Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over new rules that shifts the onus of ensuring rights of forest dwellers from Centre to state governments.
Calling it a move facilitating ‘ease of snatching’ forest land under the Forest Conservation Rules, 2022, Gandhi said the Modi government is at its crony best. Implying that the changes in the rules have been done in the name of 'ease of doing business' for a chosen few, the Congress MP wrote, “‘Modi-Mitr’ Sarkar (Modi-friend government) at its crony best! For ‘ease of snatching’ forest land, BJP govt has come up with new FC Rules, 2022 diluting UPA's Forest Rights Act, 2006.”
“Congress stands strongly with our Adivasi brothers & sisters in their fight to protect Jal, Jungle and Zameen (water, forest and land),” Gandhi wrote further.
The Congress has been accusing the Union government of abdicating its responsibility towards protecting tribal rights. Party leaders have alleged that new forest conservation rules will disempower crores of 'Adivasis' and others living in forest areas.
According to reports, the new forest rules have shifted the onus of ensuring forest rights of forest dwellers from central to state governments. The responsibility for obtaining consent from Scheduled Tribes and other forest-dwelling communities before forests are cut have now been shifted from the Centre to the state government.
{{/usCountry}}According to reports, the new forest rules have shifted the onus of ensuring forest rights of forest dwellers from central to state governments. The responsibility for obtaining consent from Scheduled Tribes and other forest-dwelling communities before forests are cut have now been shifted from the Centre to the state government.
{{/usCountry}}Under the previous rules, the Union government was first required to verify the consent of forest-dwelling communities, and only then the said forest land could be approved/ handed over to private projects.
“We have given the responsibility of settling forest rights and then allowing diversion of forest land to states. It’s upto them now,” an official involved in the matter told HT.
The BJP has been facing heat from the Opposition parties over these changes. Earlier, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh, who has also served as the environment minister, hit out at the Modi government for turning away from the responsibility given to the Central Government by Parliament to ensure that the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 is implemented in a manner consistent with the Forest Rights Act, 2006.