New Delhi, March 23 (IANS) As many as 5.36 lakh forest rights claims have been recognised during the last five years under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, which seeks to correct historical injustices by recognising the land and resource rights of forest-dwelling communities, the Lok Sabha was informed on Monday.
Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Durgadas Uikey said that, as per information provided by states and Union Territories, between March 1, 2021, and March 1, 2026, a total of 11.35 lakh (10.71 lakh individual and 64,603 community) forest rights claims (FRCs) have been filed.
Out of these, a total of 5.36 lakh claims (4.89 lakh individual and 46,687 community) have been recognised, while 5.88 lakh claims (5.70 lakh individual and 18,016 community) remain pending at various levels, the Minister of State said.
Sharing FRC details provided by the Uttar Pradesh government, Uikey said that during the last five years a total of 434 claims (402 individual and 32 community) have been filed. Of these, 67 pending claims were processed, while 4,104 previously rejected claims have been reconsidered after review. A total of 4,605 claims (4,573 individual and 32 community) have been recognised in the state.
Noting that the implementation of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, primarily lies with the respective state and Union Territory administrations, he said the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) has asked states and UTs in various review meetings to consider claims under the FRA in a time-bound manner and engage with districts to resolve bottlenecks, if any, in the settlement of claims.
He said that MoTA has not conducted any field verification or independent evaluation regarding compliance with statutory procedures, the functioning of Gram Sabhas, or the capacity of implementing authorities.
Uikey added that the Ministry has supported training programmes, workshops and awareness campaigns for state officials, members of Forest Rights Committees and Gram Sabha representatives to strengthen understanding of statutory procedures and evidentiary requirements.
–IANS
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