Shruti Mokashi, Sharachchandra Lele

Down To Earth | April 12, 2023

Even after 16 years, implementation provisions under the Forest Rights Act, 2006, have been far from satisfactory. One of the many reasons for non-implementation is a lack of clarity about where and how much forest land might be eligible for Community Forest Resource Rights (CFRR) claims.

Consequently, there is no “target” that state governments must reach and against which their performance can be measured in terms of recognising CFRR.

To address this gap, researchers from the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) have estimated the potential area that could be marked for granting of CFRR and locations of villages with this potential in four states: Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Maharashtra.