By Rekha M Shangpliang
“Trees are sanctuaries. Whoever knows how to speak to them, whoever knows how to listen to them, can learn the truth” …Hermann Hesse
The much debated Forest Conservation Amendment Bill 2023 recently passed by the Lok Sabha has drawn much media attention and has evoked negative response amongst environment enthusiasts ,forest and climate action groups and activists all over the country voicing their concerns about the potential setbacks of the proposed amendment to the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980. They have been holding peaceful demonstrations in Delhi and more than 16 states over the last couple of days. Many pan India action citizen groups like Climate Front India,Let India Breathe,Youth for Himalaya,Warrior Moms,Friends of Earth(India) to name a few also joined hands in nationwide tweetstorm along with many conservationists ,Ecologists and rural and urban citizens . So what is the crux of the problem ? What is the main demand of the campaign ? Why has the proposed Bill raised concern and resistance ? And the most important question- What impact will the bill have on the tribes and forest dwellers of the North-East ? To probe deeper into all these questions we need to understand the historical process whereby the traditionally-held rights of the forest communities have been progressively curtailed through different government policies,management and legislations. This would give us an idea on how the post-colonial state has not changed much in terms of state monopoly over rights and exclusion of indigenous forest communities.
Colonial Forestry in India
Till the first 50 years of their rule, the British never felt the need to interfere into the forest lands which were mostly designated as community lands or at the most ‘royal forests’ which belonged to kings and nobles. In fact it was not until the middle of the nineteenth century ,that the Raj witnessed a ‘fierce onslaught’ on India’s forests. They were attracted by the vast natural wealth which could generate commercial value through timber which was in high demand in England for ship building. This led to the first concerted effort of the British Government to introduce the Forest Act 1865 which was the first Formal Act that introduced the two categories of forests-Reserved and Unreserved /Protected Forests. This was a landmark legislation which put a blanket ban on illegal felling of trees. This was also the first ever comprehensive piece of legislation that gave East India Company the right over forests in India thus intervening on the traditional rights of the forest dwellers. The Forest Act of 1865 was then replaced 13 years later by the Indian Forest Act of 1878 which turned out to be even more stringent and comprehensive than the previous Act.
It is interesting to note that the provisions of the 1878 Act served as a catalyst for future Forest Acts and legislations leading the way to a centralized system of control even till post-Independence period. Dietrich Brandis was appointed as the first Inspector General of Forests who is today remembered as the ‘Father of Indian Forestry’ for his intensive policy of survey and mapping of every nook and corner of forests in India. However the Act of 1878 brought much discontent amongst the forest communities because it was found that the 3 categories of land -Reserved, Protected and Village forests were mostly state controlled that served Imperial interests. It was under such circumstances that this period witnessed a series of forest conflicts and struggles one of which is from our very own state of Meghalaya when the ‘timid and submissive’ Garos under the leadership of Sonaram Sangma and over 1 lakh Garos addressed a memorandum to Lord Minto, the Viceroy and Governor General of India and fought for de-reservation of forests as early as 1879. A new phase of forest management began with the introduction of the railway network in response to colonial interest of augmenting trade leading to wanton destruction of forests.
It is against this backdrop that the British rule marks an important historical impact on what we see today which is nothing but an ‘imprint’ of the colonial past. The Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023 seems to be another bolt from the blue from the past. Amidst doubts and fear as to whether this Bill if passed may dilute tribal customary rights over land and forests several questions are being raised which require serious thoughts.
The Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill ,2023 and its impact on the North East
The Bill which seeks to redefine some of the restrictions of the Forest Conservation Act of 1980 has raised concern and resistance for a number of reasons among which the following may leave the forest communities and tribals of North East vulnerable and dilute their customary rights over land and forest :-
- Firstly, the Bill seeks to re-define the classification of forests. To my understanding, the Amendment may contradict Supreme Court order because it brings drastic changes to the definition of forest ,its governance and development issues. This aspect may also contradict the traditional customary categorization of forests especially among the tribals of the North-East since they have a very elaborate and systematic classification of forests on the basis of ownership. Like the Khasis have ‘Law Adong’,’Law kyntang’,’Law ri-sumar’,Law shnong’ etc which are specifically designated for different purposes. Environmentalists say that around 39,063 hectares of forests fall under ‘sacred groves’ across India – protected and managed by local communities yet they are not notified as forests and are therefore under threat.
- Secondly, the Bill seeks to free-up ‘unrecorded’ forest areas for developmental projects. The forest cover of the country accounts for only 65% of total geographical cover and most of it is ‘unrecorded’ which means that this portion of unrecorded land will have no legal protection if the Bill gets through. The forests of North east abound in rich flora and fauna which in most cases are under the jurisdiction of autonomous bodies like the District Council. Whether this Bill if passed will overstep the powers of these bodies which are the protectors of customary laws that govern forest? That’s not all, it is also not clear whether the Bill supersedes the Forest Rights Act which gives cultivation rights to forest dwelling tribes.
- The Bill seeks to exempt ‘unrecorded’ forest land within 100 kms of International borders for projects of national importance and concerning national security. This would leave a large part of the North-East vulnerable considering the fact that the region shares an international border of 5,182 kilometres (about 99 percent of its total geographical boundary) with several neighbouring countries .
- The Bill also allows establishing checkposts, fences, bridges, running zoos, safaris, eco-tourism activities without any prior approval of the Central Government. But these terms are very vague and in the name of development any kind of projects private or governmental may get their way to exploit the forest tracts which will now become an open ground. Therefore there is the possibility of ‘misuse’ of this clause.
Has the Ministry of Environment and Forest and Climate Change first taken this initiative to propose the policy with prior consultation with the Ministry of Tribal Affairs being fully in agreement ? it appears that MOTA has not even formulated its independent opinion with regard to this very serious and critical question that would affect grievously the rights of Scheduled Tribes and other Forest dwellers. Whatever the case maybe the bigger issue before us is that we need our forests and our forests need us. There are people who are led by the belief that destroying natural eco-systems equals development. That very thought has to be eliminated from the mindset of policy makers and planners of our country. Yes, national security is an integral part of development but our ecological security is equally important to protect our boundaries from eroding the forest and land rights. Forests are the ‘Green gold of nature.’ They have been a home, a game sanctuary, a food larder , a source of livelihood and an abode of worship to humans since time immemorial. The rich forest culture or ‘Aranya Sanskriti’ that has been nurtured by our country should be revered.
The words of the famous environmentalist (L) Anil Agarwal rings loud and clear “ Development should be up to a certain limit- beyond that it will be like the foolish man who was sitting on the very branch that he was cutting”.
(The writer teaches in NEHU)