FOREST AND ITS RESOURCES IN PRE-COLONIAL MIZORAM

Northeastern Indias Mizoram state is landlocked and surrounded by Bangladesh on the west and Myanmar on the east and south. It shares boundaries with Manipur and Assam to the north, and with Tripura to some extent to the west. The hill forests are an essential resource that indigenous groups rely on for their way of life. Because of the biomass these trees produced and the occasional removal of those woods for farming, Mizorams livelihoods were formerly totally depended on those forests. More precisely, jhuming was the only source of income for the pre-colonial Lushai civilization, with some hunting and gathering providing additional support. Thus, forest land is a pivot around which the peoples lives revolve their hunting, festivals, farming, and migration patterns all center on the area they own. People in traditional societies rely heavily on wild plants for sustenance, medicine, and leisure. That was especially true during the pre-colonial era, when the majority of items used were made of vegetative materials that could be found in the nearby forest. The sociocultural resource domain appeared to be limitless to the early inhabitants. There was not much competition for space because of the incredibly low population density.