Move with caution

The policy decision by the Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation to amend the Forest Act of 1993 to curtail “unrestricted rights” of Community Forest User Groups (CFUGs) based on two different reports of the National Vigilance Center and the Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources and Means is a move in the right direction to stop deforestation taking place at an alarming rate in the country, especially in the Tarai region. However we believe that more needs to be done to stop deforestation, and some of the proposed amendments need further discussions so that when the new act is introduced, no one feels cheated.



The decision to only allow the CFUGs who have been registered for 5 years or more to auction timber, as opposed to the existing policy of allowing even new user groups to do so, and paving the way for District Forest Offices to impose a maximum of 50 percent tax in the income generated through timber auctions as opposed to the existing provision of maximum of 15 percent tax, are certainly aimed at discouraging the rampant abuse of CFUGs by the timber mafia. But on the flip side, this can seriously affect the majority innocents who rely on the community forest for their livelihood. Therefore the government has to be mindful of these genuine users’ concerns before including stricter provisions in the proposed amendment. Furthermore, the government has to explain in clear terms about the dual ownership of the community forests, the rights enjoyed by the CFUGs under the new amendment, so that there is no room for confusion and discontent among the stakeholders. Similarly, the government has to keep in mind that if the community itself cannot enjoy the benefits of the community forests as stipulated in the previous laws and acts, then the whole purpose of establishing/forming CFUG is defeated, and would only lead to discontent among the people affected, which in turn has the potential to lead to more deforestation.



Therefore, first and foremost, the government should not only count on acts and amendments to stop deforestation in the country. Introducing stricter provisions might yield desired results for some time, but in the long run, it is not going to work. Given the law and order situation in the country, there is no guaranty that introducing stricter acts alone can stop rampant deforestation taking place. Rather, the government, if it is really serious about stopping deforestation, should work toward strengthening its agencies, and work in tandem with the stakeholders and not let any genuine group feel cheated of its rights, to stop the timber mafia abusing the privileges granted to CFUGs.

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