Jalthal, a subtropical forest covers an area of 6000 hectare remnant moist tropical forest of Southeast Nepal, which is the only remaining patch of the moist tropical forest of the country. The forest provides diverse ecosystems (lakes, rivers, forest, grasslands, and hillocks) with several threatened floras (Artocarpus chaplasha Roxb., Cycas pectinata, Magnolia champaca, Rauvolfia serpentina, Dioscorea deltoidea) faunas (Indian pangolin, Asiatic elephant, Gharial, great hornbill), and has unique assemblages of tropical and subtropical plant species. The forest is managed by 22 Community Forest User Groups (CFUGs) and is an important livelihood source for over 80,000 local people, including marginalized indigenous groups (Meche, Dhimal, and Rajbanshi).
Green Governance Nepal (GGN) prepared this management plan to initiate collective actions for biodiversity conservation and sustainable management of resources of the entire patch of forest.