Into the woods

The Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed a bill seeking to exempt land within 100 km of the country’s borders from the purview of conservation laws and permit setting up of zoos, safaris and eco-tourism facilities in forest areas. The Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill-2023 was passed after a brief debate in the Parliament during the Monsoon Session, which commenced last week. Earlier this month, a parliamentary committee, set up to scrutinise the controversial proposed amendments to the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, endorsed the amendment Bill in its entirety.

The contentious Bill aimed at amending the critical 1980 law which was enacted to ensure that India’s forest land was not recklessly exploited for non-forestry purposes. The Act empowers the Central government to mandate that any forest land diverted for non-forestry purposes be compensated duly. The amendments have stoked a raw nerve among several state governments, environmentalists and tribal groups that have criticised the changes. Complainants said that the amendments dilute the Supreme Court’s 1996 judgement in the Godavarman case, which extends protection to wide swathes of forests even if these tracts of land were not recorded as forests (deemed forests).

A bone of contention is the amendment which says that in geographically sensitive areas within a 100 km of the International Border or the LoC or LAC, there is no need for forest clearance to build highways, hydel power projects, infrastructural constructions. Experts believe such exemptions could threaten wildlife in the northeast, as well as the Himalayas — home to thousands of species endemic to the Indian subcontinent.

The amendments removing Central protection for deemed forests now permits activities such as tourism in these areas, which compromises their integrity. It is worth noting that the Act has been amended quite a few times in the past. During those times, the objective was to bring greater parcels of forest-like lands under the protection of the State. The 1980 Act had restricted the creation of national security infrastructure alongside forests, and the creation of vocational opportunities for those living in the vicinity of these regions.

The new amendments do away with these restrictions, which has raised fears in the northeast that swathes of forest land will be gobbled up for defence purposes. Stakeholders have even pointed out how the bill is in contravention of the Forest Rights Acts. The amendments sideline the necessity for the approval of forest dwellers and adivasi communities while going ahead with projects impacting their ecosystems. India’s forest policy from 1988 suggests that a third of the country’s geographical area should be under forests. Unfortunately, just about 21% of India happens to fall under forest cover.

On the plus side, some of the amendments encourage the notion of cultivating plantations on non-forest land in an attempt to increase green cover and act as carbon sinks, a step towards fulfilling India’s net zero emissions objective by 2070. The Committee has also said that States had started earmarking forest tracts meant for plantation towards companies involved in mining operations, a negation of the Act, which necessitated amendments to aid reforestation.

The absence of a proper assessment and mitigation plan when dealing with forest regions could threaten biodiversity and trigger extreme weather events. India’s forest policy must be forward looking, sustainable in the long-term, and above all inclusive at the core.