Centre says forest dept not nodal agency for community forest resource management

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) has stated that Community Forest Resource Management Plans (CFRMPs) are to be prepared exclusively by Gram Sabhas through their Community Forest Resource Management Committees (CFRMCs), as required under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, and not by the forest department or any other external agency.

In a letter dated 14 August to the Chhattisgarh chief secretary, the ministry responded to communications from the state’s forest and tribal development departments seeking guidance on CFR management. It pointed to FRA Rules 4(1)(e) and 4(1)(f), which clearly vest the responsibility for preparing CFRMPs in Gram Sabhas through their CFRMCs.

The clarification comes after controversy over a 15 May circular issued by the state’s principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF), which said the forest department would manage community forest lands until a model plan was issued by MoTA. The circular had also barred other agencies, NGOs or private bodies from working in CFR areas.

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Rejecting this approach, the ministry said that while it is preparing a long-term vision document, a single standardised model plan is “not practical” given India’s diverse landscapes. Instead, it advised Gram Sabhas to prepare locally appropriate CFRMPs using the Dharti Aba–Janajatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DA-JGUA) framework as guidance.

The letter, signed by joint secretary Anant Prakash Pandey, reiterated that the forest department’s role is limited to being a facilitator, not a manager. It also stressed the need for regular meetings of State Level Monitoring Committees, chaired by the chief secretary, to resolve implementation issues.

Chhattisgarh’s tribal development department had earlier contested the PCCF’s circular, reminding MoTA that a 2020 state order had already clarified the forest department’s role as coordination support, with the tribal development department remaining the nodal agency for FRA implementation.

MoTA further clarified that once a CFRMP is approved by the Gram Sabha, the district level committee must ensure its integration into official forest management plans. Community-prepared plans, it said, can provide vital inputs for broader conservation and biodiversity strategies.

The FRA empowers forest-dwelling communities to govern and conserve their forests through Community Forest Resource Rights (CFRR). Activists argue that the forest department’s attempt to retain control over CFR lands undermines the Act’s goal of decentralised, community-led forest governance.

With PTI inputs