High resolution mapping of bamboo distribution and potential in India

By Ashwini Chhatre, Abhinash Patra, Abhijeet Parmar, Pushpendra Rana

Citation

Chhatre, Ashwini., Patra, Abhinash., Parmar, Abhijeet., Rana, Pushpendra. High resolution mapping of bamboo distribution and potential in India .

Abstract

We present the first high-resolution map of existing bamboo distribution and areas suitable for bamboo growth in India. Our study demonstrates a scalable approach to produce high-resolution bamboo distribution and suitability maps using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 satellite data. We incorporate phenological characteristics and structural parameters into a Random Forest classifier to achieve an overall accuracy of 88%, trained and validated with ground truth data from 176 plots across different forest types in India. We estimate bamboo to be present over ~230,000 sq. km, and we identify ~59,000 sq. km as suitable for plantation or cultivation of bamboo. We also identify areas for bamboo cultivation under priority restoration classes, integrating water erosion status and biophysical factors. These findings emphasize bamboo's dual ecological and socio-economic role, supporting carbon sequestration, landscape restoration, and rural livelihoods. The methodology establishes a framework for bamboo resource management and feasibility planning. The study aligns with climate action goals, offering critical insights into scaling nature-based solutions globally.

Ashwini Chhatre is an Associate Professor of Public Policy and currently serves as the Executive Director of the Bharti Institute of Public Policy (BIPP) at the Indian School of Business (ISB). Professor Chhatre is an interdisciplinary scholar whose research interests broadly centre on the dynamic cross-scale interactions between governance, economic development, and environmental protection. He relocated to India from the US in 2014 to join the faculty at the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad. He spent 13 years in the US, including five in graduate school at Duke University, where he was awarded a PhD in Political Science. In 2006-07, Professor Chhatre became the first Giorgio Ruffolo Post-doctoral Fellow in Sustainability Science at Harvard University, before joining the Department of Geography and Geographic Information Science at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.

Between completing his BA in Economics from the University of Delhi in 1990 and starting his PhD at Duke University, he spent 11 years working in different parts of India, primarily as a community organiser and social activist on issues related to natural resources such as land, forests, and water. A background in Economics, graduate training in Political Science, and a long-standing engagement with scholarship in Geography, Anthropology, Landscape Ecology, and Environmental History ensure that his research is never confined to a single discipline.

Professor Chhatre’s main research interests lie in exploring the intersection of democracy, environment, and development, with a focus on decentralised forest governance, climate change vulnerability and adaptation, and multifunctional agriculture. Over the past 20 years, the scope of his research projects has ranged from household-level to global analysis, consistently bridging research, policy, and practice.

He was the founding Editor-in-Chief of World Development Perspectives (2016-19), served as Senior Editor of Conservation Letters (2009-2014), and has published one book and several articles in leading journals including Science, and PNAS.

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Ashwini Chhatre