Indian Journal of Natural Products and Resources Vol. 6 (4), December 2015, pp. 320-325 Livelihood promotion through value addition to household traditional Sal (Shorea robusta Gaertn.) leaf plate making in Jharkhand, India M A Islam 1* , S M S Quli 2 , R Rai 3 and P K Singh 4 1 Faculty of Forestry, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology of Kashmir, Wadura, Sopore-193201, Jammu & Kashmir, India 2 Faculty of Forestry, Birsa Agricultural University, Kanke, Ranchi-834006, Jharkhand, India 3 Tropical Forest Research Institute, ICFRE, P.O. R.F.R.C., Jabalpur-482021, Madhya Pradesh, India 4 Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society, Dhurwa, Ranchi-834004 Received 22 October 2014; Accepted 6 September 2015 The study sought to investigate the status of traditional Sal leaf plate making, its present livelihood contributions and future prospects through value addition by mechanized moulding among ethnic households engaged in the profession in Bundu block of Ranchi district in Jharkhand, India. The sample villages were selected using random sampling technique and all the households owning cottage industries of Sal leaf plate making were selected as representative respondents for household survey employing purposive sampling technique. The data on production, seasonality, employment generation, income earning and marketing were collected through personal structured interviews and direct observations. Value addition by mechanized pressing of raw Sal leaf plates may increase income by ` 24100/ household/ yr (96.40 %) and employment by 50 mandays/ household/ yr (12.50 %). Hence, it may be a crucial intervention to accelerate forest resources based livelihood diversifications, promotion and development. Keywords: Jharkhand, Livelihood promotion, Sal leaf plate making, Shorea robusta Gaertn., Value addition IPC code; Int. cl. (2015.01)- A61K 36/00 Introduction The forests in India play an important roles in the socio-economy, culture and livelihoods of millions of forest dependent rural people by providing subsistence income, employment, energy, nutritious foods, fodder, housing materials, medicines and a wide range of goods and ecosystem services 1,2 . The collection of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) like fuel wood, fodder, timber, lac, fibers, floss, medicines, vegetables, tubers, roots, leaves, fruits, bush meat, housing materials, etc. derived from forests are an integral part of day-to-day livelihood activities for tribal people 3,4 . India has a huge population living in the villages close to the forests with their livelihoods critically linked to the forest ecosystem 5 . NTFPs collection, processing and sale is a major livelihood intervention for the people living in these forest fringe villages 6,7 and income for households living in and around forests constitutes 40 to 60 % of their total income 8-10 . The NTFPs provide local job opportunities to two million people living in and around the forest area every year and contribute significantly to rural economy 11,12 . Production and consumption of NTFPs have never appeared as resources of great economics and ecological importance at macro level, but contribute a minor share to the national economy in comparison to commercial timber 13 . However, at micro level, tribal people living in and around forests for centuries have recognized NTFPs as important forests resources for livelihood security 14 . Despite living in resource rich areas the tribal people are in underprivileged condition having extremely unsecured livelihoods 1 and are extremely vulnerable to ill health, economic dislocation and natural disasters. They are trapped in low-wage low-skilled work with little job security, inadequate food and shelter, deprivations of basic education and health, lack of clean water and sanitation 15 . Hence, livelihood security at the household level in forest dwelling communities through value addition of NTFPs has received increasing attention among social scientists and policy makers 16,17 . The Jharkhand state is bestowed with abundant forest resources, biodiversity and tribal population 18 . The NTFPs are the 2 nd important contributor to the total livelihood income among tribal households in _____________ *Correspondent author E-mail: ajaz_jsr@yahoo.co.in; ajaztata@gmail.com