Draft Forest Act 2019 ☆

Context

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has finalised the first draft of the comprehensive amendments to the Indian Forest Act, 1927 (IFA) and sent to states for consultation which are to be completed by June 7 

Indian forest Act 1927
• The Indian Forest Act, 1927 was enacted after repealing Indian forest Act 1878 to ‘consolidate the law related to forest, the transit of forest produce, and the duty liable on timber and other forest produce’.
• The Act gave the Government and Forest Department the power to create Reserved Forests, and the right to use Reserved Forests for Government use alone.
• Britishers impose Indian Forest Act, 1927 to take over Indian forests, use them to produce timber, while curtailing and extinguishing rights of millions.

Need of Indian forest Act, 2019

1. To address the issue of Indian Forest Act, 1927: The Indian Forest Act, 1927 provides immense discretion and powers to the forest bureaucracy. Many experts and several Central government reports have blamed the draconian powers of the forest bureaucracy for alienating tribal and also fuelling left-wing extremism in Central Indian region.
2. To address contemporary challenges to India’s forests: There was severe decline in the forest cover of the country mainly because of large-scale diversion of forest lands for agriculture, diversion for “development” projects and regularisation of encroachments by state governments.

Key feature

• Define forests: Forest is defined to include “any government or private or institutional land recorded or notified as forest/forest land in any government record and the lands managed by government/community as forest and mangroves, and also any land which the central or state government may by notification declare to be forest for the purpose of this Act.”
• Defines community: The amendment defines community as “a group of persons specified on the basis of government records living in a specific locality and in joint possession and enjoyment of common property resources, without regard to race, religion, caste, language and culture”
• Focus on conservation and sustainable management: The amendment has increased the focus to conservation, enrichment and sustainable management of forest resources and matters connected therewith to safeguard ecological stability

state governments may declare any area as a conservation area for the purpose of enhanced carbon sequestration and such area shall be brought under active forest management for enhancing vegetational growth by reforestation and afforestation.

• International commitments: It address the concerns related to climate change and international commitments
• More Power to forest officers: under Section 66(2) of the Indian Forest (Amendment) Act forest-officer, may if necessary, use firearms for securing of the forest-produce.
• power to centre: The Union government has proposed that the Centre will be able to intervene in the states on matters of management of forestlands, overruling the states on several counts when it deems fit

• Production forest: The amendment introduces a new category of forests — production forest. These will be forests with specific objectives for production of timber, pulp, pulpwood, firewood, non-timber forest produce, medicinal plants or any forest species to increase production in the country for a specified period.
• Levy taxes for forest development: It provides for empowering the state governments to levy cess upto 10% of value assessed of mining products removed from the forests and water used for irrigation or on industries. The cess shall be used exclusively for reforestation, forest protection and other purposes connected with the tree planting, forest development and conservation.
• The proposed amendments also stated that the state government “may recognise and notify private forest at the request of the owner” if the forest is used primarily for environmental conservation and preservation including, protecting water catchments

Issues with the draft Indian Forest Act, 2019

• Clash with Forest Rights Act: The exclusion of ‘village forestry’ from the preview of Forest Right Act (forest official supersedes gram sabha) is legally contradictory and would add confusion on the ground
• Give more power to forest officials:The draft Bill reinforces the idea of bureaucratic control of forests, providing immunity for actions such as use of firearms by personnel to prevent an offence. Critics argue that this would turn quarter of India’s land into police state.
• Definition of forest: Various national and international agencies such as FAO, CBD, UNFCCC and FSI have adopted the definition of forest that account density and area under tree as the basis of definition. While proposed amendment consider only administrative needs and ignores ecological parameters while defining forest.
• Forced relocation of forest dweller:The draft mentions that the state governments could take away the rights of the forest dwellers if the government feels it is not in line with “conservation of the proposed reserved forest” by payment to the people impacted or by the grant of land

Conclusion

India’s forests play a key role in moderating the lives of not just the adivasis and other traditional dwellers, but everyone in the subcontinent, through their impact on the climate and monsoons. Few things that should be kept in mind before finalising the law

• It should aim to reduce conflicts, incentivise tribals and stop diversion for non-forest uses. This can be achieved by recognising all suitable landscapes as forests and insulating them from commercial exploitation.
• The Centre must hear the voice of all stakeholders and communities, including independent scientific experts.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/humanise-the-law/article26891105.ece

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All about VVPAT

How do VVPAT machines work?

When a voter presses a button in the EVM, a paper slip is printed through the VVPAT. The slip contains the poll symbol and name of the candidate. It allows the voter to verify his/her choice.  After being visible to the voter from a glass case in the VVPAT for seven seconds, the ballot slip will be cut and dropped into the drop box in the VVPAT machine and a beep will be heard. VVPAT machines can be accessed by polling officers only.

What is the Election Commission’s stand on the issue?

The EC has time and again reiterated that EVMs cannot be tampered with It has made public the findings of inquiries into specific charges of tampering in Madhya Pradesh’s Bhind and Rajasthan’s Dholpur that give a clean chit to the machines.  With the Opposition insisting on doing away with the EVMs and the controversy refusing to die down, the EC has now thrown open a challenge, inviting computer experts and political leaders to prove that the machines can be hacked, in the presence of the EVM manufacturers. The exercise will be conducted in the first week of May. Meanwhile, Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi has requested the Union Law Ministry for urgent release of funds, given the “prevailing environment,” to facilitate procurement of VVPAT machines for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

What does the Supreme Court say?

The Supreme Court on April 13, 2017, asked the Centre to respond by May 8 to a plea by the BSP to comply with a 2013 Supreme Court directive to introduce paper trail in EVMs. In 2013, the SC had asked the Commission to introduce paper trails in EVMs in a phased manner for the 2014 Lok Sabha Elections. "EVMs with VVPAT system ensure the accuracy of the voting system. With an intent to have fullest transparency in the system and to restore the confidence of the voters, it is necessary to set up EVMs with VVPAT system because vote is nothing but an act of expression which has immense importance in democratic system," the Bench had said.

Source : The Hindu

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Know about Dr BR Ambedkar

Dr B.R. Ambedkar

14th April: His Birthday celebrated as Ambedkar Jayanti

• Known as the Chief Architect of the Constitution of India
• Dr. Ambedkar was an outstanding leader of our freedom struggle and a staunch crusader for the rights of the downtrodden and traditionally disadvantaged sections of our society.
• A scholar, educationist, legal luminary, social reformer and political leader, Dr. Ambedkar’s philosophy and life are an inspirational profile of courage and conviction.
• Dr. Ambedkar envisioned a society where the weaker sections, the historically deprived, peasants, labourers, and especially women, get equal rights and respect.
• He was an ardent advocate of resolving all issues through democratic, peaceful, non-violent and harmonious means.
• The path shown by him strengthens the spirit of fraternity, compassion and equity.

Mahaparinirvan Diwas: Death Anniversary of Ambedkar

• Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956), popularly known as Babasaheb Ambedkar, was an Indian jurist, economist, politician and social reformer who inspired the Dalit Buddhist movement and campaigned against social discrimination towards the untouchables (Dalits), while also supporting the rights of women and labour.
• He was independent India’s first law and justice minister, the principal architect of the Constitution of India, and a founding father of the Republic of India.

His autobiography: Waiting for a Visa

His books:

• Annihilation of Caste – It strongly criticised Hindu orthodox religious leaders and the caste system in general, and included “a rebuke of Gandhi” on the subject.
• Who Were the Shudras? – Ambedkar tried to explain the formation of untouchables. He saw Shudras and Ati Shudras who form the lowest caste in the ritual hierarchy of the caste system, as separate from Untouchables.

Ambedkar and Untouchability

While practising law in the Bombay High Court, he tried to promote education to untouchables and uplift them. His first organised attempt was his establishment of the central institution Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha, intended to promote education and socio-economic improvement, as well as the welfare of “outcastes”, at the time referred to as depressed classes. For the defence of Dalit rights, he started five periodicals –

1. Mooknayak (the leader of the dumb, 1920)
2. Bahishkrit Bharat (Ostracized India, 1924)
3. Samta (Equality, 1928)
4. Janata (The People, 1930)
5. Prabuddha Bharat (Enlightened India, 1956)

Manusmriti Dahan Din: In a conference in late 1927, Ambedkar publicly condemned the classic Hindu text, the Manusmriti (Laws of Manu), for ideologically justifying caste discrimination and “untouchability”, and he ceremonially burned copies of the ancient text. On 25 December 1927, he led thousands of followers to burn copies of Manusmrti. Thus, annually 25 December is celebrated as Manusmriti Dahan Din (Manusmriti Burning Day) by Ambedkarites and Dalits.

Kalaram Temple movement: About 15,000 volunteers assembled at Kalaram Temple satygraha making one of the greatest processions of Nashik. The procession was headed by a military band, a batch of scouts, women and men walked in discipline, order and determination to see the god for the first time. When they reached to gate, the gates were closed by Brahmin authorities.

Poona Pact:

In 1932, British announced the formation of a separate electorate for “Depressed Classes” in the Communal Award.

• Gandhi fiercely opposed a separate electorate for untouchables, saying he feared that such an arrangement would divide the Hindu community. Gandhi protested by fasting while imprisoned in the Yerwada Central Jail of Poona. Following the fast, Congress politicians and activists such as Madan Mohan Malaviya and Palwankar Baloo organised joint meetings with Ambedkar and his supporters at Yerwada.
• On 25 September 1932, the agreement known as Poona Pact was signed between Ambedkar (on behalf of the depressed classes among Hindus) and Madan Mohan Malaviya (on behalf of the other Hindus). The agreement gave reserved seats for the depressed classes in the Provisional legislatures, within the general electorate.
• Due to the pact, the depressed class received 148 seats in the legislature, instead of the 71 as allocated in the Communal Award earlier proposed by British Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald. The text uses the term “Depressed Classes” to denote Untouchables among Hindus who were later called Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes under India Act 1935, and the later Indian Constitution of 1950. In the Poona Pact, a unified electorate was in principle formed, but primary and secondary elections allowed Untouchables in practice to choose their own candidates.

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