SHISHAM
- ENVIRONMENT
News:
CITES relaxes
restrictions on export of Indian shisham products
What's
in the news?
●
The Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species (CITES) relaxed restrictions on the export of furniture and handicrafts
made of North Indian rosewood or shisham (Dalbergia
sissoo).
Key
takeaways:
●
The restrictions on export of all shisham
products were imposed when CITES added the species to Appendix II of the
Convention in 2017.
●
This dealt a long-term blow to the
country’s furniture and handicrafts industry.
Shisham:
●
Dalbergia
sissoo, also known as North
Indian rosewood or shisham, is a deciduous rosewood tree native to the
Indian subcontinent and southern Iran.
●
It is commonly found growing in the wild in India and the sub-Himalayan region.
Features:
●
It is a crooked, large tree with long,
leathery leaves and pink or whitish
flowers.
●
The species known as Dalbergia sissoo is
widely recognized as a high-quality type of rosewood that is traded
internationally.
●
It also serves as an important source of fuelwood, while also providing shade, shelter, and fodder.
●
It has an ability to produce multiple
products due to its characteristics of withstanding
light frosts, and tolerating long dry seasons.
●
Hardwoods come from dicot trees found in
tropical forests, and they grow at a slower pace and are generally larger than
softwood trees.
○
The lignin
lining in their xylem vessels makes hardwood trees much stronger than softwood
trees.
Usage:
●
The most common use of Sheesham wood is
for timber.
●
It is also used as fuelwood and for
providing shade and shelter.
●
It is also used as poles, posts, tool
handles, fodder, erosion control and as a windbreak.
●
An ethanolic
extract of Dalbergia sissoo
fruits had molluscicidal effects on
the eggs of Biomphalaria pfeifferi, a
freshwater snail and hence used as a pesticide.
●
Oil
is extracted from the seed and tannin from the bark.
CITES
status of Dalbergia sissoo:
●
Shisham (Dalbergia sissoo) is included in Appendix II of the convention, there by
requiring countries to follow CITES regulations for the trade of the species.
●
As of now every consignment of weight
above 10 kg requires a CITES permit.
Indian
Status:
●
In India, the species Dalbergia sissoo is
found in abundance and is not treated as
an endangered species.