Forests are an important natural resource, and also play a major role in ecological balance. With economic growth and development, pressure on the immensely valuable natural forests is increasing. The depletion of natural forests triggers many environmental and social problems. Of the many attempts that have been made towards conservation of our natural forest resources, Social Forestry (SF) has emerged as a champion. Sf provides fuel, fodder and many minor products that have contributed substantially in reducing the pressure on natural forests. Although SF was introduced in India way back in 1980’s, it did not gain much success initially. With experience a new attempt was made after 2000 that had an increased participation of community. Thane district in the state of Maharashtra, India is a unique example of such a success story, where the forest officials along with the community have produced unprecedented results in the success of SF. This paper is an attempt to look into this success story