how would you differentiate reserved forest from protected forest.
What are the differences between reserved forest and protected forest?
Ans. Reserve forests and protected forest in India are terms denoting-forests accorded a certain degree of protection and now contribute to 19.41 per cent of the total geographical area of the country.
Though there are some differences between these two categories, both are declared by the respective State Governments. The differences between these two are
(i) Right to all activities like hunting, grazing etc are banned unless specific orders are issued by the government in reserved forests but in protected areas, right to activities like hunting and grazing etc are sometimes given to communities living on the fringes of the forest and depend on forest for their livelihood.
(ii) Reserve forests enjoy a higher degree of protection in comparison to protected areas and may be upgraded to the status of wildlife sanctuary and in turn national parks which a protected forest may not.
(iii) Reserve forest covers more geographical area than protected area.