Forest Rights Act 2006

Forest Rights Act

The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, commonly known as the Forest Rights Act (FRA), is a landmark legislation in India aimed at recognizing and vesting forest rights in Scheduled Tribes (STs) and other traditional forest dwellers. Read here to learn more about the FRA.

The Forest Rights Act was enacted to address historical injustices, promote social justice, and conserve biodiversity.

The FRA was passed 17 years ago, and it is still far from fulfilling its promise to liberate forest inhabitants from historical injustices and to democratize forest administration.

Table of Contents

History of forest rights in India

The history of forest rights in India is characterized by a complex interplay of colonial policies, traditional practices of forest-dwelling communities, and efforts to address historical injustices.

During British colonial rule, forest management policies were primarily focused on revenue generation and resource extraction, leading to the declaration of reserved forests and stringent forest regulations.

Tribal and forest-dwelling communities traditionally had symbiotic relationships with forests and faced displacement and loss of access to resources due to these policies.

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Following Independence, not much changed.

The late 20th century witnessed the emergence of the “Recognition of Forest Rights” movement, highlighting the struggles of forest-dwelling communities for recognition of their customary rights.

In 2006, the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, commonly known as the Forest Rights Act (FRA), was enacted to recognize and vest forest rights in forest-dwelling communities.

Salient Features of the Forest Rights Act (FRA) 2006

The Act identifies four types of rights:

  1. Title rights: It gives FDST and OTFD the right to ownership of land farmed by tribals or forest dwellers subject to a maximum of 4 hectares. Ownership is only for land that is being cultivated by the concerned family and no new lands will be granted.
  2. Use rights: The rights of the dwellers extend to extracting Minor Forest Produce, grazing areas, etc.
  3. Relief and development rights: To rehabilitate in case of illegal eviction or forced displacement and to basic amenities, subject to restrictions for forest protection.
  4. Forest management rights: It includes the right to protect, regenerate, conserve, or manage any community forest resource that they have been traditionally protecting and conserving for sustainable use.

Advantages of the Forest Rights Act

Disadvantages and Challenges

Way forward

The Act aims to provide a more democratic framework for forest governance, but it has been impacted by bureaucratic indifference, political opportunism, and resistance from foresters.

Some states want to recognize rights as soon as possible, but in places like Chhattisgarh, quick implementation frequently benefits the Forest Department, twisting rights and giving bureaucrats too much power.

Political leaders, bureaucrats, and environmentalists must understand and support the FRA’s core principles to address this problem. In the absence of such measures, historical injustices will persist, democratic forest governance will be absent, and the potential for community-led conservation and sustainable livelihoods will remain untapped.

-Article by Swathi Satish