In their mission to save forests, conservationists overlook forest dwellers
In a cruel environmental paradox, there is provision in Indian forest laws for conserving tigers and trees, but little thought for the tribal people who have lived in the jungles for centuries. Successive laws passed since the late 19th century, ostensibly to protect forests, have stripped away tribal rights over forest resources, impoverishing more than 50 million tribals.
Tribal leaders have protested against provisions in the Forest Conservation Act of 1984 – amended in 1988 – which threaten the already precarious livelihood of the country's poorest and most exploited group.
The proposals precede a massive show of force organised recently in central India by environmental action groups which protested against policies that promote "destructive development." The protests centred on the huge Narvada Valley dam project, which is expected to displace up to one million people.