Context

• The Jammu & Kashmir government has launched the “Tree Aadhaar” mission spearheaded by J-K Forest Research Institute (FRI) for the conservation of the region's chinar trees which have been dwindling in numbers over the years.

Project Overview

• It involves conducting a census of chinar trees and giving a unique identity to each one of them.
• Project has been named as “Digital Tree Aadhaar” with each tree having a tree number.
• To cut a chinar tree requires government approval, even on private property.
• 28,560 chinar trees have been enumerated and GI tagged so far.
• A metallic QR code is being placed on chinar trees, to provide information on 25 parameters.

About Chinar Tree

• Also known as Oriental plane tree (Plantus Orientalis var Cashmeriana)
• Chinar is the “state tree” of Jammu & Kashmir.
• Name ‘chinar’ was given to the tree by Mughals.
• Found in cool climate regions with sufficient water.
• Takes 30-50 years for a tree to mature and 150 years to reach its full size.
• Can grow up to a height of 30 metres while its girth ranges from 10 to 15 metres.
• World's oldest Chinar tree, which is believed to be 647 years old and is located in Village Chattergam of Budgam District.

Major Trees in Jammu and Kashmir

• Deodar, Kail, Fir, Chilgoza pine, Taxus, Juniper, and Cypress etc.

Types of Vegetation

Tropical Evergreen Forests

• Heavy rainfall areas of the Western Ghats, Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar, upper parts of Assam and Tamil Nadu coast.
• Rainfall of more than 200 cm with a short dry season.
• Main Plant Species: ebony, mahogany, rosewood, rubber and cinchona etc.

Tropical Deciduous Forests

• Also called the monsoon forests.
• Rainfall between 200 cm and 70 cm.
• On the basis of the availability of water, these forests are divided into moist and dry deciduous
• Moist deciduous
  • Rainfall between 200 and 100 cm.
  • Found along the foothills of the Himalayas, Jharkhand, West Odisha and Chhattisgarh, and on the eastern slopes of the Western Ghats.
  • Main Plant Species: Teak, Bamboos, Sal, Shisham, Sandalwood, Khair, Kusum, Arjun and Mulberry etc.
• Dry Deciduous
  • Areas having rainfall between 100 cm and 70 cm.
  • Found in the rainier parts of the Peninsular plateau and the plains of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
  • Main Plant Species: Teak, Sal, Peepal and Neem etc.

Thorn Forests and Shrubs

• Less than 70 cm of rainfall
• Natural vegetation consists of thorny trees and bushes.
• Found in the north-western part of the country, including semi-arid areas of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
• Main Plant Species: Acacias, palms, euphorbias and cacti etc.

Montane Forests

• Decrease in temperature with increasing altitude leads to the corresponding change in natural vegetation.
• The wet temperate type of forests containing oaks and chestnuts, are found between a height of 1000 and 2000 metres.
• Between 1500 and 3000 metres, temperate forests containing coniferous trees, like pine, deodar, silver fir, spruce and cedar, are found.
• These forests cover mostly the southern slopes of the Himalayas,

Mangrove Forests

• Tidal forests found in the areas of coasts influenced by tides.
• The deltas of the Ganga, the Mahanadi, the Krishna, the Godavari and the Kaveri are covered by such vegetation.
• In the Ganga-Brahmaputra delta, sundari trees are found.
• Main Plant Species: Palm, coconut, keora, agar, etc., also grow in some parts of the delta.