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The political agenda of implementing Forest Rights Act 2006: evidences from Indian Sundarban

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  • Amrita Sen

    (Indian Institute of Technology Bombay)

  • Sarmistha Pattanaik

    (Indian Institute of Technology Bombay)

Abstract

The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act 2006 (FRA) is a landmark statutory law which aims to grant ownership rights and forest management powers to the marginalized forest-dependent communities in India. Our study, conducted in Sundarban Biosphere Reserve (SBR) region of West Bengal, reveals that at particular locations where the act suffers from implementation deficits or lack of coverage, it is imperative to investigate the role of local politics in facilitating or impeding access to forest rights. The study identifies the political drivers which influence the (non) implementation of the act in the SBR. It argues that despite being a rights-based law, the implementation of FRA is deeply implicated within vested political interests at specific geographical locations. The study concludes that a critique of the political economy of forest conservation is inadequate to explain the limitations of FRA implementation.

Suggested Citation

  • Amrita Sen & Sarmistha Pattanaik, 2019. "The political agenda of implementing Forest Rights Act 2006: evidences from Indian Sundarban," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 21(5), pages 2355-2376, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:endesu:v:21:y:2019:i:5:d:10.1007_s10668-018-0138-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s10668-018-0138-7
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Craig Johnson, 2001. "Local Democracy, Democratic Decentralisation and Rural Development: Theories, Challenges and Options for Policy," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 19(4), pages 521-532, December.
    2. Debnarayan Sarker, 2011. "The Implementation Of The Forest Rights Act In India: Critical Issues," Economic Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(2), pages 25-29, June.
    3. Kumar, Kundan & Singh, Neera M. & Kerr, John M., 2015. "Decentralisation and democratic forest reforms in India: Moving to a rights-based approach," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 1-8.
    4. Arun Agrawal & Elinor Ostrom, 2001. "Collective Action, Property Rights, and Decentralization in Resource Use in India and Nepal," Politics & Society, , vol. 29(4), pages 485-514, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Amrita Sen, 2019. "Human–wildlife conflicts in the Sundarban Biosphere Reserve and the politics of forest conservation," DECISION: Official Journal of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Springer;Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, vol. 46(4), pages 321-333, December.
    2. Sumana Banerjee & Abhra Chanda & Tuhin Ghosh & Emilie Cremin & Fabrice G. Renaud, 2023. "A Qualitative Assessment of Natural and Anthropogenic Drivers of Risk to Sustainable Livelihoods in the Indian Sundarban," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-27, April.
    3. Loivaranta, Tikli, 2023. "Geographies of knowledge creation in forest rights claims-making processes among Indigenous communities in Central India," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).

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