The move of the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) to dilute Forest Rights Act has invited opposition from the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, bringing them face to face.
According to sources, MoEF Secretary Ashok lavasa has received a letter from his counterpart Hrusikesh Panda from MoTA stating that power given to the district collector to bypass the Act in non-tribal areas by saying forests are ‘plantations’ “violates the law of the land…” The circular issued by MoEF on October 28 empowers the district collector to decide on whether or not it is necessary to implement FRA in an area. However, as per the act these powers are originally vested with the gram sabha (village committees). The letter goes on to add that such moves are not desirable in the interest of peace and governance in forest areas. It has categorically demanded for the withdrawal of the circular from the MoEF. The letter further says that the basic legal point is that the FRA “does not provide any scope to any executive agency for any kind of relaxation of the applicability of the FRA” indicating that MoEF has no authority to do so.
Though the Ministry of Tribal Affairs is the nodal Ministry of FRA, the letter notes that the MoEF has been issuing advisories to the states relaxing certain provisions of FRA. Even if arguments raised in the above letter were factually correct, the correctness of the facts has to be decided by the process prescribed under FRA. It has also refuted allegations that FRA delays projects. The letter said there is no evidence to prove this. It pointed out that clearance on major projects takes a long time because of the layers through which such clearance is given and the process of Forest Rights Act can be undergone expeditiously and much before other clearances are obtained. “Certainly the FRA process will take less time than clearances under Forest (Conservation) Act 1980 and acquisition of land under land Acquisition And Rehabilitation & Resettlement Bill (lARR) Act”, the letter has said.