Researcher CR Bijoy said the 2020 letter from the Environment Ministry is widely used by forest officials and is used to prevent infrastructure in forest villages under Section 3(2) of the Forest Rights Act.
The Ministry of Tribal Affairs has written a letter to the Environment Ministry clarifying that it is not necessary to take wildlife clearance for the construction of infrastructure development like schools, Anganwadis, and roads, etc., in forest land under the Forest Rights Act. However, the recommendation of the Gram Sabha is necessary for this infrastructure development. An office memorandum was issued on July 2, in which the Environment Ministry had sought detailed clarification on Section 3(2) of the Forest Rights Act, which allows the conversion of forest land for infrastructure like schools, roads, health centers and irrigation projects for the benefit of scheduled tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (OTFDs) living in forests.
In a letter issued in october 2020, the environment ministry had said that Section 13 of the FRA states that wildlife clearance will be required to implement Section 3(2) of the Act. The environment ministry letter had said that the provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, remain unaffected by Section 3(2) of the FRA. Now, the tribal affairs ministry has clarified that the Wildlife Act is rooted in constitutional rights. It is also included in the fifth and sixth schedules, which protect tribal rights.
The tribal ministry referred to two supreme court judgments, as well as emphasised that the Wildlife Rights Act is a legal instrument for environmental concerns and tribal rights. Researcher C R Bijoy said that the 2020 letter of the environment ministry is widely used by forest officials and is used to prevent infrastructure in forest villages under Section 3(2) of the Forest Rights Act, while no formal order has been issued to the states. Forest rights experts claim that forest villages have long been denied services such as schools, roads, and health centres. Forest officials often block such projects, saying they are not legally permitted or citing forest conservation reasons. As a result, these villages are among the most neglected in the country.
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