Hari Singh (administrator)

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Hari Singh (1910 - 2003) was the Inspector General of Forests of India in the 1960s.^[1] In 1966 he was responsible for the creation of the Indian Forest Service to cater to the need for inter-state coordination and uniformity of approach in dealing with the scientific management of forests and the environment. The Indian Forest Service was the third all-India service to be created, the others being the Indian Administrative Service and the Indian Police Service. Having studied forestry at the Edinburgh, he joined the Bombay Presidency as a Forest Officer and set a new direction to forest management in the state. He later served as chief conservator of forests of Gujarat. Heading the Forest Department at the Centre, he is credited not only with constituting the Indian Forest service but also introducing the concept of "social forestry" in India, a policy to preserve the greenery of the area, provide firewood, prevent soil erosion as well as consolidation of unmade road shoulders. In India today there is a major wing of the Forest Department focussing on social forestry.