Skip to main content

Uttarakhand's Vangujjar nomadic tribe faces eviction from forest "despite High Court order"

By A Representative
The Vangujjar nomadic tribe from Aasa Rodhi Range, Ramgarh, Dehradun, Uttarakhand in Rajaji National Park is facing the threat of eviction threat from the state forest department. On August 5, range forest officials threatened two Vangujjar families of Gulam Mustafa Chopra and Noor Baksh, whose ancestors are residing in the forest for the last five centuries, to leave the forest within two days.
The All-India Union of Forest Working People (AIUFWP), in statement, said, these officials reached up to these families without prior notice and said if they do not leave their houses would be demolished. When Gulam Mustafa asked for the eviction order from the High Court the ranger said, "You go and take the order from director's office'. We will not show you."
To this, Gulam Mustafa replied that Vangujjars have High Court order in their favour which says that "Until and unless the Vangujjars, a nomadic tribe, are not settled under the Forest Rights Act 2006 no eviction can take place."
Strongly condemning it as unconstitutional act of the forest department, AIUFWP said, "Vangujjar families are living in constant fear with their small children during the current rainy season. If they are uprooted where will they go? The government has till date not made any alternative arrangement, as per the Forest Rights Act.
On August 7, Vangujjars families along with AIUFWP leaders submitted memorandum and to the director, Rajaji National Park, to immediately stop eviction and withdraw its staff from the forest who are constantly threatening the families without any legal document.

Comments

Post a Comment

TRENDING

Civil society at a crossroads: Service delivery vs. rights in the fight for social change

Counterview News   In the latest episode of the podcast Unmute , hosts Gagan Sethi and Minar Pimple convened a profound conversation with two veteran development practitioners to dissect a persistent tension within civil society: the perceived divide between service delivery and the struggle for rights. The episode, titled "Beyond Service Delivery: Civil Society, Rights, and the Politics of Social Change," featured Apoorva Oza , a development practitioner with decades of experience in rural development and institution-building, and Professor Dipa Sinha , a development economist known for her work on food, nutrition, gender, and social policy.
2 comments
»

Grain vs. gasoline: How the global biofuel boom threatens India’s food and water security

By Rajiv Shah  A new report published by the international research and advocacy organization GRAIN has warned that the global resurgence of biofuels is triggering a dangerous dynamic of “more fuel, less food, more land grabs.” Driven by intersecting energy security concerns, geopolitical tensions, and aggressive decarbonization mandates, the expanding agrofuel industry is increasingly pitting corporate energy interests against global food security and indigenous land rights. 
Post a Comment
»

Sikkim governor row: ALIFA asks centre to explain hurried appointment in Ankita Bhandari case

By A Representative   The All-India Feminist Alliance (ALIFA) on Saturday expressed “immense pain and outrage” that even after four years and a national uproar, justice has not been fully delivered in the Ankita Bhandari murder case and that a ruling party politician facing allegations has been “gifted a high-ranking constitutional office.” In a statement, ALIFA extended “unflinching solidarity” to Ankita’s parents, who it said are “fighting for justice on the streets of Delhi,” and demanded that pending the CBI inquiry and judicial decision, the appointment of BJP leader Dushyant Kumar Gautam as Sikkim’s Governor be subject to “immediate presidential review.”
Post a Comment
»