Colonial forest conservation in Cachar leads to disforestation and agricultural expansion.
The research looks at how the British managed forests in Cachar to boost the economy. They created reserve forests to protect them from being cut down. The study shows that agriculture expansion and tea plantations led to deforestation in the region. The forest area in Cachar is being turned into farmland, impacting the reserve forests. The British introduced the Reserve Forest to help tea planters, but this led to demographic changes and loss of forest cover in the district.