2 weeks ago
Gujarat tribal talukas clash over 3,000 acres of forest land
Two groups of tribal villagers in the Indian state of Gujarat are arguing over a big piece of forest land — about 3,000 acres of fields.
One group, from Sagbara, says their families have farmed this land for around twenty years and that the land should stay with them.
The other group, from Umarpada, says the land is theirs because their grandparents were moved there in 1972 when the Ukai dam was built.
The forest department, which manages the land, is stuck in the middle of the fight.
The Sagbara villagers have been sitting under a tent and taking turns fasting for ten days to ask for their farming rights back.
They were told to leave the fields in late 2024.
The forest department says the Sagbara farmers cannot prove they farmed there before December 2005, which the law requires.
The disagreement got worse after a terrible crime last year, and the two groups began blaming each other.
In July, some angry protesters even attacked forest officers, and politicians such as BJP MP Mansukhbhai Vasava and Congress leader Tushar Chaudhary have visited the protest to show support.
Now the villagers are asking the Gujarat High Court to decide who the land belongs to.
Tribal villagers from 12 villages in Sagbara taluka, Narmada district, have held a 10-day sit-in protest demanding the right to cultivate 3,000 acres of forest land in Umarpada taluka, Surat district.
Sagbara villagers say they were ousted from the fields in late 2024 after the Forest Department termed them ineligible, despite about two decades of cultivation.
Umarpada residents also claim the land, saying their villagers were displaced by the Ukai dam project on the Tapi River in 1972.
Surat Assistant Conservator of Forests Gaurav Lodha says the contested 1,200 acres fall in Umarpada and satellite imagery does not support the claim of cultivation since 2002.
On July 30, Sagbara villagers attacked Forest Department staff for allegedly colluding with Umarpada, and the conflict follows the June 2024 rape and murder of a minor from the area.
- Who
- Tribal villagers from 12 villages in Sagbara taluka, Narmada district, and residents of Umarpada taluka, Surat district, with the Surat Forest Department caught in the middle.
- What
- A dispute over rights to cultivate 3,000 acres of forest land in Umarpada taluka, including a 10-day sit-in relay fast by Sagbara villagers who were ousted since late 2024.
- Where
- The meadow between Sagbara taluka in Narmada district and Umarpada taluka in Surat district, Gujarat, India.
- When
- The sit-in has run for 10 days as of this report; the ouster began in late 2024, and an attack on the Forest Department took place on July 30.
- Why
- Both communities claim the land: Sagbara villagers cite two decades of cultivation and the Forest Rights Act of 2006, while Umarpada residents say they are displaced people from the 1972 Ukai dam project on the Tapi River.
Sagbara villagers
Umarpada villagers / Forest Department
Right to the land
Sagbara villagers
Sagbara villagers have cultivated the land for about two decades and are entitled to it under the Forest Rights Act of 2006.
Umarpada villagers / Forest Department
The land rightfully belongs to Umarpada, whose villagers were displaced by the Ukai dam project in 1972.
Evidence for the claim
Sagbara villagers
Sagbara villagers cite an old gram sabha resolution from Umarpada supporting their cultivation claim.
Umarpada villagers / Forest Department
Forest officials say satellite imagery does not support cultivation since 2002, and Umarpada residents filed a police complaint alleging the resolution was forged.
Cause of the dispute
Sagbara villagers
Former BJP leader Leela Vasava says the two sides had an amicable understanding until 2024, upset by the June 2024 rape-murder of a minor from the area.
Umarpada villagers / Forest Department
The Forest Department says it acted in November 2024 after Umarpada villagers complained that 'outsiders' were cultivating the land.
Key facts
- Disputed land
- 3,000 acres of forest land in Umarpada taluka, Surat district
- Protesters
- Villagers from 12 tribal villages of Sagbara taluka, Narmada district
- Protest
- Sit-in relay fast under a tarpaulin tent, ongoing for 10 days
- Legal basis
- Forest Rights Act (FRA) of 2006, requiring occupation before December 13, 2005
- Umarpada's claim
- Villagers displaced by the Ukai dam project on the Tapi River in 1972
- Forest Dept position
- Contested 1,200 acres fall in Umarpada; satellite imagery does not support cultivation since 2002
- Recent escalation
- July 30 attack on Forest Department; June 2024 rape and murder of a minor from the area
Quotes
Surat Assistant Conservator of Forests Gaurav Lodha
Surat ACF responsible for the contested forest area
“Villagers from Umarpada approached the Forest Department claiming that ‘outsiders’ were cultivating the land.”
indianexpress.com
“Since late 2024, we have been ousted from the fields. The forest department has termed us ineligible.”
indianexpress.com
