The much touted Scheduled Tribes and Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act 2006 has not made much progress in several states including in the states of two concerned ministers - PR Kyndiah and his Deputy Rameshwar Oraon.

And the reason for such lax, given in case of home states of both the Ministers - Meghalaya and Jharkhand, is quite interesting.

In Meghalaya, the translation of the Act in local languages is held up on account of "non-availability of the Act's legal lexicon in local languages," according to sources.

Affected by POSCO, Vedanta projects, people prepare for the final battle after Vedanta and its Indian subsidiary, Sterlite, got the green signal to mine Niyamgiri for bauxite, Dongria Kondhs living in the hills have stepped up their vigil. They are determined to oppose any attempt at mining the hills.

in a major relief to forest-dwellers seeking land rights in Orissa, the state

The forestland in Joblakocha that was cleared for cultivation. Telegraph picture

Jamshedpur, Sept. 4: Sabars and Birhors, who would hunt and make ropes for a living, have now taken to agriculture.

With the help of an NGO, Socio Economic and Education Development Society (SEEDS), Sabar and Birhor tribes in Joblakocha and Tumangkocha villages at Mosabani in East Singhbhum district have started growing plants within an area of 7 hectares.

Maharashtra village places demands under forest rights act Managing forest resources comes easy to people of Mendha Lekha. The people of this forest village in Maharashtra

Food gatherer and rope maker tribals in Jharkhand become cultivators Members of two primitive tribes in East Singhbhum district, Jharkhand, are trying to retain their forestland in a unique manner. The sabars and birhors, food gatherers and rope makers, have taken to cultivation. They have cleared tracts of forestland on which they have lived for generations, to grow mango, guava,

KOLLAM: Based on the Forest Rights Act approved by the Union Government, forest rights committees will be set up in the district on August 3. A meeting chaired by District Collector A.Shajahan has taken a decision in this regard.

The Act envisages to provide rights on the dwelling places of those people, including Scheduled Tribes, in the forest land in which they had been living traditionally.

CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Wednesday directed the authorities concerned not to fell trees or alienate any land, particularly from sanctuaries, national parks, bio-spheres (reserved area) by issuing pattas or by any other means of alienation.

A division bench of the High Court comprising Justice I.M. Quddushi and Justice B.P. Ray passed the interim order on a PIL challenging the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act.

Nitin Sethi | TNN Who is opposed to the Forest Rights Act meant to recognize rights of tribals and others over forest lands? Besides the staunch wildlife NGOs and activists, it seems the other group dead set against the Act is the retired forest officials. Now one more petition has been filed by another set of retired forest officials in the Orissa high court against the implementation of the Act. The sixth petition now sitting in the state high courts is by an ex-zamindar of the land what is now a tiger reserve and has tribals living in it.