Gujarat salt cultivators' forest rights in Little Rann of Kutch not recognized: Agariyas tell Indian People's Tribunal

By Pankti Jog*
Disappointed with the Gujarat government’s reluctance to recognize their seasonal user rights under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, over the Wild Ass Sactuary of the Little Rann of Kutch (LRK), agariya salt cultivators of the region have strongly represented their case before the Indian People’s Tribunal, which took place in New Delhi on December 15-16, 2016.
Held to mark 10 years of the enactment of FRA, 2006, the tribunal was organized by the Human Rights Law Network in collaboration with 50 other organizations working for the rights of tribals, nomadic and denotified tribes to hear the cases of violation or denial of land rights of communities.
The jury panel was chaired by Justice Suresh, former chief justice of the Bombay High Court.
Salt cultivators told the jury that they have been farming salt in the LRK for the last nearly six centuries, and they have historical documents to prove this. Yet, they contended, the Gujarat government never surveyed LRK to mark their presence.
While LRK was declared as Wild Ass Sanctuary in 1973, no survey was carried out see who all were residing on this 5,000 sq km wide area, they pointed out.
The agariyas recalled that soon after Independence, the Government of India issued notification saying salt farming below 10 acres would not require lease. The average land use by each salt farmer, however, is just about 4 or 5 acres, they added.
“We do not use more than 3% of the total land of the sanctuary. We also know that fishing and pastoral communities too are depend on LRK for their livelihood. Along with us, they too should get seasonal community user rights”, said an agariya representative.

An agariya representing to the tribunal

“Our demand will neither require conversion of any land into revenue land, nor will it divert any land from protected forest area. Ours is a most reasonable demand, leaving no reason for the government to deny it”, the agariya added.
Along with agariyas of LRK, 60-odd community groups from Rajasthan, Maharastra, Chhattisgadh, Orrissa, Jharkhand, Uttrakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka and West Bengal gave their testimonies before the tribunal.
Cases represented included delay in disposing of claims of community forest rights to outright denial of habitat rights to nomadic and denotified tribes, to diversion of forest land for industrial purposes underming FRA, 2006, and forceful eviction of communities by mining and hydropower projects.
Soon after the hearing, the jury came up with a note, saying, “Even after 10 years of enactment of FRA, 2006, the forest departments across the country act as 'lords of the land' and do not want to understand that they do not have the power to reject the rights of the tribal and other forest dwellers.”
“We are surprised to see that the government has failed to act on FRA, 2006. In the case of nomadic and denotified tribes, it has not even initialised the procedure of FRA, 2006, which is unacceptable”, the note regreted.
The jury of the Indian People’s Tribunal on FRA would be sharing its interim report with the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and the the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Government of India.
Poining out that this would give the government “fair chance” to respond on each of the testimonies presented to the tribunal, Justice Suresh remarked, “If the government does not say anything in justification, the Indian People's Tribunal will publish its final report with the jury’s remarks.”
---
*With Agariya Heetrakshak Manch, Gujarat

Comments

Modi’s Israel visit strengthened Pakistan’s hand in US–Iran truce: Ex-Indian diplomat

By Jag Jivan M. K. Bhadrakumar , a career diplomat with three decades of service in postings across the former Soviet Union, Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, and Turkey, has warned that the current truce in the US–Iran war is “fragile and ridden with contradictions.” Writing in his blog India Punchline , Bhadrakumar argues that while Pakistan has emerged as a surprising broker of dialogue, the durability of the ceasefire remains uncertain.

Incarceration of Prof Saibaba 'revives' the question: What is crime, who is criminal?

By Kunal Pant* In 2016, a Supreme Court Judge asked the state of Maharashtra, “Do you want to extract a pound of flesh?” The statement was directed against the state for contesting the bail plea of Delhi University Professor GN Saibaba. Saibaba was arrested in 2014, a justification for which was to prevent him from committing what the police called “anti-national activities.”

Why Indo-Pak relations have been on 'knife’s edge' , hostilities may remain for long

By Utkarsh Bajpai* The past few decades have seen strides being made in all aspects of life – from sticks and stones to weaponry. The extreme case of this phenomenon has been nuclear weapons. The menace caused by nuclear weapons in the past is unforgettable. Images of Hiroshima and Nagasaki from 1945 come to mind, after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the cities.

Manufacturing, services: India's low-skill, middle-skill labour remains underemployed

By Francis Kuriakose* The Indian economy was in a state of deceleration well before Covid-19 made its impact in early 2020. This can be inferred from the declining trends of four important macroeconomic variables that indicate the health of the economy in the last quarter of 2019.

Food security? Gujarat govt puts more than 5 lakh ration cards in the 'silent' category

By Pankti Jog* A new statistical report uploaded by the Gujarat government on the national food security portal shows that ensuring food security for the marginalized community is still not a priority of the state. The statistical report, uploaded on December 24, highlights many weaknesses in implementing the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in state.

The soundtrack of resistance: How 'Sada Sada Ya Nabi' is fueling the Iran war

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The Persian track “ Sada Sada Ya Nabi ye ” by Hossein Sotoodeh has taken the world by storm. This viral media has cut across linguistic barriers to achieve cult status, reaching over 10 million views. The electrifying music and passionate rendition by the Iranian singer have resonated across the globe, particularly as the high-intensity military conflict involving Iran entered its second month in March 2026.

Lata Mangeshkar, a Dalit from Devdasi family, 'refused to sing a song' about Ambedkar

By Pramod Ranjan* An artist is known and respected for her art. But she is equally, or even more so known and respected for her social concerns. An artist's social concerns or in other words, her worldview, give a direction and purpose to her art. History remembers only such artists whose social concerns are deep, reasoned and of durable importance. Lata Mangeshkar (28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was a celebrated playback singer of the Hindi film industry. She was the uncrowned queen of Indian music for over seven decades. Her popularity was unmatched. Her songs were heard and admired not only in India but also in Pakistan, Bangladesh and many other South Asian countries. In this article, we will focus on her social concerns. Lata lived for 92 long years. Music ran in her blood. Her father also belonged to the world of music. Her two sisters, Asha Bhonsle and Usha Mangeshkar, are well-known singers. Lata might have been born in Indore but the blood of a famous Devdasi family...

'Batteries now cheap enough for solar to meet India's 90% demand': Expert quotes Ember study

By A Representative Shankar Sharma, Power & Climate Policy Analyst, has urged India’s top policymakers to reconsider the financial and ecological implications of the country’s energy transition strategy in light of recent global developments. In a letter dated April 10, 2026, addressed to the Union Ministers of Finance, Power, New & Renewable Energy, Environment, Forest & Climate Change, and the Vice Chair of NITI Aayog, with a copy to the Prime Minister, Sharma highlighted concerns over India’s ambitious plans for coal gasification and the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR).

Health Day ads spark row as NAPi targets Britannia campaign, criticizes celebrity endorsement

By A Representative The advocacy group Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest (NAPi) has raised concerns over what it describes as misleading advertising of ultra-processed food products (UPFs), particularly those high in sugar, fat and salt, calling for stricter regulations and an end to such promotions across media platforms.

Search This Blog