Socio-economic and socio-cultural relationship of forest fringe people in Jhargram district of West Bengal with Shorea robusta Roth plant
Pampi Ghosh*
*Department of Botany, Seva Bharati Mahavidyalaya, Kapgari, Jhargram-721505 (India) Correspondence: pampikapgari@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
Jhargram district is a part of West Bengal and this newly constructed district came in the list of state districts in 2017. The district is 22nd district of West Bengal. It consists of 8 community development blocks (CDB) under lateritic part of southwest Bengal. It has its lowest population density among the districts of West Bengal and most of the people live in rural areas. Cultivation is the main practice in the fallow land and forest related activities are the source of income. The district has its 2513 villages according to the census 2011. Forest is common everywhere but it is discontinuous patch intermingled with thorny bushes in waste land and demarcated by cultivated land and roads. Sal (Shorea robusta) is the main composition of forest and centre of attraction of tourists. Elephant, the endangered species of Asian kind is very common here in the forest. People depend on forest round the year for various activities and means for mufti-purpose use. In this communication author shows how people of Jhargram district are directly connected with sal forest for their socio economic development and cultural activities including beliefs and taboos.