Joint Forest Management and Community Participation: A Study in Indian Perspective

Abstract

The Joint Forest Management Programme (JFM) has been a major thrust area of forest management over the last two decades. The programme is operating with main objective of forest management and empowerment of local communities through sustainable resource utilisation. The effective and meaningful involvement of local communities has been attempted under the Joint forest Management system in India by linking socioeconomic incentives and forest development. The present paper will provide a brief overview of the policy makers regarding the effectiveness of the programme operationalised in different parts of the country. It further tries to review the process of JFM and factors promoting community participation for forest management under the regime of JFM in India.