How will you feel if someone promises to remove an injustice you have suffered for years, but in the end leaves you suffering even more than before? Something similar appears to be happening to tribal communities in India in the context of the Forest Rights Act 2006. They were promised by the government that the historic injustice caused to them[Read More...]
To Smt Leena Nandan Secretary Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (MEFCC) Govt of India Shri A K Jha Secretary Ministry of Tribal Affairs Govt of India Dear Smt Nandan and Shri Jha, I refer to the amendment introduced by the MEFCC to the Forest (Conservation) Rules vide GSR 480(E) dated 28-6-2022, in which the procedure for[Read More...]
While nominating Mrs. Draupadi Murmu,as candidate to President of India, ruling BJP boasted a savior of tribal people. However, by proposing changes to Forest Rights Act, 2006, the government is doing quite the opposite by subverting the interests of tribal people to benefit big companies. During the current monsoon session of Indian Parliament new rules are proposed to the present[Read More...]
>> The young one had gone to the city to earn his livelihood and food for his poor family. The pandemic and lockdown stopped all work and all earnings. Thereby he had no option but to walk for 20 days under the scorching sun with little food and no shelter. After he reached, the villagers, fearing the spread of the[Read More...]
The population of Tribals (Scheduled Tribes) in Uttar Pradesh is 11.35 lakhs of which 80% are landless. That is why the Forest Rights Act – 2006 and Rules 2008 came into force for the empowerment of Tribals. Under this law, Tribals and non-Tribals living in a Reserve Forest area were to be given a lease of residential and agricultural[Read More...]
India is currently among the most affected countries by COVID19, recording 6 million cases, by the end of September 2020. The pandemic and lockdown measures have had a drastic impact on a large population of poor and marginalised forest communities, causing loss of livelihoods and employment, food insecurity and socio-economic distress. As per the findings of a preliminary assessment report,[Read More...]
GENEVA (4 July 2019) ‑ UN human rights experts* have urged the Government of India to prevent the potential eviction of up to nine million people, most of whom are forest dwellers and members of scheduled tribes with an ancestral link to the land and forest. The threat of evictions follows a 13 February order by the Supreme Court of[Read More...]
The Supreme Court order of February 13, 2019 on the forced eviction of more than 1,000,000 forest-dwelling households from forestlands across 16 states, once again brought to the fore the sharp ideological divide around the politics of ‘forest’ land ownership. Articulations by the ‘conservation’ lobby in support of the order also exposed the deep misconceptions and factual misunderstanding of the[Read More...]
FRA has struggled to recognize the comprehensive rights of vulnerable and voiceless groups. Judicial scrutiny could open the doors for communities where the law has not been implemented in letter and spirit. 13th February 2019 was a historic day for Scheduled Tribes (ST) and traditional forest dwellers in India because of an order passed pertaining to The Scheduled Tribes and[Read More...]
21 July: In a bizarre turn of events, Lila Gurung, a high school teacher in Kalimpong district in Darjeeling Hills of West Bengal was accused by the district administration of ‘anti-government activity’ and for stirring up unrest in the area as he supported the forest villagers to demand the implementation of the Forest Rights Act. Following a letter sent by[Read More...]
