It’s necessary officials, citizens understand forest rights: Negi

Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi today chaired a workshop on the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, at Chopal in Shimla district. He said that awareness about FRA is equally important for officials as well as the people. The aim of the workshop was to simplify the complexities of the Act and to ensure that eligible beneficiaries receive its benefits in a timely and transparent manner.

During the meeting, the minister elaborated on the objectives of FRA as well as the circumstances under which it was enacted. He said that beneficiaries mainly from the rural areas are often deprived of their rights due to lack of awareness and procedural hurdles. “Therefore, it is essential that both officials and citizens fully understand the Act,” he added.

The panchayat representatives from the Chopal raised issues such as difficulties in documentation, problems with demarcation, hurdles at the patwari level and delays in administrative processes. The minister urged active participation from all stakeholders to ensure that eligible people can avail of the maximum benefits.

Negi also highlighted the loss caused due to natural disasters in the monsoon season and said that similar to last year, the state suffered immense loss of life and property due to torrential rains. The state is expecting full support from the Central Government to cope up with the losses. He said that the state government has made a historic increase in the Disaster Relief Manual, which is already benefiting affected families.

He said that the state government had launched the Universal Carton Scheme to ensure fair prices for horticulturists. “Additionally, the price of apples purchased through the APMC has been increased by Rs 2 per kg. So far, 70,000 metric tonnes of apple have been procured this season and under the Market Intervention Scheme, growers have been paid around Rs 154 crore as lumpsum payments,” he added.