Ministry of
Environment and Forests
NOTIFICATION
G.S.R. 94 (E) In exercise of the powers conferred by
sub-section (1) of section 4 of the
1.
(1) These
rules may be called the
(2) Rules 1,2,3,5,6
(except sub-rule (5) of rule 6) and 7 of these rules shall come into force on
the date of their publication in the official Gazette; whereas, rule 4 of these
rules and sub-rule (5) of rule 6 of the principal rules, as contained in rule 5
of these rules, shall come into force on the expiry of 180 days from the date
of such publication.
2. In
the
(b) Committee means the
3.
In
the said rules, for rule 3 , the following rule shall substituted, namely :
3. Composition of the
(1) The
(i) the Director
General of Forests, Ministry of Environment and Forests Chairperson.
(ii) the Additional Director General of Forests,
Ministry of Environment and Forests Member.
(iii)
the
Additional Commissioner (Soil Conservation), Ministry of Agriculture Member.
(iv)
three
non-official members who shall be experts one each in Mining, Civil Engineering
and Development Economics - Members.
(v)
the
Inspector General of Forests (
(2)
The Additional Director General of
Forests shall act as Chairperson in the absence of the Director General of
Forests.
(4) In the said rules, after rule 3, the
following rule shall be inserted, namely : -
Constitution
of the Regional Empowered Committee :
(1)
A Regional
Empowered Committee shall be constituted at each of the Regional Offices and
shall consist of the following members, namely :
(i) the Regional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests
(Central) - Chairperson.
(ii) three
non-official members who shall be experts one each in Mining, Civil Engineering
and Development Economics - Members.
(iii) the
Conservator of Forests or the Deputy Conservator of Forests in the Regional
Office -
Member Secretary.
(2) The term of appointment of non-official Members
shall be as specified in rule 4 of these
rules.
5.
In
the said rules, for rule 6 , the following rule shall be substituted, namely
6. Submission of proposals seeking approval
of the Central Government under section 2 of the Act
(1)
Every User Agency who want to use
any forest land for non-forestry purposes, shall make its proposal in the
relevant Form appended to these rules, i.e. Form A for proposals seeking
first time approval under the Act, and Form B for proposals seeking renewal
of leases, where approval of the Central Government under the Act had already
been obtained, to the Nodal Officer of the concerned State Government or the
Union territory Administration, as the case may be, along with requisite
information and documents, complete in all respects.
(2)
The User Agency shall
endorse a copy of the proposal, along with a copy of the receipt
obtained from the office of the Nodal
Officer, to the concerned Divisional Forest Officer or the Conservator of
Forests, Regional Office, as well as the Monitoring Cell of the Forest
Conservation Division of the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Paryavaran Bhawan, CGO Complex,
New Delhi - 110003.
(3) (a) After having received the proposal, the State
Government or the Union territory Administration, as the case may be, shall
process and forward it to the Central Government within a period of two hundred and ten days of the receipt of the proposal including the transit period.
(b) The Nodal Officer of State Government or
as the case may be, the Union territory Administration, after having received
the proposal under sub-rule (1) and on being satisfied that the proposal is
complete in all respects and requires prior approval under section 2 of the
Act, shall send the proposal to the concerned Divisional Forest Officer within
a period of ten days of the receipt of the proposal :
Provided that on the determination
regarding completeness of the proposal or the expiry of ten days, whichever is
earlier, the question of completeness or otherwise of the proposal shall not be
raised.
(c) If the Nodal Officer of the State
Government or the Union territory Administration, as the case may be, finds
that the proposal is incomplete, he shall return it within the period of ten
days as specified under clause (b), to
the User Agency and this time period shall not be counted for any future
reference.
(d)
The Divisional Forest Officer or the Conservator of Forests shall examine the
factual details and feasibility of the proposal, certify the maps, carry out
site-inspection and enumeration of the trees and forward his findings in the
Format specified in this regard to the Nodal Officer within a period of ninety
days of the receipt of such proposal
from him.
(e)
(i) The Nodal
Officer, through the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, shall forward the
proposal to State Government or the Union territory Administration, as the case
may be, alongwith
his recommendations, within a period of thirty days of the receipt of such
proposal from the Divisional Forest Officer or the Conservator of Forests.
(ii) The State Government
or the Union territory Administration, as the case may be, shall forward the
complete proposal, alongwith its recommendations, to
the Regional Office or the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Paryavaran Bhawan, CGO Complex,
New Delhi 110003, as the case may be, in the specified Forms within a period of sixty days of the
receipt of the proposal from the Nodal
Officer :
Provided that all proposals involving clearing of naturally grown trees
on the forest land or a portion thereof for the purpose of using it for
reforestation shall be sent in the form
of Working Plan or Management Plan.
Provided further that the concerned
State Government or as the case may be, the Union territory Administration,
shall simultaneously send the intimation to the User Agency about forwarding of
the proposal, alongwith its recommendations, to the
Regional Office or the Ministry of Environment and Forests, as the case may be.
(f) If the proposal, alongwith
the recommendations, is not received from the concerned State Government or the
Union territory Administration, as the case may be, till fifteen days of the
expiry of the time limit as specified under clause (a), it shall be construed
that the concerned State Government or as the case may be, the Union territory
Administration, has rejected the proposal and the concerned State Government or
the Union territory Administration shall inform the User Agency accordingly :
Provided that in case the State Government or the
Union territory Administration, as the case may be, subsequently forward the
proposal, alongwith its recommendations, to the Regional
Office or the Ministry of Environment and Forests, as the case may be, the
proposal shall not be considered by the Central Government unless an
explanation for the delay to the satisfaction of the Central Government is
furnished, together with action taken against any individual held to be
responsible for the delay.
(4)
The proposal referred to in clause
(e) (ii) of sub-rule (3), involving forest land upto
forty hectares other than the proposal
relating to mining and encroachments, shall be forwarded by the concerned State
Government or as the case may be, the Union territory Administration, alongwith its recommendations, to the Chief Conservator of
Forests or the Conservator of Forests of the concerned Regional Office of the
Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, who shall within a
period of forty five days of the receipt
of the proposal fron the concerned State Government
or the Union territory Administration, as the case may be (a) decide the
diversion proposal upto five hectares and (b)
process, scrutinise and forward diversion proposal of more than five hectares
and upto forty hectares, along with the
recommendations, if any, to the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Paryavaran Bhawan, CGO Complex,
New Delhi 110003, for obtaining the decision of the Central Government and
inform the State Government or the Union territory Administration, as the case
may be, and the User Agency concerned.
(5)
The Regional Empowered Committee
shall decide the proposal involving diversion of forest land upto forty hectares other than the proposal relating to
mining and encroachments, within
forty-five days of the receipt of such proposal from the State Government or
the Union territory Administration, as the case may be:
Provided that the Central Government may, if
consider it necessary, enhance or reduce the limit of the area of the forest land.
(6) The proposal referred to in clause (e) (ii)
of sub-rule (3), involving forest land of more than forty hectares, and all proposal relating to
mining and encroachments irrespective of
the area of the forest land involved, shall be forwarded by the concerned State
Government or as the case may be, the Union territory Administration, alongwith its recommendations, to the Ministry of
Environment and Forests, Paryavaran Bhawan, CGO Complex, New Delhi - 110003.
6.
In the said rules, in rule 7, : -
(i) in sub-rule (1) for the
words, brackets and figures sub-rule (3) of rule 6, the words, brackets and
figures sub-rule (6) of rule 6 shall be substituted.
(ii)
After sub-rule (1), the following
sub-rule shall be inserted, namely :-
(1A) These proposals shall be processed and put up
before the Committee and the
recommendations of the Committee shall be placed within a period of ninety days
of the receipt of such proposals from the State Government or the Union
territory Administration, as the case may be, before the Central
Government for its decision.
(iii) in sub-rule (2), in
clauses (c) and (d), at both places, for the words, or the other authority,
the words or the Union territory Administration, as the case may be, shall be substituted.
7.
In
the said rules, rule 8 shall be omitted.
[File No. 5-5/98-FC]
(Dr. V.K. BAHUGUNA)
Inspector General of
Forests (
Note : The Principal rules were
published in the Gazette of India vide number G.S.R. 23 (E) dated