Significance of Soil, Biological and Mineralogical Studies for Sustainable Afforestation in Himalaya

The Himalaya is the greatest and the youngest of all mountain systems which extend with a smooth sweep from northwest to southeast of about 2500 km and its width ranges between 250 to 300 km.The Himalaya consists of four longitudinal belts separated by faults. Its geological and topographical characters are strikingly different. To the north of the plains is Siwalik belt whose width ranges from 10 to 50 km and altitude exceeds 900m. The next known is Lesser Himalayan zone with width ranging between 60 to 80 km and average height rises to 3000 m the third belt is the Great Himalaya comprising of high snow capped peaks. This zone consists of lower alpine zone upto 4800 m and upper snow bound zone usually above 5000 m. Finally the Trans-Himalayan zone with width ranging upto 40km and containing the valley of the rivers rising behind the Great Himalaya. The Siwalik and Lesser Himalaya are two different geological units having variations in their age. The lesser Himalaya refers to the litho-tectonic province which is demarcated to the south by Main Boundary Thrust (MBT) and separated to the north by the Main Central Thrust (MCT). It predominantly consists of Proterozoic-Cambrain shelf to shallow marine sequences disposed in two main belts viz. The inner carbonate belt and the outer Krol belt. Mussoorie forest division of Garhwal Himalaya has been attracting the attention of soil scientists, ecologist and geologists from all over the world since the early part of nineteenth century because it is confluence of all the rock formation resulting in different soil and vegetation types. The Garhwal Himalaya is a mass of intricate folding and faulting and composed of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. Its borders touch Tibet in the north, Himachal in the west, the plains of Uttar Pradesh in the south and Kumaon in the east. The mineralogical studies have special importance in forestry research. Soil is one of the most important factors for tree growth which is mainly governed by weathering and climatic conditions. The soil is formed from the rocks by weathering process. The rate of growth and type of species depend upon the mineral composition of soil and parent rock. The study of soil has become important due to worldwide problem of conserving biological diversity. Although soil is formed by the result of weathering of parent rock, effect of climate, topography, plants, animals and age of land. All the factors effect the formation of the soil in several ways. The close relationship between geology, soil and vegetation is clearly visible by the effect shown by parent material and strong biological activity on soil formation and characteristics. Geology and soil are the controlling factors in the local distribution of vegetation particularly in regions where mean annual rainfall is under 2000 mm and their detailed investigation is necessary in order to study their effect on the forest of the area dealt with. The Mussoorie forest division of Garhwal Himalaya experiences lot of damage due to deforestation, overgrazing, fire, road building and mining activities. The basic needs of common man in the forest are fuel, fodder, food, housing and manure from the field. Fodder and fuel are still considered as free resources available in Himalayan region, so forests are exploited wherever they are available without caring their ecological and environmental effect on future generation .The ecological consequences of excessive run-off causes land slides, degradation and dryness in the area. For sustainable management of forest vegetation in the area, soil, geology and biota are important factors. Scientific investigation may be helpful in improving and regenerating degraded hills by protection of slopes through raising vegetation suited to parent material and soil.