Every year from March to mid-May the ramps become red in this place. In the forest, plants and trees except rhododendron are rarely found. The rhododendrons amaze the tourists and evoke heavenly feelings. Not everyone is lucky to get a chance to enjoy the ecology upon reaching the rhododendron forest.
A study has shown that, out of 42 varieties of rhododendron, 32 species are found in Nepal. Out of the 32 types found in Nepal, 28 are found in Tinjure, MilkeandJaljale (TMJ) area. The area, extending at the confluence of Sankhuwasabha, Tehrathum and Taplejung district of Province 1, is said to be the capital of rhododendron. TMJ area is famous for its beauty and also surmised as the ornament of the entire country. Various studies have put this place in 120th position from the perspective of ecology and beauty.
Governmental as well as non-governmental organisations have spent billions in TMJ area in the name of conserving the environment. However, ecological condition of the forest is degrading due to lack of effectiveness. In 2007, the local land mafias registered 438 Ropanies of Gurans forest in a person’s name with the involvement of Sankhuwasabha Land Revenue Office Chief.
This is just an example irregularity happening in this area. There has been no reduction in activities like illegal felling of tress, collection of medicinal herbs and grazing. As this is a mountainous region, people of Mangol community (Bhote) live here and they yak husbandry is their occupation. The TMJ area, which carries importance at national as well as international level, has not been properly understood by the locals. The governmental agencies have not been able to make the public aware about its importance. Lack of alternative to cutting down of trees and effective regulation have resulted in conflict between Gurans forest and locals.
Ministry of Forest and Environment has named this area in the list of conserved forest. But since the operating protocol did not address the locals, they are now against the ministry. The forest is declining as the roads are being constructed haphazardly in the name of development without following the standards. A local, Tsering Lama said that around five hectors of forest area have been destroyed due to deforestation, theft, and road expansion. Division Forest Office Tehrathum’s Chief Devi Chandra Pokhrel said that TMJ Conserved Forest Promotion Programme is being implemented through Division Forest Offices of all three districts.
Province 1 government has allocated a budget of NRs 5.5 million this year to prepare TMJ Comprehensive Master Plan, whereas a comprehensive discussion was held between chiefs of three districts and 12 local governments as well as legislators on 29 January 2018 for biodiversity and environmental conservation of TMJ area. WWF has implemented TMJ complex project from this year. The programme aims to conserve the wildlife and improve the environment of this area. Such programmes are not new to this area; Federation of Community Forestry User Groups, Province 1 President Tulasi Sangraula demanded that programmes should be implemented effectively in consultation with the locals as hundreds of millions have already been spent without substantial result.
Increasing human settlement
The settlement in the conserved TMJ area is increasing day by day that have resulted in the deforestation and excessive collection of medicinal herbs. The forest is suffering the effects of everyday activities of local residents. The deforestation of Gurans forest is increasing as there is no provision of alternatives. A local resident Tsering Lama said that the entire Gurans forest area would be destroyed if the government failed to make long-term provisions to minimize the deforestation. “There is awareness about forest conservation. The deforestation will come to a halt if there is alternative source of fuel for the locals,” he advises.
The conserved TMJ area, formed by Tinjure of Tehrathum, Milke of Taplejung, and Jaljale of Sankhuwasabha is extended from 1,700 metres to 5,000 metres above sea level. It extends to then-25 VDCs of three districts. There are small and big settlements such as Chauki, Gupha, Mangalbare, Change, Samdu, Sanghu of Sankhuwasabha district and villages of Tehrathum district: Morahang, Shreejoong, Pauthak, Oyakjoong, Isibu, Samdu, Khamlaloong, Basantpur, Sungnam, Solma, JirikhimtiandAmbung.
Similarly, with the increase in settlements in Hampang, Change, Dhungesanghu, Sanghu, Phakumba and Thinglabu of Taplejung district, there has been direct impact in the forest area. TMJ’s wetlands and hills are the source to Lambu, Pinguwa, Khorunga, Tangmaya, Koya, Sobuwa, Neruwa, Maiwa, Sabha, Hewa, Piluwa and other rivers of these districts. The locals allege that the water in these rivers is drying due to deforestation at the source areas.
As the area lies on high altitude, the major source of fuel is wood. The wood is used to make fire to keep houses warm since the area is cold and freezing throughout the year. There is good business of cheese at the upper region and the coloring of cheese is optimal when it is dried with the raw wood of rhododendron, thereby increasing deforestation of Gurans forest. Forest Office of Tehrathum has the statistics that 103,465 people reside in 18,783 households. The conserved area covers 58,232 hectors of land. The locals start chopping woods for fuel during festivals, and when the winter season approaches. Hotel entrepreneur of Guphabazaar, Hari Khanal says that until the government find alternative fuel for the locals, the deforestation will not stop. Wood from Gurans forest is the main source of fuel for the people residing in this area. The main reasons behind the deforestation are lack of any other tree species except rhododendron and lack of alternatives.
Biodiversity also endangered
Although the forest offices of three districts have been entrusted with the responsibility to look after the TMJ area, the conservation efforts have not been effective. The Gurans Forest, Kuhire Forest of several species, biodiversity, medicinal herbs, wetlands and ponds, rare species of birds and wildlife of TMJ area have been endangered. The government declared rhododendron as the national flower in 1955. There are many medicinal herbs such as Chiraito, Pakhanved, Lauthsalla, Bikhma, Panchaule, Majitho, Jatamasi, Hadchur, and Timmur found in TMJ area. Around 33 ponds including popular ones such as Sabhapokhari, Guphapokhari, Lampokhari, Panchpokhari, are found in this region.
Need to ban plucking of rhododendron
Tourists visiting the area have the tendency of plucking the rhododendron along with its branches instead of just observing the flower. This tendency has posed a threat to rhododendron, and hence the concerned authority has been advised to immediately ban the plucking of flowers. The community forest groups have demanded the local administration of all three districts ban the plucking, saying that the excessive breaking of branches has affected the flowering of rhododendron. There are 160 community forests in this TMJ region. Although the consumers started the awareness campaigns, the state has not supported them, said Badri Sapkota President of the Federation of Community Forestry User Groups, Sankhuwasabha. He demanded awareness messages should be made effective in collaboration with local consumers. The main places to watch the rhododendron in this area include Basantapur, Tutedeurali, RR Garden, Ghurmise, TinjurePathivara, TinjureDanda, Panchpokhari, Lampokhari, Chauki, Mangalbare, Gupha, andSukebazaar.
What’s next?
There have not been many initiatives for conservation of TMJ region at local level from the government’s side. The main reason is the lack of coordination between the stakeholders responsible for conservation including forest offices, stakeholders and locals. Although few conservation committees have been formed at local level, they are inactive. There has been declaration of conservation area by the government at the moment, but not bringing forward effective programme and not incorporating locals, are also the reasons behind destruction, says Nepal Communist Party Tehrathum’s leader Laxman Tiwari. He advises that there should be introduction of programmes such as alternative provision of energy and fuel, managed grazing, regulated collection of forest products, national flower rhododendron, importance of Gurans Forest, and direct relation between environment and human, and the government should pay attention to mobilise locals in the conservation activities.
The region, perfect for the hiking, is visited by more than fifty thousand internal and foreign tourists. Sixty-nine Community Forest Groups are active. But there is a need for comprehensive plan because the area is quite large. Out of the 69 groups, 58 are in Tehrathum, 8 in Sankhuwasabha and 3 in Taplejung. Community forest groups must be made effective to run the conservation activities effectively. The stakeholders have demanded that the Forest Office should make the programmes at the conservation area effective as per the expectations of the locals, and increase regulations, whereas the local level must pay attention to conservation by bringing forward the plans for conservation.
