Forest rights group asks Tribal Affairs Ministry to withdraw stand on Gram Sabha consent
The Campaign for Survival and Dignity (CSD) has demanded that the Tribal Affairs Ministry retract its memorandum claiming Gram Sabha consent is not required for forest land diversion. Critics argue this stance violates the Forest Rights Act and undermines the rights of indigenous communities.
Why it matters
This highlights a significant conflict between industrial development projects and the legal rights of forest-dwelling communities in India.
The Tribal Affairs Ministry must immediately withdraw its August 31 office memorandum that claimed there was “no provision” under the Forest Rights Act (FRA) to seek consent of Gram Sabhas for diverting forest land for non-forest purposes, the Campaign for Survival and Dignity (CSD) said in a statement on Wednesday (September 9, 2026).
The national platform of Adivasi and forest-dweller organisations said the Ministry “cannot simply wash its hands of its responsibility”, calling the Ministry’s position “factually and legally untenable”, which “smacks of dereliction of duty”.
“Shockingly, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs has made such a gargantuan factual blunder, something which could have been avoided simply by reading the text of the law,” said the CSD.
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