History
Why Deforestation?
वनों की कटाई क्यों?
In this Class 9 History topic from “Forest Society and Colonialism,” students examine why forests were cleared and how colonial policies transformed forest use. They learn how railways, shipbuilding, commercial timber, plantations and expanding agriculture increased demand for wood and land. The topic also explores the effects on forest communities, shifting cultivators and pastoralists, including restrictions on customary rights, loss of livelihoods and resistance to state control. It helps students connect deforestation with colonial economic interests and social change.
Practice questions
What is the simple meaning of deforestation?What was cleared to expand cultivation in the colonial period?Under British rule what wooden material was needed under railway tracks?What did Britain need from India for shipbuilding?After oak forests declined in England where did the British search for timber?What effect did railway expansion have on forests?How did the colonial government view forests?What was done for plantations like tea and coffee?What effect did rubber plantations have on forests?What happened to food demand when population increased?What was cleared to increase cultivation of food crops?What was the effect of expansion of commercial crops on forests?What was one major economic reason for cutting forests under colonial rule?Why did demand for timber greatly increase in the colonial period?The process of clearing forests to make fields was linked with what?What did colonial officials want to increase by clearing forests?Which material was needed to make railway sleepers?Deforestation for railways in the colonial period was linked with what kind of demand?Why was timber important for the British navy?Clearing forests for tea plantations was linked with which type of farming?