PhotoEssay 3

On 6 January 2026, the Initiative on the Forest Economy (IoFE) facilitated a multi-stakeholder field visit to Community Forest Rights (CFR) areas in Rampachodavaram and Chintur divisions, Polavaram district, Andhra Pradesh. The visit aimed to assess bamboo resources, explore industrial linkages, and strengthen partnerships between forest-dependent communities, government institutions, and industries. 

IoFE team hiked this trail in the Shoar Forest.

The field visit was attended by community members from CFR villages, officials from the Forest, Horticulture, and Agriculture Departments, and representatives from Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP) – Velugu, and the District Water Management Agency, ITC Mangaldeep, UltraTech Cement, JANS Bamboo, and Nandan Enterprises.

Polavaram is a newly formed district in the state of Andhra Pradesh, carved out of the Rampachodavaram and Chintur revenue divisions. Both Polavaram and the Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR) district are rich in natural bamboo forests, particularly within CFR areas recognised under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006. Common bamboo species found in these landscapes include Bambusa bambos (thorny bamboo) and Dendrocalamus strictus. To strengthen forest-based livelihoods and improve market access, five forest-based producer companies (PCs) have been established in Polavaram to aggregate bamboo and other seasonal forest products and facilitate direct market linkages within CFR landscapes.

1. Significance of Geography

1(a) The scenic landscape of Shoar Village

1(b) Chenab River in Shoar Village

Pangi is sparsely populated, with scattered settlements and villages. The main community residing in the area is the Pangwala tribe, known for their traditional way of life and close connection to the land.

The communities in Shoar collects various Seasonal Forest Products and one of the commonly collected SFPs is Hazelnuts under the leadership of Mahila Mandal, a group of women association who participate in decision-making and act as a representative of the community. This is formed by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

People from Pangi are involved in agricultural farm as labours, harvesting forest produces, as a labour under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA) and some migrate to other nearby cities and states.

2. Communities and their Occupation

Figure 2.(a) ISB Team Interacting with the locals to understand fovernance of resource use in the forest

Figure 2(b) Focus Group Discussion with community people about the livelihood generation from forest produce. Mahila Mandals are briefing us about collection of forest products such as Hazelnuts and other medicinal plants.

Figure 2(c) IoFE team member AVijit during the interaction with the locals.

The dense forests of Shoar have high value forest products such as Hazelnuts, Kala Jeera (Black Jeera), Gucchi (Morel mushrooms), Ban Lahsun, walnuts among other Seasonal Forest products (SFPs). The team members actively assisted a local woman in the process of threshing Rajmah, a crop that is cultivated by the community. Rajmah exhibits an incredible range of colors. Each year, approximately two sacks of Rajmah are cultivated, and they are carefully preserved for future use. The community stores are closed for the winter season, particularly during snowfall.

3.Seasonal Forest Products

3. Local rajma (Kidney beans) harvested by the commnities of Shoar village.

4.Mapping of Hazelnuts trees and Team Building Over Trekking

The team members started their journey to the Hazelnuts Forest accompanied by the youth of Shoar village. The trek walk worked as an excellent activity for team building and experiencing the lives of the communities.

The IoFE team briefed the communities about mapping of the Hazelnuts trees.

4(c) Hazelnut trees

During our interaction, the local woman proudly displayed samples of Hazelnuts collected from the enchanting Shoar forests. She and her child skillfully deshelled the Hazelnuts using stones, providing us with samples to present to potential industrial buyers.

4(d) A local women offering Hazelnuts to team.

4(e) Women and child breaking Hazelnut shells with a stone.

As the day drew to a close, we took a moment to reflect on the remarkable beauty of the Shoar forest and the warmth of the community. We engaged in a brainstorming session, passionately discussing and sharing the valuable knowledge we had gathered from the community members to plan our operations effectively.

“Fostering Visibility: The Forests and Communities”, photo essay series attempts to capture intimate wonders of forests and document the human relationship to the natural world in the remotest landscapes of India.

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