Forest Resource Use and Biodiversity Conservation

The Forest Rights Act (FRA),2006 passed by the parliament of India had dual aims at protecting the right of forest dwellers and tried to procure the involvement of forest dwellers to protect forest. But the problem arises because the tribal bodies are doubtful about the effectiveness of the new Act in protecting the interests of the tribal people. It is therefore necessary to study the perceptions and attitudes of forest villagers and encroachers towards biodiversity conservation. The book assesses the extent of dependence on forest for various goods and services by the dwellers of revenue village, village forests and encroached village. The study also tries to see the attitudes of dwellers of village forests and encroachers towards biodiversity conservation. The study carries importance on the ground that it can elicit people’s preference and attitude for the proposed bill in advance. The study finds if there is any such problem with the bill in implementing in Assam. This will also help policy makers to know the mindset of forest dwellers towards biodiversity conservation if the rights were given to them which may help in the implementation of the new Forest Rights Act.