NCST Concerns Over Forest (Conservation) Rules 2022

NCST Concerns Over Forest (Conservation) Rules 2022

Subject : Polity

Context: The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) stated that the Forest (Conservation) Rules (FCR) 2022, violate the rights of the Scheduled Tribes mentioned under the Forest Rights Act, 2006.

• Raising concerns over the provision in the new rules that proposes to do away with the consent clause for the diversion of forest land for other purposes, the Commission recommended that these rules should be put on hold immediately.

New Forest Conservation Rules

• The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) notified the new Forest (Conservation) Rules, 2022, but it does not mention the earlier requirement of attaining a Gram Sabha NOC (No Objection Certificate) before diverting forest land for a project.
• It allows forest rights to be settled after the final approval for forest clearances has been granted by the Centre, a point flagged by critics.
• The settling of forest rights now needs to be carried out by the state government instead of the Centre, as was the case earlier.
• It constituted an Advisory Committee, a regional empowered committee at each of the integrated regional offices and a screening committee at the State/Union Territory (UT) government level. The role of the Advisory Committee is restricted to advising or recommending the grant of approval.
• The MoEFCC has directed the constitution of a project screening committee in each state/UT for an initial review of proposals involving the diversion of forest land.
• The five-member committee will meet at least twice every month and will advise the state governments on projects in a time-bound manner.
• All non-mining projects between 5-40 hectares must be reviewed within 60 days and all such mining projects must be reviewed within 75 days.
• For projects involving a larger area, the committee gets some more time — 120 days for non-mining projects involving more than 100 hectares and 150 days for mining projects.
• All linear projects (roads, highways, etc), projects involving forest land up to 40 hectares and those that have projected use of forest land having a canopy density up to 0.7 shall be examined in the Integrated Regional Office.
• The applicants for diverting forest land in a hilly or mountainous state with green cover covering more than two-thirds of its geographical area, or in a state/UT with forest cover covering more than one-third of its geographical area, will be able to take up compensatory afforestation in other states/UTs where the cover is less than 20%.

Forest Rights Act, 2006

The Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006 recognizes the rights of the forest dwelling tribal communities and other traditional forest dwellers to forest resources, on which these communities were dependent for a variety of needs, including livelihood, habitation and other socio-cultural needs.

• The Act encompasses Rights of Self-cultivation and Habitation which are usually regarded as Individual rights; and Community Rights as Grazing, Fishing and access to Water bodies in forests, Habitat Rights for PVTGs, Traditional Seasonal Resource access of Nomadic and Pastoral community, access to biodiversity, community right to intellectual property and traditional knowledge, recognition of traditional customary rights and right to protect, regenerate or conserve or manage any community forest resource for sustainable use.
• It also provides rights to allocation of forest land for developmental purposes to fulfil basic infrastructural needs of the community.
• In conjunction with the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Settlement Act, 2013 FRA protects the tribal population from eviction without rehabilitation and settlement.
• The Act further enjoins upon the Gram Sabha and rights holders the responsibility of conservation and protection of bio-diversity, wildlife, forests, adjoining catchment areas, water sources and other ecologically sensitive areas as well as to stop any destructive practices affecting these resources or cultural and natural heritage of the tribals. The Gram Sabha is also a highly empowered body under the Act, enabling the tribal population to have a decisive say in the determination of local policies and schemes impacting them.
• Thus, the Act empowers the forest dwellers to access and use the forest resources in the manner that they were traditionally accustomed, to protect, conserve and manage forests, protect forest dwellers from unlawful evictions and also provides for basic development facilities for the community of forest dwellers to access facilities of education, health, nutrition, infrastructure etc.