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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Rules to help tribals assert forest rights-Basant Kumar Mohanty

Rules to help tribals assert forest rights-Basant Kumar Mohanty

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published Published on Jul 13, 2012   modified Modified on Jul 13, 2012
-The Telegraph
Forest Rights
The Centre today announced fresh guidelines to protect the rights of forest dwellers and “undo” years of “injustice” these tribal people have had to face over claims on land and minor produce.

Sources said the Union tribal affairs ministry, which issued the guidelines, felt the implementation of the forest rights act (FRA) had been “poor” on the ground.

“The FRA aims to undo the historic injustice made against the tribal people who have been struggling to get rights over their land and forest resources,” tribal affairs minister V. Kishore Chandra Deo, who announced the guidelines, said. “Despite four years (that) have passed since the FRA came into force, the implementation of the law has been poor in all the states.”

The guidelines address the rights of forest dwellers to harvest minor produce, a right guaranteed under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, also known as the forest rights act.

Last month, some villagers in Odisha’s Kalahandi district had complained that forest officials were denying them permission to harvest bamboo, a minor forest produce.

Another problem the guidelines deal with is ownership rights over land. The law recognises the rights of individuals and communities living in forest areas over grazing areas, water bodies and agricultural and residential land.

According to figures available with the tribal affairs ministry, some 32.22 lakh ownership claims have been filed by individuals and communities in the past four years. Only 12.63 lakh titles — or less than 50 per cent — have been distributed and nearly 15 lakh claims rejected. The rest are being processed.

The fresh guidelines say no claims can be rejected without giving the claimant the chance to present his/her case.

According to the FRA, all claims have to be ratified by the gram sabha and scrutinised by a sub-division-level committee. This committee has to forward its recommendations to a district-level committee, which takes the final decision.

“But the claimants often do not know why their claims have been rejected, so they do not appeal. The apathetic attitude of the administration is mainly responsible for the poor rate of distribution of pattas (title deeds),” said Tushar Dash, a researcher on FRA implementation at Vasundhara, an NGO in Bhubaneswar.

The guidelines said state governments should ensure that forest and revenue officials were present during verification of claims. If a claim is modified or rejected, it should be communicated to the claimant to give them a chance to contest the decision.

The guidelines said no forest dweller should be evicted for any development project till the process of recognition and conferring of ownership rights was complete.

Dash said another problem was confusion over community rights and the role of the Joint Forest Management Committees created under the act to manage resources. The guidelines have tried to address this problem, saying states should ensure that the rights of dwellers are recognised in respect of all minor produce, including bamboo.

The Telegraph, 13 July, 2012, http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120713/jsp/nation/story_15723566.jsp


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