Lok Sabha Question No. 2504 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-12-18
Subject: Displacement of Tribals
Ministry: TRIBAL AFFAIRS
Asked by: E. T. Mohammed Basheer

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF TRIBAL AFFAIRS

LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO- 2504

TO BE ANSWERED ON- 18/12/2023

## DISPLACEMENT OF TRIBALS

2504. SHRI E.T. MOHAMMED BASHEER

Will the Minister of TRIBAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Tribal community have been displaced from the dwelling places, due to developmental projects and mining activities; and
- (b) the steps taken/being taken by the Government to rehabilitate them?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE FOR TRIBAL AFFAIRS (SHRI BISHWESWAR TUDU)

(a) to (b):

Land and its management fall under the exclusive legislative and administrative jurisdiction of

States as provided under the Constitution of India [Seventh Schedule - List ii (State List) - Entry No.

(18)]. Land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement are done by the State Governments.

Constitutional provisions under Schedule - V also provide for safeguards against displacement of tribal population because of land acquisitions etc. The  Governor of the State which has scheduled Areas is

empowered  to  prohibit  or  restrict  transfer  of  land  from  tribals  and  regulate  the  allotment  of  land  to members of the Scheduled Tribes in such cases.

The Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, also provides that the Gram Sabha or the

Panchayats  at  the  appropriate  level  shall  be  consulted  before  making  the  acquisition  of  land  in  the

Scheduled Areas or development projects and before resettling or rehabilitating persons affected by such projects in the Scheduled Areas; the actual planning and implementation of the projects in the Scheduled

Areas shall be coordinated at the State Level.

'The  Scheduled  Castes  and  the  Scheduled  Tribes  (Prevention  of  Atrocities)  Act,  1989'  has  been introduced to prevent the commission of offences of atrocities against members of the Scheduled Castes

and the Scheduled Tribes, to provide for the trial of such offences and for the relief of rehabilitation of the victims  of  such  offences  and  for  matters  connected  therewith  or  incidental  thereto.  Wrongfully dispossessing members of Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes from their land or premises or interfering with the enjoyment of their rights, including forest rights, over any land or premises or water or irrigation facilities or destroying the crops or taking away the produce therefrom amount to offence of atrocities and are subject to punishment under the said Act.

The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, in section 4 (5) states that save as other wise provided, no member of a forest dwelling Scheduled Tribes or Other Traditional Forest Dweller shall be evicted or removed from the Forest Land under his occupation till the recognition and verification procedure is complete.

Ministry of Rural Development, Department of Land Resources (DoLR) is the nodal Ministry at the Centre who plays a monitoring role in the field of land reforms. DoLR administers Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land  Acquisition,  Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act,  2013  (RFCTLARR Act, 2013), which stipulates the provisions for Compensation, Rehabilitation and Resettlement in the matter of land acquired for public purposes.. The purpose of the said Act is to ensure, in consultation with institutions of local  self-government  and  Gram  Sabhas  established  under  the  Constitution;  a  humane,  participative, informed and transparent process for land acquisition with the least disturbance to the owners of the land and the other affected families and provide just and fair compensation to the affected families whose land has been acquired or proposed to be acquired.   The relevant provisions of the RFCTLARR Act, 2013 are as below:

(i).  Under  Section  48  of  the  RFCTLARR  Act,  2013,  a  National  Level  Monitoring  Committee  for Rehabilitation and Resettlement has been constituted in the DoLR  vide DoLR's  Order No. 26011/04/2007-LRD  dated  2nd  March,  2015  for  the  purpose  of  reviewing  and  monitoring  the implementation of rehabilitation and resettlement schemes and plans related to land acquisition under the RFCTLARR, 2013 and National Rehabilitation and Resettlement Policy, 2007.

(ii).  By way of safeguards against displacement special provisions have been made for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes under Sections 41 and 42 of the RFCTLARR Act, 2013 which protect their interests. The RFCTLARR Act, 2013 also lays down procedure and manner of rehabilitation and resettlement.

(iii).  The First Schedule of the RFCTLARR Act provide for compensation for land owners. The Second Schedule provide for element of rehabilitation and resettlement for all the affected families (both land owners and the families whose livelihood is primarily dependent on land acquired) in addition to those provided in the first Schedule. Similarly, the Third Schedule provide for infrastructural amenities for a reasonably habitable and planned settlement in the resettlement area.

Government is seized of the matter and instances are there where tribal community have been displaced from their dwelling places, due to developmental projects such as Polavaram Irrigation Project.

As  informed  by  the  Ministry  of  Jal  Shakti,  Department  of  Water  Resources,  River  Development  and  Ganga Rejuvenation, the Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R) Policy implemented for the Polavaram Irrigation Project (PIP)  follows  'The  Right  to  Fair  Compensation  and  Transparency  in  Land  Acquisition,  Rehabilitation  and Resettlement (RFCTLARR) Act, 2013" as follows:

| Choice of annuity or employment per family (One-time payment)   | Subsistence grant for a period of 12 months @Rs3000 pm   | Subsistence grant for a period of 12 months @Rs3000 pm   | Transporta tion cost for each family (One-time payment)   | Artisan/Sm all traders and others grant, if any (One- time payment)   | Addition al support to cattle shed/pett y shops   | One time Resettlement allowance for each family   | Total in Rs.                                                                                      |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Choice of annuity or employment per family (One-time payment)   | For all families                                         | Additional for SC& ST                                    | Transporta tion cost for each family (One-time payment)   | Artisan/Sm all traders and others grant, if any (One- time payment)   | Addition al support to cattle shed/pett y shops   | One time Resettlement allowance for each family   | Total in Rs.                                                                                      |
| 5,00,000                                                        | 36,000                                                   | 50,000                                                   | 50,000                                                    | 25,000                                                                | 25,000                                            | 50,000                                            | For SC/ST Project Displaced Families Rs 6,86,000 For other Project Displaced Families Rs 6,36,000 |

Under the project, it is envisaged to provide land equivalent to land acquired or 2.5 acres, whichever is lower and housing units.to the tribal household who lost their lands as well as an amount of Rs. 6.86 lakhs to each tribal project displaced families (PDF).

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