for whom Dasho is hardly visible, stood up. With his head bowed low, he answers, “The three tsa-wa-sum are Ngalops, Sharchops and Lhotsampas”. “This is because they are the three race in Bhutan” Dasho went into bout of annoyance but before he fired the man, another Lhotsampa (Southern Bhutanese Man) supplemented, “the three tsa-wa-sum are Royal Bhutan Army (RBA) Royal B...
1 comment
Read more

Eternal Enemies

The Cats and Dogs are often adopted by the people in the metropolitan as pets. They go pretty good as pets since they are known to be endearing animals. Some set of folks have their paramount love and passion for these animals. But back in the village, these two creatures are mainly spared space in the home to shoulder their own responsibilities. For instance, the cat is entrusted with the job of dwindling or keeping at the sea bed, the number of rats referred to as naughty rodents in the village. And the dog cannot keep eating what the owner provides and sleep. At night, they have to escort the owners into the corn field and keep barking to keep away, the lurking night’s ambusher (deer, bears, porcupine, and wild pig etcetera). So, I see no overlapping of their right to food and duties. But, many might have surely taken the notice of these two four legged animal never tolerating each other’s presence. One fine day they meet but await a big confrontation. The sight of one another inv...
2 comments
Read more