NTCA letter to expedite forest relocation from tiger zones draws activist ire

Sub: Env

Sec: Env legislation

NTCA’s Request for Village Relocation in Tiger Zones:

NTCA asked 19 States to prioritise relocating villagers from core tiger zones, sparking protests from activists and organisations.
NTCA highlighted that 591 villages with 64,801 families still reside in core tiger zones, posing a concern for tiger conservation.
The letter specifically mentioned Karnataka, which has relocated 1,175 families from 81 villages since 1973.
Core zones in tiger reserves prohibit human habitation, while buffer zones allow regulated activities.

Status of Relocation and Legal Concerns:

India has 53 tiger reserves across 19 States with 848 villages (89,808 families) in core zones. Since 1973, 257 villages (25,007 families) have been relocated.
Wildlife laws mandate core zones to be “inviolate,” with relocation meant to be voluntary under agreed terms.

National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA):

The Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972, as revised in 2006, gives the National Tiger Conservation Jurisdiction, a statutory agency under the Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change, authority over wildlife.
The authority is headed by the Minister in charge of the Ministry of Environment and Forests, and its other members include three members of Parliament, the Secretary to the Ministry of Environment and Forests, and the Minister of State.
The mandate includes Project Tiger implementation and monitoring, tiger preservation efforts on the ground, science-based tiger and habitat monitoring utilising cutting-edge technological techniques, and financial and technical support for tiger reserves in India.

Aspect	Core Zone (Critical Wildlife Habitats)	Buffer Area
Definition	Area free of biotic disturbances, where human activities like grazing, collection of forest produce, and forestry operations are prohibited.	Area around the core zone providing supplementary habitat for dispersing tigers and allowing regulated human activity.
Purpose	Dedicated to tiger conservation while ensuring no impact on the rights of Scheduled Tribes and other forest dwellers.	Supports tiger movement and offers scope for co-existence between human activity and wildlife conservation.
Notification Authority	Notified by the State Government in consultation with an Expert Committee.	Limits determined based on scientific and objective criteria in consultation with the Gram Sabha and an Expert Committee.
Legal Basis	Envisaged in the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006.	Defined and regulated by State Government and local communities based on specific ecological and human-use factors.
Authority to Declare	Central Government (Ministry of Environment and Forests) is responsible for the final declaration of Critical Wildlife Habitats.	Buffer areas are managed by the State Government and local communities in alignment with conservation and human activity needs.