Reports of a sal borer outbreak in the sal forests of Madhya Pradesh indicate a major ecological crisis re-emerging after almost three decades. A similar sal borer epidemic was witnessed in 1996-2001.
Scientific and regional evidence suggests that sal borer outbreaks generally occur every 25-30 years, and the current outbreak follows this cycle. During the 1996-2001 period, there were differing opinions among forestry scientists from institutions like the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education, Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM) and among forest officials regarding appropriate control measures. Millions of trees were affected at that time, and approximately 0.1 million trees had to be felled to control the infestation. Control measures included removing infected trees and incentivising local communities to collect insect larvae at a rate of 50 paise per larva. These efforts helped suppress the outbreak and save valuable sal timber, but it also emerged that unnecessary felling occurred under the pretext of removing dead or dying trees. Despite strict monitoring and administrative vigilance, communication gaps were inevitable during such a large-scale operation.
Subsequently, the Madhya Pradesh forest department took several corrective steps. These included banning sal seed collection in affected areas to promote natural regeneration and prioritising restoration work in severely damaged areas. Investigations were also conducted nationally and internationally to identify potential chemical measures for sal borer control, but no effective treatment was found. There is growing concern that climate change and ecosystem degradation may lead to more frequent outbreaks of borer infestations in the future. Symptoms, such as drying of the tree top, are now being observed not only in sal but also in teak forests. The dry and moist deciduous forests of central India are becoming increasingly vulnerable due to anthropogenic pressures and climate stress. Therefore, a watershed-based and landscape-level approach is needed to address forest degradation. Under the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) framework, several countries and Indian states are implementing Sustainable Land Management (SLM) projects with the support of the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh also urgently need similar interventions for the rapid restoration of their ecosystems.
Past silvicultural practices, particularly the emphasis on even-aged systems based on coppice regeneration, have weakened forest resilience by reducing seed-based regeneration. This has led to a decline in vegetation, increased surface runoff and reduced soil moisture retention capacity. Much of the ground vegetation provides non-timber forest products, but these resources are dwindling due to land degradation, impacting the income and livelihoods of forest-dependent communities. Initiatives undertaken under the Green India Mission in Madhya Pradesh have demonstrated that degraded ecosystems can be successfully restored through integrated treatments. To mitigate the impact of sal borer in the long term, there is a strong need to launch a mega SLM project covering millions of hectares of degraded forest landscapes with the support of UNDP and other donors. Community participation will play a central role in this, requiring the revitalisation and empowerment of dormant joint forest management committees. Finally, a scientific evaluation committee should be constituted, comprising experts from Tropical Forest Research Institute (TFRI), State Forest Research Institute (Jabalpur), IIFM and experienced forest officers to assess the extent of the outbreak, the number of affected trees, and the associated ecological and socio-economic impacts. Simultaneously, it is essential to plan a SLM project under UNCCD to ensure a sustainable and long-term solution to this problem.
(Ram Prasad is a retired Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Madhya Pradesh. He refused to sign the report of the Central government committee that recommended tree felling in the 1990s. At that time, he was serving as the director of Indian Institute of Forest Management)
This article is part of the cover story Waiting to strike published in the February 1-15, 2026 print edition of Down To Earth