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Paper short abstract:

This paper explores the history of eucalyptus plantations in India and asks if the persistence of monocultures is akin to Thomas Hughes’ “technological momentum” or if it is the result of more active choices. It shall reflect on what this history can tell us about the global history of monocultures.

Paper long abstract:

Agriculture is the context in which most monocultures are studied. However some monocultures operate at the intersection of forestry and agriculture to provide a wide range of forest products. In this paper, I shall explore the history of eucalyptus plantations in India which have acquired increasing importance for a wide range of industries including pulp, paper and plywood. In broad outline, the story begins with colonial experiments, moving on to clear-felling of natural forests for eucalyptus plantation in the 1960s, World Bank-funded “social forestry” in the 1970s, more direct involvement of the paper industry in eucalyptus cultivation in the 1990s and tree plantation driven by climate-mitigation concerns in the present day.

The environmental consequences of eucalyptus are well-known to the general public as well as to policymakers, while the socio-economic impacts have been well-explored by scholars. Why then has eucalyptus seemingly only become more important (and appropriated even larger acreages) over the decades?

Answering this question necessitates exploring others: how are monocultures initiated, how do they develop momentum, what debates must they contend with and how are they shaped by opposition? Is the persistence of monocultures due to reasons akin to Thomas Hughes’ rubric of “technological momentum” or is it the result of more active policy choices by governments, farmers and international agencies? Exploring these questions, I shall reflect upon what the history of eucalyptus in postcolonial India can tell us about the global history of monocultures and about the history of postwar development in the Global South.