Forestry in India is passing through a crucial stage. Even if intensive and systematic efforts are made for the improvement of traditional forests, they would not suffice to meet the needs of the growing number of people and animals for the innumerable forest products, including fuelwood and fodder. The role of social forestry is to raise platations on all sorts of land available other than the traditional forestry practices. It ends up with the 'man made forest' by creation of woodlots in the village common lands.

The Social Forestry Division establishes and maintains the gardens in the main towns of Goa. In the Capital City Panjim, the Social Forestry Division is maintaining three of the most popular Parks viz. the Ambedkar Park near the city bus stand, the Bhagwan Mahaveer Children’s Park, at Campal, and the Joggers’ park at Altinho. The Division also maintains traffic islands and road dividers with greenery throughout the seasons all over Goa.

Aerial View of Traffic Island at Cortalim-Goa

Seedlings for Sale to Public

Seedlings of forest species are raised by the forest department to be supplied to the general public for planting. The following types of seedlings are available to sale for the public at nominal charges.

Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Garden

Plantation in Community Lands

In Goa lands known as Comunidade lands are under the control of local communities. Such comunidade lands often are devoid of vegetation. The Social Forestry Division has taken such lands on lease, with an agreement with the local communities for protection and benefit sharing (50: 50 basis) and raised plantations there which have resulted in afforesting large tracts of unproductive land. Apart from these community land plantations, avenue plantations are also raised by the department.

Roadside Plantations

The Social forestry wing of the department takes up roadside plantations and such plantations taken up in the recent years are given below

Block plantations by Social Forestry Division