The New Nation - Internet Edition

Niaz Ahmed Khan

The predatory nature of deforestation in Bangladesh has been a matter of great concern and worry for any concerned citizen of the country. The forests on state lands have been particularly subjected to organized illicit commercial logging, unplanned and abrupt conversion to agriculture and other non-forestry uses, fire, grazing and other anthropogenic influences. The Northwest Bangladesh has only about 2% tree cover. One popularly cited statistics reckons the rate of forest destruction to be at the tune of 8000 ha/year and the annual deforestation rate is estimated to be 3.3. Consequently, per capita forestland has declined from 0.035 ha in 1969 to 0.02 ha in 1990.

The impact and manifestation of such alarming rate of deforestation are multifaceted. Deforestation causes decrease in water holding capacity, increased soil erosion, and loss of habitat and biodiversity. The cost of these impacts on the economy was estimated to be 1% of GDP in 1990. Decrease in timber and other forest products incur direct economic loss. People living in the rural and hilly areas who depend on forest for subsistence are severely affected. Many of the plants and animals that once inhabited have either become extinct or are endangered.

In this backdrop, this article argues in favour of resorting to long-standing and deeply entrenched socio-religious values in our fight against deforestation and associated processes of biodiversity loss.

Traditionally, religious beliefs and culture had a major influence on forest resource generation and use in the Indian sub-continent. Documentation, scripture, seals and paintings from the Indus valley civilisations showed that forests were adored as a collection of celestial plants and were supposed to be inhibited by divine spirits. Some analysts have gone as far as to argue that the ancient culture of this sub-continent had its very origin in Aranyas (forests) and Ashrams (religious centres, mostly located in woods). Major Indian philosophies and preaching, for example, found expression in the thoughts of Rishies and Gurus (saints and hermits), who mostly lived in the serenity and obscurity of forests.

The literature on early forest-use situation in this sub-continent suggests that, local people had a religious and spiritual affinity with forests. The studies shed light on the fact that there was great reverence for Vans (forests) amongst ancient races and religious literature. As early as 1500 BC, Rigveda, for example, preached: "Plant, Thus I hail Thee - The Divine Mother of Mankind" (Rig-X-97-4). Similarly, the Puran considered "plantation of trees and maintaining them were good acts" and suggested that, for "those who do not have sons, trees are there sons" . Later the Aryans, basically a pastoral community and one of the most dominant races of ancient India, revered forests and maintained all their big institutions in the sylvan surroundings of the forest. The Prophet of Islam also preached that "if any of you plant a single seed or plant whose fruits are eaten by animals, birds or men, then it will be considered an act of piety" and "do not tear even a single leaf of any plant unnecessarily" . The Muslim rulers of India (including Bengal), for example the Mughals, also demonstrated a utilizational and aesthetic approach towards forests. For the rulers, forests served the 'imperial hunting' and 'ornamental' purposes.

On the basis of the preceding brief review of history, one can feel that religion and culture have traditionally played a pivotal role in forestry in this part of the world. Worshipping of trees was commonplace. This, coupled with spiritual preaching by some rulers, most likely instilled among people some consciousness and interest in forest preservation and propagation. Customs and religion, for example, forbade the use of sickles or axe in certain areas; while in other areas forests were treated as Devaranya (gods' grove) from which only twigs and fallen branches could be fetched without causing any damage to trees. The rulers also fostered the linkage between forests and religious culture. There were forests exclusively "for the study of religion" under some ancient Indian kingdoms.

There is hardly any systematic information on plantation and forestry on religious and sacred places in Bangladesh at present, except the occasional references made in a few studies. From my ethnographic field work in selected areas of Kaliakair (in the central part of the country) and Rangunia (in the south-eastern part), I, for example, observed the following:

There was a popular belief that during epic days, the Hindu deities, Krishna and Radha, had their legendary romance under the serene surroundings of forests in a place called Gupta Brindaban (the secret romance), north of Atia forests in the Dhaka-Mymensingh tracts-not far from my study-site of Chandra. As I have found during the fieldwork, these forests of religious value are still preserved and worshipped by the local Hindu population t. In parts of the forests in [Rangunia] there is a large Hindu temple and community centre in the locality, called the Jagatpur Ashram, which [has traditionally] held control over a vast area of land (including forests)t. Similarly, at least five Mazars (graveyards of saints; religious seminaries) of Muslim priests are still seen in the area; all situated in the forests. My informants reported that these saints lived amidst these forests and preached religion to neighbouring villagers.

Forests were their most-loved rendezvous for practising and teaching religion. Therefore, it seemed that forests and religion, like in many parts of the Indian sub-continent, had been closely related; and saints attempted to convey the message of this relationship to the locals. Interviews with some elderly villagers suggested that the preaching had, at least to some extent, influenced the conservation and propagation of forests (for details, see, N.A.Khan "A political economy of forest resource use: Case studies of social forestry in Bangladesh", Ashgate publishers, England, 1998).

Even from a general and cursory observation, one can notice plantation and gardens within the territorial boundaries of many religious institutions in the country. In recent years, there have been attempts to carry out afforestation activities within the premises of religious institutions and seminaries by some public and voluntary organisations including the Chittagong City Corporation and the Forest Department. It is believed that trees are less likely to be subjected to pilferage or illicit felling within the boundaries of a sacred institution, in view of the general reverence for religion in the country. The National Forest Policy 1994 has prescribed "tree plantation on the courtyards of rural organisations such as t eidgah [open prayer field], mosque-moktob, temple, madrassa [seminaries] etc t". In context of the massive deforestation in the country, linking afforestation to the above socio-religious values seems to be a very prospective strategy for conservation and replenishment.