Govt asked to implement forest policy

SHILLONG: Congress MDC from Rambrai-Jyrngam Bajop Pyngrope has said the government should implement the National Forest Policy 1988 pertaining to the need to associate tribal people in the protection, regeneration and development of forest.
In a statement issued here, Pyngrope said the ban on timber and coal, which is the gainful livelihood of the people, has been ignored by the government and the people are deprived of an alternative source of livelihood.
He observed that the government should also provide an alternative to compensate protection and regeneration of forests in tribal land.
On allegations of the presence of mafia in transportation of coal at night especially in and around Rambrai, he said the word, ‘mafia’ is too harsh to the simple village folks engaged in earning a livelihood in absence of an alternative source. He asserted that 97 per cent of the land and the forest and other resources therein belong to the people who possess the rights to use their land and the resources therein.
He further said that there are nearly 200 million tribal and other traditional forest dwellers in India who derive their livelihood mainly from forest resources. Similarly there are thousands of tribals in West Khasi Hills who derive their livelihood from their forest resources.
As a way forward, Pyngrope maintained that the state government should implement the Forest Rights Act 2006 in its right spirit.
“The forest bureaucracy must also be reformed as service providers to Dorbar Shnongs. There is a need to provide marketing and MSP support to non-timber forest products and create institutional mechanism to support community forest enterprise for value addition,” he said.
He added that the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs need to be strengthened with human and financial resources to help implement FRA, 2006 on a mission mode.
It may be mentioned that there are reports of charcoal mafia operating in West Khasi Hills and that the absence of Territorial Division is the main cause of illegal burning of charcoal and transportation as the district has only the Social Forestry Division which has no authority to apprehend the smugglers.