Sawisel hlawh Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023

Sawisel hlawh Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023 chu Lok Sabha-ah sawihona pawh awm mang lova pawm a nih hnuah, Rajya Sabha-ah pawh Opposition te awm loh laiin August 2, 2023 khan passed a ni zui leh ta a.

Zau taka sawi chuan he Bill hian Act in conservation scope a neih chu 'forest land' tia sawi ṭhenkhatah chauh a huamtir tawh dawn a ni. Hei mai bakah hian border land hnaiha 'ram tana pawimawh (national importance) project' te kalpui dawn chuan forest clearance lak a ngai tawh dawn lo bawk.

Hei mai bakah hian 'forest lands' tia sawiah non-forest activities heng sahuan siam te leh eco-tourism facility dinte a remti tawh dawn bawk.

He Bill hi March thla khan Lok Sabha-ah pharh a ni tawh a, chumi hnuah Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) party hrang hrang member 32 awmnaah an enfiah tura pek a ni a. JPC chairperson chu Meerut atanga Bharatiya Janata Party MP Rajendra Agrawal a ni.

Bill in Act scope a khuahkhirh dan?

He Bill-in a khawih nat ber chu India law hnuaia 'forest' tih chu a sawi fiah ṭhat (redefine) chu a ni. Indian Forest Act, 1927 hnuaia 'forest' a tih ramte chauh a huamtir a, dan pawi mawh dang sorkar record-a 'forests' tih te pawh Act hnuaiah 'forests' tia hriat tho tur a ti bawk.

He ennawn lehna hi tuna Act awm lai mek hman mek nen chuan a inang ta lo hle a, tuna dan ding laiah chuan 'any forest land' tiin dah a ni. Kum 1996-a Supreme Court judgement chuan hetianga huamzau taka sawina hi kalpui zelin 'forest' tihah chuan land record tin sorkarin record a neih tin te (a neitu tute pawh ni se) bakah 'deemed forests' (forest a ngaih) tih te, official-a 'forests' tia sawi ni lo mah se, huamtir tel tho ram zau tak thing tam tak dinna la ni lo; thing awm ṭeuhna ni tho site chu a huam tel vek a.

Supreme Court chuan State te chu an ram ṭheuha 'deemed forest' te chu enfiaha chhinchhiah turin a ti bawk a. Mahse, kum 30 dawn hnuah pawh he thil hi State tam taktena an bawhzui lohin a awm thung.

Tuna amendment siam thar hmang hian official-a 'forests' tia chhinchiah loh zawngte chu commercial activity-ah a chhuah ta vek a. Chu mai bakah Act-in 'check and balances' a siam forest ṭhiah a nih dawna local community te remtihna lak phawtte chu a ṭhiat ta vek bawk.

He Bill hmang hi chuan Aravalli range 40% vel leh Niyamgiri hill range 95% vel te chu a khawih dawn a, heng hmunte hi Dongria Kondh, Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group tia sawite chenna hmun a ni. Hei bakah hian mi thiamte chuan State-wise data 'deemed forests' tih te chu mipui nawlpui hriata data hmuh theiha a awm loh avangin he amended Act pawnah hian a awm dawn nge an chiang lo bawk an ti.

He Bill hian linear infrastructure project – kawngpui leh highways ang te siam a nih dawn chuan national border aṭanga 100 km huam chhunga awm a nih chuan 'forest clearance' lak a ngai tawh lo a ti bawk.

Hei tak hi mi thiamte ngaih ti ṭha lotu niin a chhan chu 'strategic linear projects of national importance' tih chu sawi fiahna mumal awm lo a nih avangin infrastructure project kalpui nan duh dan dana hman sual theih leh local ecology tichhe vek theiah an ngai a ni.

Hei tak hi Northeastern States te tan a pawi theih em emna chu a ni ta a ni. JPC consultation neih lai pawhin BJP rorelna Northeast State te chuan '100 km exemption' hi an dodal tawh a. Nagaland phei chuan 100 km exemption hi an ram a têt avang leh Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot a nih avangin siam danglam ni se an ti a, Tripura chuan 10 km-a tihtawi tiin rawtna a siam a. Chutih laiin Arunachal Pradesh chu 150 km a tihsan ni se a ti ve hlauh thung.

JPC in Bill a sawiselte a ngai pawimawh em?

Pakhatnaah, Bill chu Parliamentary Standing Committee hnenah thlen a ni lo, thlen ni se chuan Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh kaihhruai te enfiah tura lut tur a ni a. Pre-legislative Consultation Policy ang chuan enfiah tura pek tur a ni a, tihmakmawh erawh a ni lo. Mahse, BJP sokar chuan heng hi Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023 bikah chuan kal kànin a namnul vek a.

Pahnihnaah chuan JPC te chuan representation 1,200 chuangte aṭanga rawtna leh thlak tura ngenna tribal groups, conservationists, environmental lawyers, activists leh citizen groups te aṭanga an dawng chungin Bill ah pakhat té mah thlak danglam an nei duh lo.

JPC a member paruk te chuan lungawi lohna 'dissent notes' an ziak hial nghe nghe a. Ministry of Tribal Affairs te pawhin JPC hnenah amendmnt kalpui tum chuan Forest Rights Act 2006 a community rights bawhchhiat theihna awm theite an thlen bawk chungin ngaih pawimawhsak an ni lo. Chuti khawp chuan kaltlangpui tumin an tumruh a ni.

He Bill hian Opposittion MP tena Lok Sabha-a Manipur buaina an thlurbing bur karah awlsam téin a paltlang mai a. Upper House (Rajya Sabha) ah sawiho tura chhawpchhuah a nih hnuah pawh Opposition te awm loh laiin voice vote-in pawm fel a ni ta a ni.

Sawiseltute sawiselna

Environmentalist tam takte chuan he Bill hian forest land te commercial exploitation atan a hawng dawn a ni an ti a. Bill a "central sorkar-in public utility atan" tia a sawi chu kawh nei tam lutuk leh hman sual theih an ti bawk.

Sorkar official hlui te chuan border area-a forest land 100 km thlenga 'strategic' thila hman theih tihah ngaih ṭhat lohna an neih thu an sawi bawk a.

Principal Chief Conservator of Forests hlui BK Singh chuan he dan hmang hi chuan North East Region of India leh Himalyan region pum deuhthaw 'ecologically sensitive' leh 'wildlife species' tam tak awmna chu a huam tel vek dawn a ti bawk.

July 12 khan civil servant hlui 100 chuang te chuan Parliament chu he amendment hi remti lo tura ngenin dik lo leh fel lo tam tak a awm a ni an ti bawk a. He amdendment hi forest land te non-forest thila phalraina zawk tur a ni an ti bawk.

- Dr Lalmalsawma Nghaka, Kulikawn