Our ideas in writing this monograph have been shaped by several stakeholders and scientists who are either working in the mountains or concerned for the sustainable development of the mountains. Each interaction enriched our experience and added a new dimension to understanding the status of the Indian Himalayan region. It is very difficult to acknowledge every person. First and foremost, we thankfully acknowledge the unrelenting support of Dr. Uppeandra Dhar, Director of the Institute (GBPIHED), which we got from the beginning to the final compilation of this publication. The encouragement given by Dr. D. Bandyopadhyay, Director of the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India, particularly for various activities of the ENVIS Centre at the Institute, is thankfully acknowledged. We also express our gratitude to Prof. A.R. Nautiyal, Director of High Altitude Plant Physiology Research Centre, Srinagar (Garhwal); Dr. K.G. Prasad, Ex. Director of Rain Forest Research Institute, Jorhat; and, Dr. Ramesh Chandra, Deputy Director of Anthropological Survey of India, Dehradun, for reviewing the draft of the monograph and providing valuable suggestions, which contributed a lot in improving the quality of the monograph.

            The cooperation of M/s Datanet India Private Limited, New Delhi, Central Statistical Organization, Ministry of Agricultural Cooperation, Ministry of Rural Development, Planning Commission of India, Survey of India, Forest Survey of India and several state government departments and District Statistical offices of Himalayan region in providing valuable information and the secondary data is duly acknowledged. We also acknowledge the help received from Dr. K.S. Rao, Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies on Mountain and Hill Environment (CISMHE), University of Delhi, in providing valuable inputs on the preliminary draft of this document.  The support of Dr. Subrat Sharma in GIS-mapping and Dr. R.C. Prasad in the collection of secondary data as well as references from the GBPIHED library is gratefully acknowledged. The help of Ms. Rashmi Pant in web publishing and Mr. D.S. Negi in computer assistance is also acknowledged.

            Lastly, but above all, our gratitude goes to the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India, for providing continuous financial support to the ENVIS Centre on Himalayan ecology at the Institute (GBPIHED) w.e.f. the financial year 1992-93.

 

Kosi-Katarmal (Almora)

December 2006.                                                                                            Authors