The Indian School of Business (ISB), the research and policy advocacy group Vasundhara, and the Society for Rural, Urban and Tribal Initiative (SRUTI) are supporting India’s indigenous and other forest-dwelling communities to secure their forest rights after centuries of struggle.
Completed
From: 25/01/2018
To: 31/12/2020
Budget: $1,994,139
Proponents: Indian School of Business (ISB)
Associates:
Vasundhara
Society for Rural, Urban, and Tribal Initiative (SRUTI)
Manthan Yuva Sansthan
Parivarttan
Stakeholders:
Indigenous and other forest-dwelling communities
Village assemblies
District and local government officials responsible for FRA implementation
Provincial and national government decision-makers
Private sector entities and associations whose activities intersect with forests and rural livelihoods
India’s Forest Rights Act (FRA) of 2006 gives Scheduled Tribes, known as Adivasis, and other traditional forest dwellers, the right to govern, manage and use community forests. However, few have secured their rights due to resistance and low capacity in government institutions and a lack of awareness amongst Adivasi and forest dweller communities. This Tenure Facility initiative capitalizes on current political will, grassroots mobilization, and civil society strength in the states of Odisha, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh to implement the Act. It aims to build the awareness, capacity, and momentum required to upscale implementation of the FRA across the country. Full implementation could secure community tenure and jurisdiction over 32 million hectares of forest claimed by 150 million tribal and forest-dwelling people living in 170,000 villages.
To read a brief overview of India, click here.
For a timeline of land and forest rights in India, click here.
