Relevance : GS Paper II ( Polity & Governance)
The Supreme Court has ordered to evict occupants of forest lands who failed to make a successful claim un FRA.
Non-establishment of claims
- The Forest Rights Act protected possession and conferred heritability of land to over 44 lakh claimants.
- But over 20 lakh other applicants who could not establish their claim through gram sabhas and appellate authorities.
Eviction unjustified
When the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers Act was passed, it aimed to make these communities partners in conservation.
Way forward
- The answer in many areas may lie in resettlement.
- In some cases, alternative land and cash compensation are needed .
- States must determine if procedural lapses deprived forest-dwellers of their rights
- States must also declare critical wildlife habitats under the FRA Act.
