Grassroots democracy constituents if given power can really deliver results. It was with this thought that OP Rawat, Additional Chief Secretary to the Government of Madhya Pradesh, took to the implementation of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act 2006. The project that entirely deals with tribals in Madhya Pradesh (MP) and their forest land claims brought OP Rawat and his team the prestigious Prime Minister’s Award 2010 which was presented to them in New Delhi on April 21, the Civil Service Day. The 2006 Act was enacted when Rawat was Principal Secretary, Tribal Welfare, with the Madhya Pradesh Government.It may be recalled that the implementation of the said Act started in January 2008. MP has produced second best results (first is Chhattisgarh) of the Act according to a report by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. With 3, 28, 047 claims already disposed of by March 2010, MP’s performance under the leadership of Rawat has been impressive. The number of title deeds distributed till March 2010 was 85,184. The percentage stands up to 95.59, which if compared to that of other states like Karnataka and Bihar, is phenomenal. To this Rawat reacts, “The Forest Act in India is dated as far back as 1927. Tribals’ right on land was never recognized until the 2006 Act arrived. In spite of opposition, the law finally got enforced in January 2008. We constituted a forest right community and it was through this scheme that Gram Sabhas realised their true potential in MP villages. We included every individual above 18 years of age in our schemes with meetings in local dialect.
Since these people hardly know how to read and write and which form to be attested, the burden of proof, and attested copies of certificates was shifted on the system. These forms were then verified by forest and revenue officials. We got 50 lakh (5 million) claim forms printed which were distributed free of cost while we accepted handwritten forms as well.”
Rawat recalls that the task was challenging enough as MP, compared to other states, is big. Hence identification of tribals entitled to such land was a humoungous task.
Rawat elaborates, “The Personal Digital Assistance (PDA) GPS system was introduced for the first time in government surveying by our team. The PDA could be integrated with a computer and documentation could be done instantly. Besides this, we organised community meetings at flexible times with free meals, so that no one misses his/her daily wages. We also ensured 20-25 per cent of women representation this way.”
MP has an active land mafia operational in the belt Rawat and his team was working on. Rawat replies, “Forest lands remain to be the prime locations and have lot of scope for construction and urbanization. We got numerous false claims and rejected at least 2,42,863 claims. We caught 45 percent of the false cases through complaints lodged by tribals themselves.”
The total budget allocated for this scheme was Rs 18 crores. The PDA system worth Rs 70 lakh (7 million) and the surveying model developed around it by Rawat and his team attracted officials from states like Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. It may be noted here that states like Karnataka and Bihar were approximately allocated the same budget as MP. The status till March 2010 in these states has been reported ‘nil’ and states like Kerala, Assam and Jharkhand have registered delay in implementation of the project and hence no results.
Rawat who comes across as very rational personality states, “If you give these tribals their rights then Maoism would have been a parable. It is only for their livelihood that they fall prey to such extremism. If we as government give them their livelihood, there can be a peaceful coexistence.”
