The unfolding story

Is bamboo a tree or a grass?

A new roadblock

Tribal affairs ministry objects to Maharashtra's Village Forest Rules that violate FRA. Other ministeries pressure it to backtrack

Saharias face exile, again

Displaced from Kuno wildlife sanctuary earlier, the tribe is being evicted again for a dam

Between Maoists and mines

Ho tribals lose hold of Saranda as mining is set to take over the pristine sal forest. A report and photographs by Sayantan Bera

Environment ministry reiterates its stance on FRA compliance in forest land diversion

MoEFCC letter sent two days before SC stayed its order on rejected FRA claims

MP forest dwellers protest eviction, 4 hurt by police pellets

Allegation against state: Violation of Forest Rights Act

FSI shall take 16 years to complete encroachment survey in FRA case

Only four states have sent their data to the body so far

Simply Put: Inverted pyramid

Tribal voters & yield of Forest Rights Act

Why the Dangs has not been able to implement FRA properly

The ‘real owner’ of forest land is still the forest department. Such brazen violation of the law betrays a systematic attempt to …

How the Van Gujjars perceive the Wildlife Protection Amendment Act, 2021

Can amendments to the Wild Life (Protection) Act reduce injustices meted out forest dwellers in the name of fortress conservation

One square meal: How this non-tribal forest-dweller family survives without FRA recognition in Odisha

Srikumar Khadi’s claim to his land in Odisha’s Sundergarh district is over a century old; but it still awaits recognition

Green clearances are being increasingly treated as a mere formality

In the garb of streamlining green clearances, the Union government has sidelined communities and diluted environmental regulations over the past …

Wanted: Better governance models for India’s forests

While the Forest Rights Act empowered Gram Sabhas to manage and conserve forests, the Joint Forest Management mechanism could not succeed due to …

‘The IFA amendment is a zero draft; all stakeholders will be involved later’

Director General of Forests, Siddhanta Das tells DTE that the proposed amendment in the Indian Forest Act is a mostly techno-legal exercise and …

IFR review: States do dubious paperwork, cite baseless reasons for refusing forest rights to tribals, DTE finds

IFR claimants are being used as bait to prove that tribal communities clear forest land for cultivation, experts feel

Sonbhadra women, others seek to participate in Supreme Court FRA hearing

Two ST women demand “equal and independent” rights to women over forest land

Forest Rights Act: A litmus test for govt to protect forest dwellers

It is now the turn of the BJP-led central government, which won 38 out of 48 reserved seats for Scheduled Tribes across the country, to stand by …

Gujarat land activists allege detention for demonstrating over rights

Protesters seek land rights under Forest Rights Act, roll back of decision to give land to corporations for farming

SC seeks reports on rejected forest rights claims from states

The apex court has been hearing a petition filed by retired forest officials and some conservation-related non-profits, who want the FRA to be …

Forest conservation & consent: How Gram Sabhas halted risky projects in the past

The new rules for the the Forest Conservation Act (FCA) gazetted June 28, have repealed and replaced the earlier 2003 Forest Conservation Rules …

Villages inside forest near Guwahati struggle for basic amenities

Lack of health infrastructure and medical personnel in inaccessible areas is a perennial problem in Assam

Chhattisgarh High Court prevents PSU from evicting forest rights title holders

Chhattisgarh Mineral Development Corporation had started mining in Sarguja district’s Pathrai village, where 50 Individual Forest Rights …

‘Attacks against land rights activists rising in India, Asia’

Special legislation and quick response systems needed to provide protection and support to these defenders, experts said at a meeting in Udaipur