Tribal Bill not ready, so conservation must wait

Govt sits on Bill meant to enact Prime Minister’s tiger panel prescription

Since August 2, a Bill figured every day as the last item on the Rajya Sabha list and waited for its turn until it finally dropped off on August 11: the Wildlife (Protection) Act Amendment Bill, drafted by the Ministry of Forest and Environment (MoEF) on the recommendations of the Prime Minister’s tiger task force, and meant to set up a constitutional conservation authority and a wildlife crime bureau.

The wait started last session when the MoEF Bill was delayed in anticipation of a related forest bill on tribal rights. Since the tribal bill is not yet ready, the wait continues even though the Tribal Affairs Ministry gave a go-ahead to the MoEF bill and the Cabinet cleared it twice in three months.

‘‘Our objections to the wildlife amendment bill were sorted out and the Cabinet also cleared it. I should not comment on why the Bill is delayed now as it belongs to another ministry,’’ Tribal Affairs secretary Meena Gupta told The Indian Express.

Consider the sequence of events:

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• Following a scrutiny by a standing committee, the MoEF bill was first approved by the Cabinet on May 9.

• It was in the Rajya Sabha’s agenda on May 17 but was marked ‘‘later’’, according to Parliamentary Affairs Minister PR Dasmunsi, ‘‘to consider the JPC report on the tribal bill’’.

• Tabled on May 23, the JPC report was unacceptable to many and it was sent to a Group of Ministers headed by Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

• Meanwhile, the MoEF decided to modify their bill to ‘‘avoid conflict’’ and the revised draft was again cleared by the Cabinet on July 20.

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‘‘Then, under pressure from tribal rights activists, the officials made sure that the bill never gets time in the House,’’ said a senior official at Paryavaran Bhavan.

A scrutiny of the Rajya Sabha’s list of business reveals how the Bill almost fell by the wayside:

• The MoEF bill was listed for the RS on August 2 as the third item behind the food safety bill and the human rights amendment bill.

• There was no time till the first two bills were through on August 3.

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• On August 4, the Finance Ministry’s actuaries bill got priority over the MoEF bill.

• Ditto on August 7.

• On August 8, the MoEF bill was pushed to the third slot, Renuka Chowdhury’s Juvenile Justice Amendment bill was at number two.

• On August 10, the MoEF bill was listed second ahead of the Central Silk Board bill but the latter got pushed ahead during the day.

• On August 11, the MoEF Bill was not listed.

• It is also not on Monday’s list of business.

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The cat and mouse game may continue as the tribal bill, say sources, is not likely to be ready during the current session. ”We wanted to bring the tribal bill this session but it is with the GoM. And we don’t have too many days left this session,” Gupta said.

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