Community Forests (CFs) are considered as an important means of forest management, biodiversity conservation, poverty reduction and ecological sustainability all across the world. Present study is an attempt to understand if CFs in west Himalayan part of India (referred as Van Panchayat) is effective in performing such role of conservation and sustainable flow of goods and services. A total of 31 representative Van Panchayat Forests (VPFs) in western Himalaya were investigated to assess: (i) the ecological condition, and (ii) their status of management. In addition review of available literature was also carried out to understand global trends of knowledge on CFs, and to specifically know the focus of studies on VPs in the study region. A total of 1158 documents on CFs were obtained, of which 91 pertained to VPs/VPFs. These 91 studies were considered for detail assessment. Analysis of published literature on VPFs indicated larger leaning towards management and governance. However, in recent years (2011 onward) a shift towards ecological processes and climate change mitigation was noticed. Overall, the studied VPFs indicated the deteriorating state of ecological health. However, the forests having proper management had better ecological health i.e., higher species richness, tree density and regeneration. Species richness and contribution of native species was found high in VPFs established before 1980. Analysis across the elevation range reveals higher level of disturbances in VPFs located below 1500 m asl. While higher elevation (above 1500 m asl) performing better both with respect to ecological health and management status. The findings of the study call for urgent attention to bring back the glory of VPFs through policy interventions. Analysis of literature and primary observation suggest that the VPFs in west Himalaya with their existence for over 9 decades are fading the glory due to mismatched policy and practice priorities. The scenario can be changed with appropriate interventions to make these VPFs more relevant for local people as well as the emerging global targets of conservation and sustainable development.

中文翻译：

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印度喜马拉雅西部群落森林生态状况及管理现状


社区森林（CF）被认为是全世界森林管理、生物多样性保护、减贫和生态可持续发展的重要手段。本研究试图了解印度喜马拉雅山西部地区的CF（称为Van Panchayat）是否能有效发挥保护和可持续商品和服务流动的作用。对喜马拉雅山西部共有 31 个具有代表性的 Van Panchayat 森林 (VPF) 进行了调查，以评估：(i) 生态状况，以及 (ii) 管理状况。此外，还对现有文献进行了回顾，以了解全球CFs知识的趋势，并具体了解研究地区VPs的研究重点。共获得 1158 份有关 CF 的文件，其中 91 份涉及 VP/VPF。这 91 项研究被考虑进行详细评估。对已发表的 VPF 文献的分析表明，其更倾向于管理和治理。然而，近年来（2011 年起）人们注意到向生态过程和减缓气候变化的转变。总体而言，所研究的 VPF 表明生态健康状况正在恶化。然而，管理得当的森林具有更好的生态健康，即更高的物种丰富度、树木密度和更新能力。在 1980 年之前建立的 VPF 中，物种丰富度和本地物种的贡献较高。对海拔范围的分析表明，海拔 1500 米以下的 VPF 中的干扰程度较高。而海拔较高的地区（海拔 1500 米以上）在生态健康和管理状况方面表现更好。研究结果呼吁迫切关注通过政策干预来恢复 VPF 的辉煌。 文献分析和初步观察表明，喜马拉雅西部地区的 VPF 存在了 9 多年，但由于政策和实践重点不匹配，其辉煌正在逐渐褪色。通过适当的干预措施可以改变这种情况，使这些 VPF 与当地人民以及新兴的全球保护和可持续发展目标更加相关。