Change attitude towards tribesmen: Jairam Ramesh

Expressbuzz Feb 7, 2011

THIRUVANATHAPURAM: Union Minister for Environment Jairam Ramesh said that forest officials would be living in a fool's paradise if they thought that they could keep people and cattle out of forest areas.

'The challenge of the forest officials is to find a way to regenerate forests even while recognising biotic pressures. Forest officials have never reconciled to the Forest Rights Act, they still consider it a threat,' Jairam Ramesh said while inaugurating the Conference of Southern State Forest Ministers here on Sunday.

The Union Minister said that there should be a fundamental three pronged transformation in the functioning of forest departments if forest conservation efforts across the country were to be strengthened.

''Business as usual will not work,'' Jairam Ramesh said. The first big transformation he has in mind is the attitude of forest officials towards tribesmen and forest dwellers.

''The forest officials should look upon the Forest Rights Act as a historic opportunity to redefine their relationship with the local community,'' he said.

Forest Act to be redone

He said there were many ''colonial relics'' in the Forest Act 1927 that needs to be redone.

''Thousands of cases have been slapped on tribesmen for violating certain sections of the Forest Act,'' the Minister said. Jairam Ramesh wants local communities to be in the forefront of conservation efforts.

Green India Mission

He said the Green India Mission, which intends to increase forest cover in the country by five million hectares, will be carried out through grama sabhas and joint forest management committees, the legally sanctified bodies of grama sabhas.

''Five million hectares of nonforest land will be added to the forest cover and the quality of another five million hectares of forest land will be improved with the help of grama sabhas, especially women,'' he said and added: ''The Forest Department will provide technical support.''

Recruitment to be revamped

The second radical transformation should happen to the recruitment system of forest departments.

''In the past 10 to 15 years there has hardly been any significant recruitment at the cuttingedge level such as forest guards and rangers. The average age of forest guard in the country is 53 years. It is to such a man that we are entrusting the protection of the forest,'' the Union Minister said.

Concerted efforts needed

The third radical departure in the functioning of forest departments should be in their concerted efforts to stop what Jairam Ramesh called the ''degreening of India''.

He said that though the country could claim that it had increased its forest cover it could not be denied that the proportion of open degraded forest (ODF) in the total forest cover was high.

Over 40 percent of the forest cover in the country is ODF.

''A thick forest is where you stand and look up and cannot see the sun. A medium forest is where you stand and look up and see half the sun.

"An ODF is a forest area where you stand and look up and see nothing else but the sun,'' Jairam Ramesh said.

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