The brutal attack on a woman forest officer in Kumrambheem-Asifabad district last Sunday is now a distant blur. But it has left several questions lingering, the most important one being whether the TRS government has the political will required to rein in its public representatives from going after officers on-duty.
The irony is that while the government asks the officers to go and raise plantations in degraded forest lands in districts as part of the Haritha Haram programme, ruling TRS MLAs and their musclemen, who are supposed to cooperate with the forest staff, try to stop them in their tracks instead. The Kumrambheem-Asifabad incident was the result of one such conflict.
The attack on the woman officer was also a grim reminder that the Telangana government is sitting on a powder keg. The ambiguity on ownership of forest land is one reason why the government is not able to act with an iron hand against encroachers. On the other hand, the ambiguity helps encroachers - most of whom allegedly belong to the TRS party - to further tighten their grip on lands under their control. The ambiguity is cutting both ways - both the administration and the tribals are losing faith in the government.
In fact, the forest department’s determination to reclaim its land in Kumrambheem-Asifabad is sowing seeds of suspicion - whether the government was deliberately encouraging forest department to raise plantations in both legally and illegally occupied lands.
AN UNFOUNDED THEORY
The TRS critics say that after a BJP candidate won the Adilabad Lok Sabha seat, the TRS is unable to contain the humiliation and is egging the forest department to crackdown on tribals for moving way from the TRS. While the theory is unfounded, it is being bruited by those who stand to gain.
The forest department officials say that they were trying to reclaim the land that had been left out after pattas were given to tribals under Recognition of Forest Rights Act, 2005. They also say that they were not touching the land that had been under cultivation by tribals for nearly a decade after 2005. They say that they were only trying to recover the land encroached nearly four to five years ago.
Sources in the government say the State forests extend across 66 lakh acres of which there is confusion over the ownership for 18 lakh acres. The officials contend that at present 7.35 lakh acres are under illegal occupation. And that pattas were given under RoFR Act for nearly 3 lakh acres in 2005.
On multiple occasions, tribals are accused for destroying forest cover by taking up podu cultivation but in reality it is done by non-tribal, weaker sections who fell the forests on villages outskirts to raise cash crops like cotton. There are allegations that they keep everyone in good humour including the forest officials to continue cultivating.
VICE-LIKE GRIP
In Kumrambheem-Asifabad district, MLA Koneru Konappa’s brother Krishna beat up the forest department official Anitha, for trying to raise plantation in a 20-hectare stretch because the land was allegedly under illegal tribal occupation who were his benamis. Krishna has since resigned as vice-chairman of Zilla Parishad and ZPTC member, owing to pressure from the government.
In fact, the vice-like grip that the non-tribals have on forest and patta lands is shocking after in some regions they are known to be in possession of pattas under RoFR Act for tribals. Whether it is patta land or an encroached parcel, it is not the tribals but the non-tribals—mostly local TRS leaders—who are in possession of lands.
The ambiguity on ownership of land is the government’s Achilles’ heel which the non-tribal leaders are taking full advantage of. They are resisting the raising of plantations on lands which they say do not belong to the forest department.
As purification of land records hasn’t been done for 18 lakh acres, no one knows who is speaking the truth — whether the lands belong to the forest department or to the tribals. Until then, the bush-fires are going to be common occurences.
A PINK PARADOX
The irony is that while government asks its officers to go and raise plantations on degraded forest lands, the ruling TRS MLAs and their musclemen — supposed to cooperate with the forest staff — try to stop them. The Kumrambheem-Asifabad incident was the result of one such conflict