New Delhi, Oct 12: The Sikkim government’s bid to recognise the contribution of traditional forest workers known as Taungyadars by regularising their pre-1980 settlements on forest land has been put on hold, with the Centre asking the state to submit more details on land use and layout plans.
The proposal, which seeks diversion of about 57 hectares of forest land to convert old Taungya settlements into revenue villages, was considered by the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) of the environment ministry at its meeting held on September 26.
Officials from the Sikkim Rural Development Department told the committee that the move was aimed at securing the rights and livelihoods of Taungyadars families who for generations worked with the forest department, planting trees, tending to plantations and protecting forests long before the Forest Conservation Act came into force in 1980.
The Taungyadari, or Taungya, system was a traditional forest management practice dating back to the pre-merger era when Sikkim was a monarchy.
Under this system, families were allotted small forest patches to plant and care for tree saplings for three years. In return, they were allowed to cultivate food crops on part of the land and received a small subsidy or daily wages for their labour.
These Taungyadars lived in forest fringes, growing crops, rearing cattle and guarding the forests from fires and illegal felling.
Records show that each family was given around six acres, two for tree planting every year and two for homestead use.
Initially, they were paid a “Taungya subsidy” of Rs 200, later increased to Rs 500, and were employed on daily wages in plantation work, timber cutting and firewood stacking.
According to documents presented to the committee, several of these old Taungya settlements still exist in areas such as Yali Reserve Forest in Gangtok, Tumlabong in Singtam and Karthok in Pakyong, as well as Melli Compound, Majhitar, Rayong and Jholungey Reserve Forests.
The Sikkim government has argued that these are not encroachments but legitimate settlements created under the forest department’s supervision decades ago.
It said agreements signed between the Taungyadars and the department in the 1970s, along with payment receipts of “Dhuri Khazana” (land tax), prove that these settlements existed well before 1980.
In 2012, the state constituted a committee to identify genuine Taungyadar families for regularisation and to verify that their settlements predated the enactment of the Forest Conservation Act.
The panel carried out field inspections and recommended regularisation of those located near forest boundaries while suggesting relocation for those living deep inside reserve forests.
The current proposal covers about 9 hectares in Gangtok, 32 hectares in Namchi and 16 hectares in Pakyong districts.
It does not involve felling of trees or affect any protected area, wildlife corridor or eco-sensitive zone. The forest land is classified as reserved forest with very low canopy density.
Officials of the environment ministry’s regional office inspected the sites in May this year and supported the plan. They recommended that forest boundaries be properly fenced to avoid future encroachments and that the reserved forest status of the land be maintained.
The Sikkim government has also proposed compensatory afforestation over 28.78 hectares in Song Reserve Forest under Gangtok division and in Amba and Thekabong Khasmal areas under Pakyong division.
However, the FAC said that the state had not submitted a detailed component-wise land use plan specifying how much area would be used for housing, cultivation or common facilities and deferred the proposal until this information is provided.(PTI)
