Nearly a century of exclusive management by the government in India ruptured the relationship that forest-dependent communities shared with nature. In spite of this, traditional ecological ethos continued to survive in many local societies, although often in reduced forms. It thus becomes pertinent to find and document the level of traditional beliefs existing in potential or dormant form, and find ways and means to incorporate these in the current forest management strategies. With this objective the short study documented the existence of traditional ethos and institutions in a village in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra State. The result of the study found that traditional knowledge does exist in traditional communities. With the help of external agencies like NGOs, these can be brought out in current practice.

Study Funding: Winrock India International

Study Output: Report 02-06, Feb 2006 © Winrock