BRITISH ADMINISTRATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS ON MIZORAM FOREST

The Colonial history of Mizoram (Lushai Hills district) witnessed a very little state intervention in matters of religion and customs. The advent of Christianity and education was phenomenal in changing the animistic world view and attitude of the people towards natural features and use of resources. The Lushai Hills district being a single political entity with fixed boundaries governed by Inner line Regulation, villages were concentrated in a given domain and the people were forced to rely on the shrinking resources domains to meet basic needs. Though Forest Department was created to enforce the State dominion over forest resources, the degrees of imperial control are different in the hill areas. In Lushai Hills district, concern to maintain public order outweighed the economic interests. The hill forests had less commercial potential in terms of species and their number and poor accessibility tended to restrict timber exploitation to areas on the route of navigable rivers. Small and localized reserves such as, riverine, roadside, and town reserves were created by executive order. Outside the reserves, people were entitled to remove forest produce for consumption. While the people utilized forest and fields as the basic resources for survival, the government utilized it for wealth.