23.43 lakh land titles totaling over 1.8 crore acres distributed upto 31.10.2023 under Forest Rights Act

Giving a written reply to an unstarred question in Rajya Sabha today, MINISTER OF STATE FOR TRIBAL AFFAIRS, Shri Bishweswar Tudu informed that as per the information submitted by the State Governments, 23,43,009 land titles totaling around 1,80,70,577.43 acres have been distributed (individual and community rights) across States, upto 31.10.2023, under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006.

As per the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of forest Rights) Act, 2006 (in short FRA) and rules made there under, the State Governments / UT Administrations are responsible for the implementation of various provisions of the Act.

Rule 2A of Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Rules, 2007 as amended from time to time, delineates the procedure to be adopted for inclusion of a village for the purpose of recognition of rights and reads as under:

The State Government shall ensure that,

(a) every panchayat, within its boundaries, prepares a list of group of hamlets or habitations, unrecorded or unsurveyed settlements or forest villages or taungya villages, formally not part of any Revenue or Forest village record and have this list passed by convening Gram Sabha of each such habitation, hamlets or habitations included as villages for the purpose of the Act through a resolution in the Panchayat and submit such list to Sub Division Level Committee.

(b) the Sub-Divisional Officers of the Sub Division Level Committee consolidate the lists of hamlets and habitations which at present are not part of any village but have been included as villages within the Panchayat through a resolution, and are formalized as a village either by adding to the existing village or otherwise after following the process as provided in the relevant State laws and that the lists are finalised by the District Level Committee after considering public comments, if any.

(c) on finalization of the lists of hamlets and habitations, the process of recognition and vesting of rights in these hamlets and habitations is undertaken without disturbing any rights, already recognized. The Ministry does not centrally maintain the data regarding the number of potential villages/habitations where the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 has to be implemented.

As per Rule 3, the Gram Sabhas have to elect from amongst its members, a committee of not less than ten but not exceeding fifteen persons as members of the Forest Rights Committee.