The deficit between demand and supply of all forms of wood was realised by the Government of India as early as 1961 after the publication of part Report of the National Commission on Agriculture. Consequently greater emphasis was laid on plantation activities, although some States had started plantation right from the beginning of Five Year Development Plans. Even prior to that, first recorded plantations of deodar and cypress in the country were raised in 1835, teak and eucalyptus in 1842 and wattle in Nilgiris. Further, plantations for industries was taken up first in Karnataka and the species was Eucalyptus hybrid called Mysogum. Since then industrial plantations have been raised in different States of the country. This paper reviews industrial plantations raised in the country under different schemes for various purposes, both inside and outside the recorded forest areas, and highlights the need for raising plantations fo short rotation species like eucalyptus, casuarina, poplar meeting a growing demand of raw material for wood based industries.