For a ‘greener’ law on tribal rights, PM proposes, PMO disposes

Cabinet asked Environment Ministry for alternative draft, PM got it distributed but his office scrapped it

21 October, 2005

How does a 20-page draft Bill on a crucial subject like tribal rights over forest land get reduced to a two-page, five-point ‘‘input’’? When the Prime Minister himself asked to see the entire Bill? Ask the Prime Minister’s Office.
As early as August 25, after opposition by environmental groups to the draft tribal rights Bill prepared by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, the government asked the Environment Ministry—which also opposed the Bill—to come up with its ‘‘alternative draft.’’
The key objection revolved around the issue of giving land rights in national parks and sanctuaries to local tribal residents. The Prime Minister’s idea was to look at both draft Bills and come up with a revised new law that took into account tribal rights and conservation concerns.
But official records with The Indian Express show how barely four days after the Environment Ministry presented its draft Bill to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the PMO sent the Ministry a note asking it ‘‘not to proceed with the preparation with any draft bill.’’
‘‘We made a comprehensive draft for the Cabinet Committee. Then we are told by the PMO not to proceed with it. We are disappointed. Our draft bill addresses the concerns of the Prime Minister who wanted to know what was the way out at the September 30 meeting. We will offer our solutions again at the next meeting (on October 28) to reach a consensus," JC Kala, director general, forests, told The Indian Express.
The sequence of events behind this curious rethink:
= On August 25, the Cabinet Committee on Tribal Affairs, chaired by Home Minister Shivraj Patil, asked the Environment Ministry to prepare an alternative draft.
= This draft was presented at a meeting chaired by the Prime Minister on September 30. According to MoEF sources, the Prime Minister asked his officials to get copies of the new draft distributed among the participants —ministry officials and independent experts—and wanted a consensus between the two ministries.
= On October 4, Environment Minister A Raja gave a copy of the draft to Patil explaining how it addressed the concerns raised by the Prime Minister at the September 30 meet.
‘‘Kindly peruse the Draft Bill of my Ministry and give us an opportunity to steer it through for enactment,’’ Raja wrote to Patil.
= However, the same day, R Gopalakrishnan, joint secretary in the PMO, sent Raja’s ministry a note asking it not to proceed with any draft bill. ‘‘The draft Bill prepared by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs comprehensively addresses the issue,’’ he wrote, adding, in bold letters, that this "course of action" had the Prime Minister’s approval. Despite several attempts, Gopalakrishnan was not available for comment. On October 10, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs asked the MoEF for its input on the original draft bill. In response, the MoEF sent a five point two-page input on 12 October.