Welcome To Department of Social Forestry
The Social Forestry Project was started in
Jammu & Kashmir as a World Bank aided Project in 1981-82,
initially for a period of five years. The Project was extended
up-to 1990-91. Since then the Project works had continued as an
activity under the State funding, to provide fuel-wood in the
shortest possible time and to provide poles, small timber, fodder
fruits and other minor forest products for basic requirements of
the rural poor.
In the year 2001, vide Government
Order No : 640-GAD of 2001 dated : 14-06-2001, the organization
created under the World Bank assistance, was decided to be closed
down and remained in the process of winding up till 10/2004 with a
very low capital component. The Project Director/CCF was the head
of the Organization till then.
The Government vide
order No: 481-FST of 2004 dated: 28-10-2004 converted the Social
Forestry Project into a full-fledged Department, headed by a
Director of the rank of Addl. Pr. Chief Conservator of Forests,
realizing fully well the need for reviving the Department enabling
it to take up plantations into the degraded forest lands and
wastelands on a massive scale in the following categories of
plantations.
Raising of Village Wood Lots
Rehabilitation of Degraded Forests.
Raising of Strip Plantation.
Farm Forestry.
Institutional Plantations.
The main function of Department of Social Forestry is to create nurseries to produce planting stocks, raise plantations, distribution of plant material to the people (rural/urban), farmers, Govt. agencies for planting in their premises/fields with an ultimate goal of Greening the State, improving the environment, generating the employment and conserving the natural forests.