Centre Pushes States To Resolve Forest Rights Act Backlog As 15 Per Cent Claims Linger Nationwide: Report

Nearly 15 per cent of forest and community land claims under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, remain pending, prompting the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) to ask states and Union Territories to clear the backlog and review implementation of related schemes, The Indian Express reported.

According to a central letter, Telangana, Odisha, Assam, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Jharkhand account for most pending claims.

As of 1 June, out of 51.23 lakh claims received, 25.11 lakh titles (49.02 per cent) had been distributed, 7.49 lakh were pending, and 18.62 lakh (36.35 per cent) had been rejected.

Telangana tops the list with 3.29 lakh pending claims, followed by Odisha (1.2 lakh), Assam (96,000), Gujarat (84,000), and Maharashtra (28,000). Proportionally, Goa and Himachal Pradesh have the highest pendency at 87 per cent and 84.5 per cent, respectively.

The FRA recognises individual and community rights of forest-dwelling Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers, including cultivation, grazing, collection of minor forest produce, and forest conservation.

The ministry’s push follows discussions during the national conference on the Adi Karmayogi Abhiyan in September, which focused on tribal development, leadership, and implementation of key laws and schemes. The programme aims to build grassroots tribal leadership across 1 lakh villages.

Milind Thatte of TEER Foundation noted that vesting of rights is not the only concern; modification, partial rejection, or non-initiation of rights remain major issues.

“Community forest resource rights is an issue that is neglected in many states,” he said, highlighting the potential for states like Madhya Pradesh to recognise such rights.

MoTA has also asked states to review FRA-related interventions under the Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DA-JGUA), including setting up FRA cells, mapping forest areas for community rights, and supporting Gram Sabhas in preparing community forest resource management plans (CFRMPs).

The ministry provides financial aid of Rs 15,000 per hectare for the execution of CFRMP activities, with 1,000 plans targeted over the next two years.

States including Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Chhattisgarh have completed potential area mapping and published the FRA Atlas, while FRA cells are functional in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Odisha.

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