Forest conservation vis-a vis Tribals’ Rights
Forest Rights Act, 2006: A Perspective
The Forest Rights Act, 2006, was enacted to protect the rights of forest dwelling
communities to land and other resources of the forest which are essential for their
livelihood.
The Forest Rights Act, 2006 also gives the forest dwellers rights to use minor
forest produce along with community rights.
The Forest Rights holders are also bound to protect and conserve biodiversity,
wildlife as well as forest resources of the area.
1. The Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers
(Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, was passed on the 18th of
December, 2006. This Act is also known as the Forest Rights Act.
2. This act was enacted to recognize and vest forest rights and occupation of
forest land for scheduled tribes and other traditional forest dwellers.
3. These people have been residing in forests for generations, but
unfortunately, their rights have not been recorded.
4. The Act provides the right to hold and live in forest land for habitation or
for self-cultivation for livelihood by a member or members of a Forest
Dwelling Scheduled Tribe (FDSTs) or Other Traditional Forest Dwellers
(OTFDs).
5. It gives the right of ownership, access to collect, use and dispose of minor
forest produce which has been traditionally collected within or outside
village boundaries.
6. The act also provides for community rights and rights of entitlement such
as fish and other products of water bodies, etc.
7. Habitat rights for primitive tribal groups and pre-agricultural communities.
8. Right to Protect, regenerate or conserve any community forest resource,
which they have been traditionally protecting and conserving for
sustainable use.
9. Right to in-situ rehabilitation in cases of illegal eviction or displacement
[Link] of settlement and conversion of all forest villages, old habitation,
etc. into revenue villages.
[Link], conversion of forest villages into revenue villages is to be
adjudicated by the Gram Sabha Sub-divisional level committee and the
District Level Committee as per the procedure.
Who are Forest Dwellers
1. The Act defines its beneficiaries as ‘Forest Dwelling Scheduled Tribes’,
which means the members of the Scheduled Tribes who primarily reside
in forests and depend on them for livelihood needs.
2. ‘Other Traditional Forest Dwellers’ refers to any person who has for at
least three generations prior to December 2005, primarily resided in
forests and who depend on them for livelihood.
3. It is important to note that anyone who is dwelling in forests isn’t a
traditional forest dweller.
4. Along with the rights, the holders of forest rights also have certain duties
to perform.
Duties of the Holders of Forest Rights
1. They have to protect the wildlife, forest and biodiversity.
2. They have to ensure that the habitat of forest dwelling scheduled tribes
and other traditional forest dwellers is preserved from any form of
destructive practices affecting their cultural and natural heritage.
3. Ensure that the decisions taken in the Gram Sabha to regulate access to
community forest resources and stop any activity which adversely affects
wild animals, forests, and biodiversity are complied with.
4. The act also provides for a diversion of forest land for public utility
facilities managed by the government like schools, dispensaries, fair price
shops, electricity and telecommunication lines, water tanks, etc. with the
recommendation of the Gram Sabhas.
5. However, any of these facilities should not involve the felling of more
than 75 trees per hectare.
It is important to note the challenges faced by tribals and forest dwellers along
with the steps being undertaken by the Government.
1. The Supreme Court’s stay on its earlier order has once again focussed
attention on the challenges faced by tribals in India. Issues of tribal
development, integration, and autonomy, have confronted Indian society
right from the British rule.
2. The complex nature of the tribal population has made their integration and
autonomy, even more difficult. Autonomy allows development policies to
be shaped to help tribal culture and lifestyle. However, at the same time,
leaving the tribals in their own state only deepens the divide between the
mainstream and the tribals.
3. If tribals are integrated into the mainstream, their own needs and desires
are neglected. Also, exploitation of forests would get accelerated as most
of the mineral resources fall in forest and tribal areas.
4. Tribal lands can get rapidly acquired for new mining and infrastructure
projects.
Issues Faced By Tribals
1. Small and uneconomical landholdings that give less yield and keep them
chronically indebted.
2. The Tribals mostly follow simple occupations based on simple technology.
3. Most of their occupations fall into the primary occupations like hunting,
gathering, and agriculture. Their technology belongs to the most primitive
kind.
4. Only a small percentage of the tribal populations participate in secondary
and tertiary sectors.
5. Besides this, the literacy rates among the tribal populations are very low.
6. After independence, many steel plants, power projects and large dams
came up in tribal inhabited areas.
7. Mining activities were also accelerated in tribal areas.
8. Acquisition of tribal land for these projects led to large scale displacement
of the tribal population.
9. Because of economic backwardness, tribals face health problems, like
malaria, cholera, tuberculosis, diarrhoea, and jaundice.
[Link] are also problems such as tribal populations falling prey to
malnutrition, iron deficiency, anaemia, high infant mortality rates, low
levels of life expectancy, among others.
[Link] of the natural environment, particularly through the
destruction of forests, and a rapidly shrinking resource base, has also
harmed tribal women.
[Link], extinction of tribal dialects, and languages indicate an erosion of
tribal identity in certain areas.
Steps taken by the Government
1. The Constitution of India provides for the special provisions relating to
Scheduled Tribes.
2. Article 342 of the Constitution of India lays down that the President of
India may specify the tribes or tribal communities or part of or groups
within tribes or tribal communities or parts which shall be deemed
Scheduled Tribes.
3. Article 164 of the Constitution of India provides for a Ministry of Tribal
Welfare in each of the State of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha which
have large concentrations of Scheduled Tribes population.
4. Article 244 of the Constitution of India provides a fifth Schedule in the
Constitution of India for incorporating provisions for the administration of
Scheduled Areas and Tribes of the States which have sizeable tribal
population.
5. The Constitution of India prescribes protection and safeguards for
Scheduled Tribes to promote their educational and economic interests.
6. Under Article 330 and 332 of the Indian Constitution, seats have been
reserved for Scheduled Tribes in Lok Sabha and state Vidhan Sabhas.
7. The Government has also made provisions for their adequate
representation in the services.
8. *‘Scheduled Areas’ have been declared in the States of Andhra Pradesh,
Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Himachal Pradesh
and Rajasthan.
9. The Scheme of administration of Scheduled Areas under the Fifth Schedule
visualises a division of responsibility between the State and Union
Governments.
[Link] Fifth Schedule of the Constitution of India provides for the setting up
of Tribes’ Advisory Council in each of the States having Scheduled Areas.
[Link] Article 338 of the Constitution of India, a Commissioner has been
appointed by the President of India to investigate all matters relating to the
safeguards for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and to report to the
President on the working of these safeguards.
[Link], measures to provide educational facilities have been taken by the
Government.
[Link] is being laid on vocational and technical training.
[Link] Central Government awards scholarships to deserving students for
higher studies in foreign countries.
[Link] research institutes, which undertake intensive studies of tribal arts,
culture, and customs, have been setup in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha,
Rajasthan, and West Bengal.