630 Forestry Quarterly 



The only forest organization common to the whole of India now 

 is the Inspector General of Forests, the Imperial Forest Service 

 staff, the Forest Board, and the Forest Research Institute and 

 College at Dehra Dun. The Imperial Government, while re- 

 taining a certain directing control over forest policy in India and 

 to a certain extent serving as a means of maintaining an organ- 

 ization for correlating work in the various provinces, does not ad- 

 minister in any way any forest lands. All the executive work of 

 forest administration is in the hands of the various provinces. 



The broad path of duty for the province is laid out in the Im- 

 perial Forest code, the staff to be used is selected by the Imperial 

 Government, the form of organization and nimibers of staff are 

 decided by the Imperial Government, and imtil recently, all the 

 higher promotions have been made upon the advice of the Imperial 

 Government. The work carried on by the province is subject to 

 inspection and criticism by the Imperial Government, which 

 also fiurnishes in the Forest Board, Research Institute, and School 

 a body of advice and control serving to maintain forest work in 

 the different provinces at a common level. There seems to have 

 been little left for the provinces to do but execute Imperial Govern- 

 ment policies with Imperial Government tools, but there is an 

 indication now that the powers of the provincial officers are being 

 increased. 



The foimdation of forestry in India is the Forest code, the first 

 edition of which was issued in 1877 and the seventh and latest in 

 1913. This code will well repay reading by any forester. It 

 establishes the basis upon which the staff is recruited and pro- 

 moted, defines the forest policy for India and lays down the general 

 rules for the management and working of the forests. The making 

 of reports and keeping of accounts are also standardized by the 

 code. It follows, since the code must be accepted as issued by 

 all provincial governments excepting the Presidencies of Bombay 

 and Madras, that forest administration, while varying in execu- 

 tion, energy and initiative in the various provinces, must through- 

 out India proceed along the same lines. The Presidencies of 

 Bombay and Madras being of earlier origin than the Supreme 

 Government of India, maintain a certain independence; they, 

 therefore, do not accept the code as an order as it comes from the 

 Imperial Government, but with very few changes re-enact it 

 for themselves. 



