Where in India are the Sundari trees that provide durable and hard timber found?

The correct answer is Mangrove Forests.Key Points

• The Sundari trees, also known by their scientific name Heritiera fomes, are found in the mangrove forests in India, specifically, the Sundarbans - one of the largest continuous mangrove forests in the world.
• The Sundarbans, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is named after the Sundari tree.
• It is located in the delta region of the Padma, Meghna and Brahmaputra river basins, sprawling across Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal.
• These trees are well-adapted to the saline and waterlogged environment of the mangrove forests.
• The Sundari tree provides high-quality timber which is durable, hard and resistant to termites, earning high commercial value.
• However, their numbers have been declining due to climate change, rising sea levels, and logging activities, leading to conservation concerns.

Additional Information

• India is known for its wide biodiversity and it hosts various types of forests. According to the classification done by Champion and Seth, the forests of India are divided into the following major types:
• Tropical Evergreen Forests: Found in regions with annual rainfall above 200cm. No distinct dry season. Major states: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, parts of North Eastern states, a narrow strip of the Western slope of the Western Ghats.
• Tropical Semi-Evergreen Forests: Found in regions with rainfall between 200cm to 100cm. Major states: Assam, West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and the plateau region of Maharashtra.
• Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests: Rainfall between 200 cm to 70 cm. Dry season varies from 1-2 months to 6-8 months. Major states: Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.
• Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests: Rainfall between 100 cm to 70 cm. Major states: Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu.
• Tropical Thorn Forests: Found in areas with rainfall less than 70 cm. Major regions: Northwestern part of the country - Rajasthan, Gujarat, parts of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
• Montane Forests: Forests in the mountainous areas, further divided into:
  • Wet Montane Forests: Found in Western Ghats, hills of Assam, and Tamil Nadu.
  • Moist temperate Montane Forests: Areas with annual rainfall between 200 cm to 100 cm.
  • Dry temperate Montane Forests: Rainfall can go as low as 30 cm per year.
• Littoral and Swamp Forests: These include all tidal forests in the country. Major areas: Sunderbans in West Bengal and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• Mangrove Forests: Found in intertidal zones along the coast, particularly in the Sunderbans, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, deltas of the major rivers such as the Godavari, Krishna, and Mahanadi.