India distributes 2.5 million forest rights titles

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) reported that 2.5 million titles have been distributed under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, as of August 31. Out of more than 5.4 million claims received nationally, approximately 1.1 million remain pending in various stages, while over 1.8 million claims have been rejected.

During a regional review conference in Kolkata, officials noted that significant numbers of pending claims are concentrated in specific districts within Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Assam. The conference brought together senior officials from eight states, including West Bengal, Assam, Tripura, Jharkhand, Odisha, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh, to discuss implementation strategies.

Key priorities discussed include digitalization, integrating forest rights ownership into government records, linking livelihood schemes with rights holders, and providing credit facilities. The meeting also emphasized the need to incorporate recognized rights into revenue and forest records using accurate mapping to ensure inclusive and sustainable development for forest dwellers.