Fig. 9 
50 
dignity - is the most fundamental of all human rights, 
but unfortunately, this is not enjoyed by a large part of 
human kind today. The world remains starkly divided 
between the rich and the poor - between those who 
enjoy the resources of the earth and can worry about its 
future and those who have to scrape the soil for less than 
bare survival. Economic security today can become the 
very basis of ecological security tomorrow. An 
internationally guaranteed ‘right to survive 1 backed up 
with appropriate programmes like space technology and 
remote sensing technology will only assure ecological 
and environmental regeneration. 
7. FOREST MANAGEMENT NEEDS 
7.1 Information needs in Forest Management 
The information on the quality, distribution and the 
growing stocks of the forest areas are required to prepare 
working plans. The working plan data is gathered for 
this purpose every ten years, using ground-sampling 
techniques at divisional level. The compartment level 
data relating to various factors is also maintained in the 
form of maps and tables. The growing stock by species 
and stands of different site qualities are also mentioned. 
Detailed forest cover type maps are needed for laying of 
individual felling coupes, planning of roads, firelines, 
wildlife management etc. 
The present practice of manual data collection and 
storing in registers, history sheets, field formats, periodic 
reports etc. is cumbersome and not easily retrievable and 
manageable because of sheer size and non-uniformity. 
Ground surveys take a lot of time, money and labour to 
prepare stock maps. Satellite data combined with latest 
data processing technology holds potential to provide 
above information and update in desired interval. 
7.2 Information needs in Wildlife Management 
The factual information on habitat parameters i.e. 
food, water and shelter is required to evolve plan for 
protected area. The data on human interventions and 
impacts on wildlife are becoming increasingly 
important. Remote sensing provides reliable data on 
three vital parameters viz., shelter, water and food, 
which when integrated with other field data in G IS, can 
help in wildlife habitat evaluation and management. 
8. CONCLUSION 
Apart from direct benefits, space technology has 
clearly demonstrated the interconnectivity of both 
natural and anthropogenic phenomena occurring any 
where in the earth, through weather, climate, geosphere 
and biosphere, inextricably linking the fate of each 
country with that of the world as a whole. Unless 
sustainable integrated development strategies based on 
space remote sensing and biotechnological inputs 
consistent with societal demands and cultural practices 
are adopted in a world wide scale, it will not be possible 
to ensure environmental security in the coining decades.