Community Rights & Forest Conservation

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Why in the News?
• About Community Forest Resource
• What are Community Forest Resource Rights?
• Forest Conservation in India
• Key Features of the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023
• What is Compensatory Afforestation?
• Positive Takeaway from the Forest Amendment Bill
• Criticism of the Forest Amendment Bill

About Community Forest Resource

• The community forest resource area is the common forest land that has been traditionally protected and conserved for sustainable use by a particular community.
• Each CFR area has a customary boundary with identifiable landmarks recognised by the community and its neighbouring villages.
  • It may include forest of any category– revenue forest, classified & unclassified forest, deemed forest, DLC land, reserve forest, protected forest, sanctuary and national parks etc.

What are Community Forest Resource Rights?

• Community Forest Resource Rights are mentioned under Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act.
  • The act is commonly referred to as the Forest Rights Act or the FRA.
  • The FRA came into force in 2008.
• It provides for recognition of the right to "protect, regenerate or conserve or manage" the community forest resource.
• These rights allow the community to formulate rules for forest use by itself and others and thereby discharge its responsibilities under the FRA.
• CFR rights, along with Community Rights (CRs), which include nistar rights and rights over non-timber forest products, ensure sustainable livelihoods of the community.
  • Nistar rights are a concession granted to villagers and agriculturists to remove forest produce from forest coupes.
  • The produce is for bona fide domestic use, not for barter sale.
• Under this, Gram Sabha has the authority to adopt local traditional practices of forest conservation and management within the community forest resource boundary.

Forest Conservation in India

• The Indian Forest Act, 1927 was framed with the objective of managing timber and other forest resources.
• It provides for state governments to notify any forest land they own as reserved or protected forests.
  • All land rights in such land are subject to the provisions of the Act.
• The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, was enacted to prevent large-scale deforestation.
• It requires the central government’s approval for any diversion of forest land for non-forest purposes.
• The Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment and Forests (2019) noted that pressure on forest land has increased due to several reasons such as industry demands, agriculture, and demand for forest produce.
• The 1980 Act specifies certain restrictions on diverting forest land for non-forest purposes.
• The Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023 modifies the criteria for including and excluding forest land from the purview of the Act.

Key Features of the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023

• Land under the Purview of the Act:
  • The Bill provides that two types of land will be under the purview of the Act:
    • land declared/notified as a forest under the Indian Forest Act, 1927 or under any other law, or
    • land not covered in the first category but notified as a forest on or after October 25, 1980 in a government record.
• Exempted Categories of Land:
  • The Bill exempts certain types of land from the provisions of the Act, such as forest land along a rail line or a public road maintained by the government.
• Assignment/Leasing of Foreign Land:
  • Under the Act, a state government requires prior approval of the central government to assign forest land to any entity not owned or controlled by government.
  • In the Bill, this condition is extended to all entities, including those owned and controlled by government.
  • It also requires that prior approval be subject to terms and conditions prescribed by the central government.
• Permitted Activities in Forest Land:
  • The Act restricts the de-reservation of forests or use of forest land for non-forest purposes.
  • Such restrictions may be lifted with the prior approval of the central government.
  • Non-forest purposes include use of land for cultivating horticultural crops or for any purpose other than reafforestation.
  • The Act specifies certain activities that will be excluded from non-forest purposes, meaning that restrictions on the use of forest land for non-forest purposes will not apply.
  • The Bill adds more activities to this list such as:
    • zoos and safaris under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 owned by the government or any authority, in forest areas other than protected areas,
    • ecotourism facilities,
    • silvicultural operations (enhancing forest growth), and
    • any other purpose specified by the central government.
• Power to Issue Directions –
  • The Bill adds that the central government may issue directions for the implementation of the Act to any authority/organisation under or recognized by the center, state, or union territory (UT).

What is Compensatory Afforestation?

• Compensatory afforestation, as outlined in the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023, encompasses various projects and schemes that can be undertaken by both private individuals and organisations (including large corporations) for afforestation or reforestation purposes.
• The Compensatory Afforestation Act encountered significant challenges in the past, primarily due to ambiguities in the original legislation and shortage of available land.
• The goal of the new amendment is to streamline the process.
  • However, there is apprehension regarding the potential environmental implications of this amendment.
• The law mandates that for every parcel of land that is lost due to afforestation efforts, an equivalent amount of land must be afforested elsewhere.

Positive Take-away from the Forest Amendment Bill

• Some of the proposed amendments specify where the Act does not apply.
• Other amendments specifically encourage the practice of cultivating plantations on non-forest land that could, over time, increase tree cover, act as a carbon sink, and aid India’s ambition of being ‘net zero’ in terms of emissions by 2070.
• The amendments would also remove the 1980 Act’s restrictions on creating infrastructure that would aid national security and create livelihood opportunities for those living on the periphery of forests.

Criticism of the Forest Amendment Bill

• Objections were raised to various aspects of the Bill, including complaints that the proposed amendments “diluted” the Supreme Court’s 1996 judgement in the Godavarman case.
  • In the judgement, the Court extended protection to wide tracts of forests, even if they were not recorded as forests.
  • The Environment Ministry refuted this point and argued that provisions in the Bill guarded against such situations.
• The Bill has invited opposition from multiple quarters, including some north-eastern States who objected that vast tracts of forest land would be unilaterally taken away for defence purposes.

Q1) What do you mean by ‘Reserved Forests’?

Reserved forests are the protected forests with the natural habitat that has a high degree of protection from any kind of hunting and poaching.

Q2) What is Carbon Sink?

A carbon sink is anything that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases – for example, plants, the ocean and soil.

Source: Community rights and forest conservation | Explained