Lok Sabha Question No. 4364 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-12-13
Subject: Forest Rights Act, 2006
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Karti P. Chidambaram

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4364

TO BE ANSWERED ON 13.12.2019

## Forest Rights Act, 2006

## 4364. SHRI KARTI P. CHIDAMBARAM:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  is  aware  of  status  of  implementation  of  the  Forest  Rights Act (FRA), 2006 and if so, the details thereof, State/UT-wise;
- (b) the  response  of  Central  Government  on  the  Supreme  Court  eviction  order  of  more than a million Adivasis and other forest dwellers;
- (c) whether  the  Government  is  reviewing  the  repercussions  of  such  judicial  interventions and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the Government proposes to amend Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006 and   if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI BABUL SUPRIYO)

- (a) The  Parliament  has  enacted  'the  Scheduled  Tribes  and  Other  Traditional  Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Right) Act, 2006'  (FRA in short) and notified for its operation  on  31.12.2007  and  the  rules  made  thereunder  for  implementing  various provisions of the Act was also notified on 01.01.2008.

FRA is an Act to recognize and vest the forest rights and occupation in forest land in forest dwelling Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers who have been residing  in  such  forests  for  generations  but  whose  rights  could  not  be  recorded;  to provide for a framework for recording the forest rights so vested and the nature of evidence required for such recognition and vesting in respect of forest land.

Ministry of Tribal Affairs is the nodal Ministry for implementation of this Act. As per information  received  from  Ministry  of  Tribal  Affairs,  a  total  number  of  19,64,048 titles (18,87,894 individual and 76,154 community claims) have been distributed over an area involving forest lands to the extent of 12938762.14 acres. State-wise status of implementation of Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006 is given at Annexure.

- (b)&(c) The  Hon'ble  Supreme  Court  in  their  recent  judgment  dated  13.02.2019  in  Writ Petition  No.  109/2008  in  the  matter  of  Wildlife  First  &  Others  versus  Ministry  of Environment, Forest and Climate Change & Others, directed the State/UT Governments  to  evict  the  persons/parties  whose  claims  under  Forest  Rights  Act, 2006 have been rejected. Subsequently, Government of India filed an application on 26.02.2019  for  modification  of  the  above  order.  Considering  the  prayer  in  the application,  the  Hon'ble  Supreme  Court  in  its  order  dated  28.02.2019  stayed  its earlier order dated 13.02.2019 regarding eviction.
- (d) &(e) No Sir. There is no such proposal.

***

Annexure Annexure  referred  to  in  reply  of  Lok  Sabha  Unstarred  Question  No.  4364  due  for  answer  on  13.12.2019  asked  by  Shri  Karti  P. Chidambaram regarding Forest Rights Act, 2006 State wise details of claims received, titles distributed and the extent of forest land for which titles distributed (individual and community), as on 31.05.2019, in major States, is indicated below:

| S. N.   | States           | No. of Claims received upto 31.05.2019   | No. of Claims received upto 31.05.2019   | No. of Claims received upto 31.05.2019   | No. of Titles Distributed upto 31.05.2019   | No. of Titles Distributed upto 31.05.2019   | No. of Titles Distributed upto 31.05.2019   | Extent of Forest land for which titles distributed (in acres)   | Extent of Forest land for which titles distributed (in acres)   | Extent of Forest land for which titles distributed (in acres)   |
|---------|------------------|------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| S. N.   | States           | Individual                               | Community                                | Total                                    | Individual                                  | Community                                   | Total                                       | Individual                                                      | Community                                                       | Total                                                           |
| 1       | Andhra Pradesh   | 1,77,446                                 | 4,062                                    | 1,81,508                                 | 96,675                                      | 1,374                                       | 98,049                                      | 2,39,554                                                        | 4,53,384                                                        | 6,92,938                                                        |
| 2       | Assam            | 1,48,965                                 | 6,046                                    | 1,55,011                                 | 57,325                                      | 1,477                                       | 58,802                                      | NA                                                              | NA                                                              | NA                                                              |
| 3       | Bihar            | 8,022                                    | 0                                        | 8,022                                    | 121                                         | 0                                           | 121                                         | NA                                                              | 0                                                               | NA                                                              |
| 4       | Chhattisgarh     | 8,58,682                                 | 31,558                                   | 8,90,240                                 | 4,01,251                                    | 21,967                                      | 4,23,218                                    | 8,43,100.69                                                     | 20,38,146.15                                                    | 28,81,246.84                                                    |
| 5       | Goa              | 9,758                                    | 378                                      | 10,136                                   | 17                                          | 8                                           | 25                                          | 76.60                                                           | 10.25                                                           | 86.86                                                           |
| 6       | Gujarat          | 1,82,869                                 | 7,187                                    | 1,90,056                                 | 83,699                                      | 3,516                                       | 87,215                                      | 1,29,571.61                                                     | 11,61,351.49                                                    | 12,90,923.10                                                    |
| 7       | Himachal Pradesh | 2,071                                    | 170                                      | 2,241                                    | 129                                         | 7                                           | 136                                         | 5.96                                                            | 4,670.56                                                        | 4,676.52                                                        |
| 8       | Jharkhand        | 1,07,032                                 | 3,724                                    | 1,10,756                                 | 59,866                                      | 2,104                                       | 61970                                       | 1,53,395.86                                                     | 1,03,758.97                                                     | 2,57,154.83                                                     |
| 9       | Karnataka        | 2,75,446                                 | 5,903                                    | 2,81,349                                 | 14,667                                      | 1,406                                       | 16,073                                      | 20,813.51                                                       | 28,155.75                                                       | 48,969.26                                                       |
| 10      | Kerala           | 36,140                                   | 1,395                                    | 37,535                                   | 24,599                                      | NA                                          | 24,599                                      | 33,018.12                                                       | NA                                                              | 33,018.12                                                       |
| 11      | Madhya Pradesh   | 5,82,927                                 | 42,048                                   | 6,24,975                                 | 2,26,313                                    | 27,962                                      | 2,54,275                                    | 8,12,345.19                                                     | 14,65,013.16                                                    | 22,77,358.35                                                    |
| 12      | Maharashtra      | 3,62,679                                 | 12,037                                   | 3,74,716                                 | 1,65,032                                    | 7,084                                       | 1,72,116                                    | 392928.73                                                       | 27,36,660.68                                                    | 31,29,589.41                                                    |
| 13      | Odisha           | 6,17,935                                 | 13,826                                   | 6,31,761                                 | 4,30,212                                    | 6,564                                       | 4,36,776                                    | 6,42,542.12                                                     | 2,35,205.91                                                     | 8,77,748.02                                                     |
| 14      | Rajasthan        | 74,414                                   | 1,441                                    | 75,855                                   | 38,007                                      | 103                                         | 38,110                                      | 57,730.26                                                       | 2,993.64                                                        | 60,723.90                                                       |
| 15      | Tamil Nadu       | 32,983                                   | 1005                                     | 33,988                                   | 6,111                                       | 276                                         | 6,387                                       | 8607.26                                                         | 0                                                               | 8,607.26                                                        |
| 16      | Telangana        | 1,83,252                                 | 3,427                                    | 1,86,679                                 | 93,639                                      | 721                                         | 94,360                                      | 3,00,284                                                        | 4,54,055                                                        | 7,54,339                                                        |
| 17      | Tripura          | 2,00,358                                 | 277                                      | 2,00,635                                 | 1,27,931                                    | 55                                          | 1,27,986                                    | 4,60,049.16                                                     | 91.16                                                           | 4,60,140.33                                                     |
| 18      | Uttar Pradesh    | 92,520                                   | 1,124                                    | 93,644                                   | 17,712                                      | 843                                         | 18,555                                      | 18,854                                                          | 1,20,802.06                                                     | 1,39,656.06                                                     |
| 19      | Uttarakhand      | 3,574                                    | 3,091                                    | 6,665                                    | 144                                         | 01                                          | 145                                         | 0                                                               | 0                                                               | 0                                                               |
| 20      | West Bengal      | 1,31,962                                 | 10,119                                   | 1,42,081                                 | 44,444                                      | 686                                         | 45,130                                      | 21,014.27                                                       | 572.03                                                          | 21,586.29                                                       |
| TOTAL   | TOTAL            | 40,89,035                                | 1,48,818                                 | 42,37,853                                | 18,87,894                                   | 76,154                                      | 19,64,048                                   | 41,33,891.33                                                    | 88,04,870.81                                                    | 1,29,38,762.14                                                  |