Spread over just 1800 acres of forested land, the Dumna forest reserve is home to 57 of the 422 mammal species found in India and has 109 varieties of trees. It is located about 40 meters above the town of Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh and is governed by the Jabalpur Municipal Corporation.

It boasts of woodlands, grasslands, wetlands and therefore is considered to be a self-sustaining ecosystem. However, while Dumna is conserved as a natural habitat, it is still not a part of any protected areas.

But, now the mini jungle of Jabalpur is facing an increasing threat from various development projects including a tiger reserve, a four-lane road, and an institute that is being proposed or already cleared around it.

• While a tiger reserve could be useful for educational purposes, the construction alone poses a major threat to the forest and the pressure of people and vehicles visiting every day could severely harm the wildlife. 
• The illegal construction of an institute called IITDM, which took place without environmental clearance from the central government already threaten the animals by putting barbed wires over the boundary walls.
• Petitioners have conveyed their concerns over the felling of trees around Dumna. A PIL said that 300 trees had already been cut so far.

According to the Indian State Forest Report 2019, Madhya Pradesh has the highest forest cover in India. However, there is a decrease in the forest cover of Jabalpur. The history of our country is filled with the destruction of nature in the name of development.

But can we really call it ‘development’ if it comes at such a great cost? In the long run, these advancements could negatively impact us in the form of natural disasters. We cannot let these fairy tales of growth blind us to reality.

(The article was shared by @ClimateFrontIndia)