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INVOLVEMENT OF
VILLAGE COMMUNITY AND VAs IN REGENERATION OF DEGRADED FORESTS
Shri Mahesh Prasad, then Secretary (Environment and
Forests), government of India, wrote on 1
June 1990 (No. 6.2 1/89-F.P.) to the forest secretaries of
all states and Union Territories setting out the new policy on "Involvement of
village communities and VAs in the regeneration of degraded forest lands". The text
of this circular is reproduced below:
"The National Forest Policy, 1998 envisages people's involvement
in the development and protection of forests. The requirements of fuelwood, fodder and
small timber such as house-building material, of the tribals and other villagers living in
and near the forests, are to be treated as first charge on forest produce. The policy
document envisages it as one of the essentials of forest management that the forest
communities should be motivated to identify themselves with the development and protection
of forests from which they derive benefits.
In a D.O. letter no 1/1/88/TMA dated 13th January, 1989
to the chief secretary of your state the need for working out the modalities for giving to
the village communities, living close to the forest land, usufructuary benefits to ensure
their participation in the afforestation programme, was emphasized by Shri K.P.
Geethakrishnan, the then secretary (Environment and Forests).
Committee voluntary agencies / NGOs with proven track record, may prove particularly
well suited for motivating and organising village communities for protection,
afforestation and development of degraded forest land, especially in the vicinity of
habitations. The state forest departments/social forestry organisations ought to take full
advantage of their expertise and experience in this respect for building up meaningful
people's participation in protection and development of degraded forest lands. The
voluntary agencies/NGOs may be associated for revival restoration and development of
degraded forests in the manner suggested below:
- The programme should be implemented under the arrangement between the voluntary
agency/NGO, the village community (beneficiaries) and the state forest department.
- No ownership or lease rights over the forest land should be given to the beneficiaries
or to the voluntary agency/NGO. Nor should the forest land be assigned in contravention of
the provisions contained in the forest (conservation) Act. 1980.
- The beneficiaries should be entitled to a share in usufructs to the extent and subject
to the conditions prescribed by the state government in this behalf. The voluntary
agency/NGO should not be entitled to usufructory benefits.
- Access to forest land and usufructuary benefits should be only to the beneficiaries who
get organised into a village institution, specifically for forest regeneration and
protection. This could be the panchayat or the cooperative of the village, with no
restriction on membership. It could also be a village forest committee. In no case should
any access or tree pattas be given to individuals.
- The beneficiaries should be given usufructs like grasses, lops and tops of branches, and
minor forest produce. If they successfully protect the forests, they may be given a
portion of the proceeds from the sale of trees when they mature. (The government of west
Bengal has issued orders to give 25 per cent of the sale proceeds to the village or its
protection committee. Similar norms may be adopted by other states.)
- Areas to be selected for the programme should be free from the claims (including
existing rights, privileges, concessions) of any person who is not a beneficiary under the
scheme. Alternatively, for a given site the selection of beneficiaries should be done in
such a way that any one who has a claim to any forest produce from the selected site is
not out without given full opportunity of joining.
- The selected site should be worked in accordance with a working scheme, duly approved by
the state government. Such scheme may remain in operation for a period of 10 years and
revised/renewed after that. The working scheme should be prepared in consultation with the
beneficiaries. Apart from protection of the site, the said scheme may prescribe requisite
operations, e.g. inducement to natural regeneration of existing root stock, seeding, gap
filling, and whenever necessary, intensive planting soil-moisture conservation measures
etc. the working scheme should also prescribe other operations, e.g. fire protection,
maintenance of boundaries, wedding, tending, cleaning, thinning, etc.
- For raising nurseries, preparing land for planting and protecting the trees after
planting, the beneficiaries should be paid by the forest department from the funds under
the social forest programme. However, the village community may obtain funds from other
government agencies and sources for undertaking these activities.
- It should be ensured that there is no grazing at all in the forest land protect by the
village community. Permission to cut and carry grass free of cost should be given so that
shall feeding is promoted.
- No agriculture should be permitted o the forest land.
- Along with trees for fuel, fodder and timber, the village community may be permitted to
plant such fruit trees as would fit, in with the overall scheme of afforestation, such as
aonla, imli, mango, mahua etc. as well as shrubs, legumes and grasses which would meet
local needs, help soil and water conservation, and enrich the degraded soils/land. Even
indigenous medicinal plants may be grown according to the requirement and preference of
beneficiaries.
- Cutting of trees should not be permitted before they are ripe for harvesting. The forest
department also should not cut the trees on the forest land being protected by the village
communities except in the manner prescribed in the working scheme. In case of emergency
needs, the village communities should be taken into confidence.
- The benefit of people's participation should go to the village communities and not
commercial or other interests which may try to derive benefit in their names. The
selection of beneficiaries should, therefore, be done from only those families which are
willing to participate through their personal efforts.
- The forest department should closely supervise the works. If the beneficiaries and/or
the voluntary agency/NGO fail or neglect to protect the area from grazing, encroachment or
do not perform the operations prescribed in the working scheme in a satisfactory manner,
the usufructuary benefits should be withdrawn without paying compensation to any one for
any work that might have been done prior to it. Suitable provisions in the memorandum of
understanding (MOU) for this purpose should be incorporated.
Information
on this page is part of the Forest
Information System Project of IIFM.
Principal Investigator: Dr. Chinmaya S. Rathore
Project Team : Dr. S.K.S. Rathore, Seema Jain
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