Forest Rights Act – Accelerated Deforestation

The book ‘Forest Rights Act – Accelerated Deforestation’ has highlighted the disastrous consequences of enactment and implementation of “The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 and Rules, 2008” on the forests of the country. With graphic details taken from the states of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha and Karnataka, the book has recounted how this Act and the Rules, introduced during the UPA regime ostensibly for setting right historical injustice, have triggered decimation, fragmentation and degradation of millions of hectares of forest in a span of just a decade and a half. The book has also underscored the role of aggressive politicians, scheming activists and pliant bureaucrats in the implementation of the FRA which in a roundabout manner has facilitated regularization of unauthorized forest encroachments, virtually negating the benefits accrued from the historic Forest (Conservation) Act of 1980.

It has also questioned the open-ended nature of the Act with no last date for claiming rights under it, which has resulted in opening floodgates for fresh encroachment of forest land throughout the length and breadth of the country. Given the far-reaching and beneficial influence of the forest ecosystems on the life and future of humankind, and also considering the ominous implications of the FRA on the country’s shrinking forests, already on the brink of an ecological disaster, the book has recommended repeal of the Act.