Man's greed and apathy , hostile soil conditions and insect attacks have over the years, been slowly but inexorably pushing pinus gerardiana, commonly called chilgoza or neoza pine, towards extinction in India. This particular pine species was found only in the Western Himalayas, Kinnaur and chamba (Pangi valley) districts of Himachal Pradesh and a small pocket (boardering Tibet) of Kashmir in India, Baluchistan province of Pakistan and some scattered areas of Afghanistan were the only places in the world where this commerically important nut bearing tree presently grew.