The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Rules, 2007
12. Process of verifying claims by Forest Rights Committee:
(1) The Forest Rights Committee shall, after due intimation to the concerned claimant and the Forest Department:-
(a) visit the site and physically verify the nature and extent of the claim and evidence on the site;
(b) receive any further evidence or record from the claimant and witnesses;
(c) ensure that the claim from pastoralists and nomadic tribes for determination of their rights, which may either be through individual members, the community or traditional community institution, are verified at a time when such individuals, communities or their representatives are present;
(d) ensure that the claim from member of a primitive tribal group or pre-agricultural community for determination of their rights to habitat, which may either be through their community or traditional community institution, are verified when such communities or their representatives are present; and
(e) prepare a map delineating the area of each claim indicating recognizable landmarks.
(f) delineate the customary boundaries of the community forest resource with other members of the Gram Sabha including elders who are well versed with such boundaries and customary access
(g) prepare a community forest resource map with recognizable land marks and through substantial evidence as enumerated in sub-rule (2)of rule 13 and thereafter, such community forest resource claim shall be approved by a resolution of the Gram Sabha passed by a simple majority.
Explanation: The delineation of community forest resource may include existing legal boundaries such as reserve forest, protected forest, National Parks and Sanctuaries and such delineation shall formalize and recognize the powers of the community in access, conservation and sustainable use of such community forest resources."18
(2) The Forest Rights Committee' shall then record its findings on the claim and present the same to the Gram Sabha for its consideration.
(3) If there are conflicting claims in respect of the traditional or customary boundaries of another village or if a forest area is used by more than one Gram Sabha, the Forest Rights Committees of the respective Gram Sabhas shall meet jointly to consider the nature of enjoyment of such claims and submit the findings to the respective Gram Sabhas in writing:
Provided that if the Gram Sabhas are not able to resolve the conflicting claims, it shall be referred by the Gram Sabha to the Sub-Divisional Level Committee for its resolution.
(4) On a written request of the Gram Sabha or the Forest Rights Committee for information, records or documents, the concerned authorities shall provide an authenticated copy of the same to the Gram Sabha or Forest Rights Committee, as the case may be, and facilitate its clarification, if required, through an authorized officer.
18 Inserted by Rule 10 of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Amendment Rules, 2012 ( vide Notification No G.S.R. No. 669 (E).dated 6th September,2012)
12A. Process of recognition of rights.-
(1) On receipt of intimation from the Forest Rights Committee, the officials of the Forest and Revenue departments shall remain present during the verification of the claims and the verification of evidences on the site and shall sign the proceedings with their designation, date and comments, if any.
(2) If any objections are made by the Forest or Revenue departments at a later date to a claim approved by the Gram Sabha, for the reason that their representatives were absent during field verification, the claim shall be remanded to the Gram Sabha for re-verification by the committee where objection has been raised and if the representatives again fail to attend the verification process the Gram Sabha's decision on the field verification shall be final.
(3) In the event of modification or rejection of a claim by the Gram Sabha or a recommendation for modification or rejection of a claim forwarded by the Sub-Divisional Level Committee to the District Level Committee, such decision or recommendation on the claim shall be communicated in person to the claimant to enable him to prefer a petition to the Sub-Divisional Level Committee or District Level Committee as the case may be, within a period of sixty days which shall be extendable to a period of thirty days at the discretion of the above said committees.
(4) If any other state agency desires to object to a decision of the Gram Sabha or the Sub-Divisional Level Committee, it shall file an appeal before the Sub-Divisional Level Committee or the District Level Committee, as the case may be, which shall be decided by the Committee (in the absence of the representative of the concerned agency, if any) after hearing the claimant.
(5) No petition of the aggrieved person shall be disposed of, unless he has been given a reasonable opportunity to present anything in support of his claim.
(6) The Sub-Divisional Level Committee or the District Level Committee shall remand the claim to the Gram Sabha for re-consideration instead of modifying or rejecting the same, in case the resolution or the recommendation of the Gram Sabha is found to be incomplete or prima-facie requires additional examination.
(7) In cases where the resolution passed by the Gram Sabha, recommending a claim, with supporting documents and evidence, is upheld by the Sub-Divisional Level Committee with or without modifications, but the same is not approved by the District Level Committee, the District Level Committee shall record detailed reasons for not accepting the recommendations of the Gram Sabha or the Sub-Divisional Level Committee as the case may be, in writing, and a copy of the order of the District Level Committee along with the reasons shall be made available to the claimant or the Gram Sabha or the Community as the case may be.
(8) The land rights for self-cultivation recognised under clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 3 shall be, within the specified limit, including the forest lands used for allied activities ancillary to cultivation, such as, for keeping cattle, for winnowing and other post-harvest activities, rotational fallows, tree crops and storage of produce.
(9) On completion of the process of settlement of rights and issue of titles as specified in Annexure II, III and IV of these rules, the Revenue and the Forest departments shall prepare a final map of the forest land so vested and the concerned authorities shall incorporate the forest rights so vested in the revenue and forest records, as the case may be, within the specified period of record updation under the relevant State laws or within a period of three months, whichever is earlier.
(10) All decisions of the Sub-Divisional Level Committee and District Level Committee that involve modification or rejection of a Gram Sabha resolution or recommendation of the Sub Divisional Level Committee shall give detailed reasons for such modification or rejection, as the case may be:
Provided that no recommendation or rejection of claims shall be merely on any technical or procedural grounds:
Provided further that no committee (except the Gram Sabha or the Forest Rights Committee) at the Block or Panchayat or forest beat or range level, or any individual officer of any rank shall be empowered to receive claims or reject, modify, or decide any claim on forest rights.
(11) The Sub-Divisional Level Committee or the District Level Committee shall consider the evidence specified in rule 13 while deciding the claims and shall not insist upon any particular form of documentary evidence for consideration of a claim.
Explanation: 1. Fine receipts, encroacher lists, primary offence reports, forest settlement reports, and similar documentation by whatever name called, arisen during prior official exercise, or the lack thereof, shall not be the sole basis for rejection of any claim.
2. The satellite imagery and other uses of technology may supplement other form of evidence and shall not be treated as a replacement.19
19 Inserted by Rule 11 of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Amendment Rules, 2012 (vide Notification No G.S.R. No. 669 (E).dated 6th September,2012)
12B. Process of Recognition of Community Rights:-
(1) The District Level Committee shall, in view of the differential vulnerability of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups as described in clause (e) of sub-section (i) of section 3 amongst the forest dwellers, ensure that all Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups receive habitat rights, in consultation with the concerned traditional institutions of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups and their claims for habitat rights are filed before the concerned Gram Sabhas, wherever necessary by recognizing floating nature of their Gram Sabhas.
(2) The District Level Committee shall facilitate the filing of claims by pastoralists, transhumant and nomadic communities as described in clause (d) of sub-section (i) of section 3 before the concerned Gram Sabhas.
(3) The District Level Committee shall ensure that the forest rights under clause (i) of sub-section (1) of section 3 relating to protection, regeneration or conservation or management of any community forest resource, which forest dwellers might have traditionally been protecting and conserving for sustainable use, are recognized in all villages with forest dwellers and the titles are issued.
(4) In case where no community forest resource rights are recognized in a village, the reasons for the same shall be recorded by the Secretary of the District Level Committee.
(5) The conversion of forest villages, unrecorded settlement under clause (h) of section 3 shall include the actual land-use of the village in its entirety, including lands required for current or future community uses, like, schools, health facilities and public spaces."20
20 Inserted by Rule 11 of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Amendment Rules, 2012 (vide Notification No G.S.R. No. 669 (E).dated 6th September,2012)
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