The Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (SC NBWL) has recommended that coexistence between forest dwellers and wildlife be actively promoted in core areas of tiger reserves, while facilitating voluntary relocation of communities wishing to relocate, according to minutes of the committee meeting held on February 28, which were released last week.
The committee’s stance marks a shift from the relocation-first stance of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), which HT reported on September 7, 2024, had written to 19 tiger-home states calling for speedy relocation of forest villages from core areas. “About 591 villages comprising 64,801 families are still residing in the core area. The progress in repopulating the villages is very slow and constitutes a serious concern in terms of tiger conservation,” the NTCA letter said.
The question of who has the right to live in the core areas of a tiger reserve lies at the intersection of wildlife conservation and the rights of forest-dwelling communities – many of them Scheduled Tribes – who have inhabited these landscapes for generations. It is among the most controversial issues in Indian conservation policy, with a case pending before the Supreme Court.
The National Tiger Areas High Committee meeting was informed of a different set of figures: 298 villages comprising about 32,198 families have been moved out of core areas of tiger reserves so far, while about 730 villages comprising about 76,032 families remain within core areas – designated critical habitat for tigers – across the country.
“The presentation also indicated that a large number of these villages are located in natural areas of central India and the Eastern Ghats, and that significant financial resources are needed to facilitate the relocation of villages wishing to be resettled,” the minutes said.
The committee sought socio-economic and environmental studies by the Wildlife Institute of India, with support from NTCA, to help states more accurately identify core areas, buffer zones and ecologically sensitive areas of tiger reserves, and to enable communities to make informed choices between voluntary settlement and voluntary relocation.
Ecologist Raman Sukumar, a member of the National Tiger Steering Committee, pointed out during the meeting that in November 2007, NTCA had directed all states to notify essential or critical habitat for tigers in tiger reserves within one month. Several states, under pressure from this deadline, hastily expanded core areas by merging parts of buffer zones without proper site assessment, resulting in a large number of villages that were previously buffer zones falling into critical tiger habitat.
Sukumar cited the Biligiri Ranganathaswamy Tiger Reserve in Karnataka, where tribal communities have lived for centuries, and the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu, which contains agricultural enclaves whose populations cannot be easily relocated for social and cultural reasons – noting that tiger numbers in both reserves have increased dramatically. This suggests that symbiosis-based management has in some cases supported conservation outcomes without the need for relocation, he said. Karnataka’s chief wildlife warden agreed with these observations.
“The committee discussed the importance of promoting coexistence between wildlife and local communities, while facilitating voluntary relocation from core areas where communities desire it. The committee noted that there is a need for a balanced approach that recognizes the priorities of wildlife conservation and the socio-economic aspirations of local communities,” the Supreme Council for Wildlife Conservation said.
Tushar Dash, an independent expert on forest rights, said a coexistence policy framework already exists under the Forest Rights Act 2006 and the Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act 2006. “Coexistence rights among communities already exist. We understand that the Ministry of Tribal Affairs has written to the Ministry of Environment and Forests about a detailed coexistence framework based on recognition of forest rights and management of community forest resources by the Gram Sabha. This should be implemented in protected areas/tiger reserves,” Dash said. “It should be withdrawn.” NTCA directives to shift villages from tiger reserves as they go against the coexistence framework and create conflicts.”
Financial assistance for voluntary relocation under the central scheme has been raised from $10 lakh for $15 lakh per household, according to a Lok Sabha reply from Kirti Vardhan Singh, Minister of State for Environment, after a review by the Environment Ministry in March 2023.
Relocating forest dwellers from tiger reserves has been a hotly contested issue. It is also the subject of a live Supreme Court case — Wildlife First & Ors v. Ministry of Forests and Environment and Ors.
HT reported on July 6, 2025 that the Ministry of Tribal Affairs had asked the Environment Ministry for scientific evidence to substantiate claims that granting forest rights to tribal communities was causing forest degradation, escalating the dispute over the Forest Rights Act 2006 – which recognizes the rights of forest-dwelling Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers to forest lands and resources, and gives the Gram Sabha the legal authority to protect ecologically important areas.
The SC NBWL meeting also addressed the increasing instances of human-cheetah conflict outside protected areas, as cheetahs have adapted to farmlands, thorn forests and peri-urban landscapes. The committee discussed the need to strengthen infrastructure for rescued or conflict cheetahs, including possible expansion of existing zoos and development of dedicated rescue centers by states and union territories, with technical and financial support from the ministry. The conference also discussed scientific studies on the use of immunocontraceptive methods – which reduce fertility – to manage cheetah numbers in areas where interactions between humans and cheetahs are common.
