Railways, Deforestation and Ecological Degradation: A Case study of Colonial Punjab (1850-1855)

ABSTRACT:

This paper is an attempt to understand the Imperialist policies of 'development' which created

disturbance and alteration in ecology from 1850-1885 in Colonial Punjab. It revolves around the process of deforestation which was intensified by the introduction of Railways in 1853, creating an insatiable demand for wood, for fuel, sleepers and carriage building - and promoted enlarged consumption with easy communication resulting in indiscriminate felling of trees, sometimes to desolation. Great Britain- the leading industrialized nation, lacked a 'forest sense' and neglected forestry to an extent that 95% of her timber requirements came from foreign countries including Ireland, South Africa, North-East USA., Canada and India for ship-building, iron-smelting and farming and on some occasions to symbolize political victory. Certain stories and folklores reveal the different ways in which the British tried to 'civilise the savage' forest tribes (a process which Ramchandra Guha calls "savaging the civilized") and push them out of their native lands, encouraging them to take up a sedentary lifestyle which was often met with resentment. When the demand for natural products increased in England, with the pretext of bringing up the society, the English brought a rise in commercial forestry which in return resulted in ecological degradation. Railways were a necessity for the English to transport heavy goods. With the introduction of Railways, followed the rise of commercial forestry in the form of plantations which turned the ecological balance upside down.

Author: Anne Mary Shaju, Cherry Hitkari, Harshita Kumari, Raunika Singh

Full Paper: Railways, Deforestation and Ecological Degradation: A Case study of Colonial Punjab (1850-1855)