Author: Mohan Chandra Pargaien
The demolition of the homes of 12 Barela tribal families in Kosmi village, Sehore district, has triggered a political storm in Madhya Pradesh. Officials from the Madhya Pradesh Forest Development Corporation carried out the demolition, saying it followed alleged encroachment on forest land and damage to a plantation planted in 2021. The affected families, however, maintain that they have lived and cultivated the land for generations. Union Agriculture Minister has sharply criticised the officials and demanded action against them. The episode raises a larger concern: how easily frontline forest officials can become scapegoats when enforcing the law brings them into conflict with political interests-while also reminding us that enforcement must never bypass due process or legally recognised community rights. The state government’s inquiry must establish the facts. The episode also raises broader questions about the prevailing law, political accountability, the rights of indigenous communities and institutional authority. It also exposes the difficult and often dangerous circumstances in which forest staff perform their duties.
Population growth and competing land demands have intensified pressure on forests, contributing to encroachment in many areas. While much of this forest encroachment is linked to livelihood insecurity and historical exclusion, it also includes organised and commercially driven occupation, and its ecological fallout remains severe. The clash at Kosmi is indicative of a nationwide challenge faced by forest officers, stemming from both commercial interests and livelihood demands. Over time, the government has attempted to address this issue through legislative measures like the Forest Rights Act (FRA), which aims to rectify historical injustices against indigenous communities. As per MOEFCC, about 13.06 lakh hectares of forest land were recorded as encroached as of March 2024. Madhya Pradesh reported the highest extent, nearly 5.46 lakh hectares. Under the Forest Rights Act, more than 24 lakh individual titles have been distributed since 2006, recognising individual rights over about 55 lakh acres; while community rights have also been recognised over a substantially larger area. Yet unresolved claims, fresh occupation and weak post-recognition governance continue to make this issue one of the most challenging tasks facing field foresters.
The FRA does not authorise fresh encroachment. However, allegations of political interference in forest encroachment cases cast doubt on whether officials can act consistently against unauthorised occupation. Such interference can come at the cost of biodiversity, forest health and climate stability, particularly when short-term political gains take precedence over conservation.
When forest-land disputes become politically charged, forest officers face the challenge of balancing enforcement, community concerns and pressure from political leaders. They also face a difficult reality. Even lawful enforcement can be portrayed as anti-people or opposed to development, placing them under intense public and political pressure. This pressure does not come only from politicians and local communities. It can also arise within the administration, particularly when enforcement decisions conflict with political priorities. This becomes especially visible in review meetings chaired by ministers, where forest officials may be publicly criticised for actions perceived as obstructing development.
Where criticism is repeated without institutional support, field staff may reasonably hesitate before acting against influential encroachers. Forest officials need to be held accountable for their decisions, but at the same time they must also receive support when they act lawfully.Apart from professional damage, disputes over forest land regularly escalate into violent backlashes against field staff confronting land grabbers and encroachers. The assault on Forest Range Officer (FRO) Ch. Anita in Kagaznagar, Telangana, in June 2019-perpetrated by public representatives and the brother of a local MLA during a plantation drive on retrieved forest land-highlighted a chilling trend of politically backed violence. The risks can be fatal. In November 2022, Forest Range Officer Ch. Srinivasa Rao was killed in Telangana’s Bhadradri Kothagudem district by alleged encroachers while attempting to prevent damage to a plantation.
Political interference is only one part of the problem. Forest departments also face chronic understaffing, inadequate funding, weak community participation and limited livelihood opportunities in forest-fringe villages. Despite the immense ecological services our forests provide-from locking away carbon to regulating water-the forest sector has been starved of resources. In 2025-26, MoEFCC received about 0.07% of the Union Budget. If the ecological services were properly quantified in national accounts, the sector’s recognised contribution to the economy would be far larger.
To address challenges such as those exposed in Kosmi, forest officials need clear legal authority, institutional protection from political pressure, adequate resources, and accountability for lawful decisions. What is needed is institutional reform, not another round of damage control after each controversy. Forests cannot be asked to pay the price of political convenience. Our forests are vital national assets, critical to addressing climate change, water scarcity and other environmental challenges. Forest conservation should be judged by what recovers on the ground, not merely by money spent or saplings planted. We must protect the officers who safeguard forests and give forest communities a genuine stake in conservation. The inquiry into Kosmi must establish whether due process was followed and whether the families’ rights were properly examined. But Madhya Pradesh-and India more broadly-also needs to answer a harder question: can forest officers enforce the law without political protection, adequate resources, and the trust of forest-dependent communities? Until that answer changes, incidents such as Kosmi will keep recurring.
The writer is a former Indian Forest Service officer and an Advisor to the Singareni Collieries Company Limited, Telangana; Views presented are personal.