The Lok Sabha on July 26 passed the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023, during the Parliament's ongoing Monsoon Session. The bill was passed amid Opposition protests over the Manipur situation.

A Parliamentary committee set up to review the bill reportedly gave it a go-ahead without any objection earlier this month. Tabled for the Parliament's 2023 Monsoon Session, the controversial bill was passed in the Lok Sabha on July 26. It proposes amendments to the Forest Conservation Act 1980 and aims to exempt certain forest land from legal protection.

Earlier, The Hindu reported that the Parliamentary committee had cleared and endorsed the amendment bill in its entirety, despite objections from the Opposition parties and Northeast India states.

Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023: Proposals and objections

The amendment bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha by Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on March 29. It aims to bring clarity to the Forest Conservation Act 1980 and exempt certain categories of forest land from legal protection.

The bill seeks to exempt certain forest land within a distance of 100 km along international borders or Line of Control (LOC) from protection. This is to facilitate the construction of strategic linear projects for national security.

ALSO READ | India seeks to free up ‘unrecorded’ forests for development projects

Further, under the bill, forests situated alongside a rail line or a public road maintained by the government and tree plantations on private lands will also lose protection and status as forests.

The bill also attempts to clear the confusion regarding the definition and status of forests which emanated due to a Supreme Court’s judgement which said that the category “forests” will not only include land which is understood in the dictionary sense, but also any area recorded as forest in the government records.

The amendment bill also proposes to redefine the ambit of “non-forest purpose” exemptions under Section 2 of the FCA.

This will reportedly allow activities to be conducted on forest land without the need for any approval from the authorities.

Further, the establishment of "ecotourism facilities" included in the Forest Working Plan/Wildlife Management Plan/Tiger Conservation Plan; or

any other like purposes" specified by the Centre, will be allowed under the bill.

Activists have contended that words like "ecotourism facilities" and "any other purposes" are too vague and may pave the way for widespread exploitation and misuse.

The Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023, is one among the important bills, including the Data Protection Bill, tabled for discussion and passage during the monsoon session of the Parliament, which began on July 20.

(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani)

First Published:Jul 11, 2023 7:41 PM IST