Date:20/11/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/11/20/stories/2007112062111100.htm

National

Ecologists “baffled” at Forest Act rules delay

Special Correspondent

Technical Support Group members write to Tribal Affairs Minister to ensure speedy notification

Act passed unanimously by both Houses of Parliament 11 months ago
There are several reports of massive eviction of poor forest dwellers

NEW DELHI: Members of the Technical Support Group (TSG) have written to the Union Tribal Affairs Minister to ensure speedy notification of the rules of the Scheduled Tribes And Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition Of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 so that the legislation could be implemented.

“As members of the TSG formed by your Ministry to draft the rules to operationalise the Act, we are deeply disturbed by the baffling delay in the notification.”

The Act was passed unanimously by both Houses of Parliament 11 months ago and received Presidential assent 10 days later.

After the rules were drafted by the TSG (comprising ecologists, environmentalists, social scientists, government officials and social activists,) in May 2007, the government held internal discussions and put out the MoTA Draft Rules for public scrutiny and comment. The deadline for public comments was August 3.

“The Act should not be seen as going against the interests of conservation. It contains adequate safeguards for protecting flora/fauna in Protected Areas, going to the extent of permitting modification of the rights of forest dwellers (including physical relocation) in those areas within national parks and wildlife sanctuaries that need to be kept inviolate. However, this involves two steps, the prior and complete recognition and vesting of rights, so that the residents of these areas are able to get full compensation in case they are subsequently displaced, followed by a case-by-case scientific and objective assessment including public consultation that human activity is harmful.”

The longer the time lapse between the cut-off date of December 2005 and the notification, the more blurred the ground situation would become. “There are already several reports of massive eviction of poor forest dwellers from areas occupied by them for generations, taking advantage of the delay in the notification.” Signatories to the letter are Dr. S.R. Sankaran, chairperson, TSG on Rules, B.D. Sharma, Kumar Shiralkar, Madhav Gadgil, Madhu Sarin, Nandini Sundar, Pradip Prabhu, Ram Dayal Munda and Smita Gupta.