Indian Forest Act of 1878
- By the Forest Act of 1878, the British Administration acquired the sovereignty of all wastelands which by definition included forests.
- This Act also enabled the administration to demarcate reserved and protected forests. The local rights were refused in the case of protected forests while some privileges which were given to the local people by the government which can be taken away are anytime.
- This Act classified the forests into three – reserved forests, protected forests and village forests. It attempted to regulate the collection of forest produce by forest dwellers and some activities declared as offences and imprisonment and fines were imposed in this policy to establish the state control over forests.
