Naga People’s Front Opposes Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, Calls It ‘Anti-Tribal’

Kohima: The Naga People’s Front (NPF) has termed the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill cleared by Parliament recently as “anti-tribal” and demanded that an emergency session of the Nagaland Assembly be convened to pass a resolution against the Bill.

The Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023 seeks to exempt land within 100 km of the country’s borders from the purview of conservation laws and permit the setting up of zoos, safaris and eco-tourism facilities in forest areas. It was passed by the Lok Sabha last month and the Rajya Sabha on August 2.

NPF Legislature Party Leader Kuzholuzo Nienu asserted that the provisions of the Bill, after becoming law, will make precious forest land “more vulnerable to damage and destruction”.

Besides, he claimed, the Bill comes into conflict with the constitutional safeguard guaranteed to Nagaland on land and its resources under Article 371(A) providing special provisions for the northeastern state.

He said that the NPF demands that the NDPP-BJP government of the state should immediately pass an act or a resolution rejecting the “anti-tribal and anti-constitutional bill”.

For that, the government must convene a special session or take up this issue in the upcoming Assembly session scheduled next month, Nienu said.

He claimed that the Bill got its clearance from both Houses of Parliament despite objections raised from different corners of the country.

Pointing out that the Act exempts projects related to economy and security of national importance within 100 km of international borders, he claimed that such projects would no longer require forest clearance as it removed the Forest (Conservation) Act’s restrictions on creating infrastructure in the reserved forest areas.

The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 says that de-reservation of reserved forests, use of forest land for non-forest purposes, assigning forest land by way of lease or otherwise to private entity and clearing of naturally grown trees for the purpose of reafforestation requires prior permission of the central government.

Acknowledging that infrastructural and industrial developments are inevitable, he said, “By allowing such activities such as creation of check posts, fire lines, eco-tourism facilities, safaris, exploration, dams, seismic surveys, etc,…. they (forests) are just made more vulnerable to damage and destruction.” Forest and wildlife concerns can be politicised for other national and commercial interests, the NPF leader said adding that tribal land in the Northeast is surrounded by international borders.

The senior MLA also asserted that this Bill undermines the power of the state government as it gives the Centre the first and last say on everything related to forests.

The Bill makes the entire Nagaland vulnerable since a large stretch of the state is covered with greeneries, Nienu said.

“This Act stands as a threat to tribal lands – a land from which we got our history, culture and identity,” he said. 

(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)