UDTR Global Rights of Nature Radar

The Persistent Adivasi Demand for Land Rights and the Forest Rights Act 2006 in Kerala, India

Identification

Public canonical key

doi:10.3390/socsci10050158

Authors

Darley Jose Kjosavik · Nadarajah Shanmugaratnam

Reported year

2021

Reported language

en · und

Source type

article

First detected

2026-11-09T19:15:42.332257+00:00

Last metadata observation

2026-11-09T19:19:11.138053+00:00

Last HTTP verification

Not checked

Institutions reported by the source

Department of International Environment and Development Studies (Noragric), Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), 1432 Aas, Norway · Norwegian University of Life Sciences

Documentary abstract — original language

This paper asks whether the Forest Rights Act (FRA) passed by the Government of India in 2006 could provide effective access and ownership rights to land and forests for the adivasi communities of Kerala, thereby leading to an enhancement of their entitlements. The study was conducted in Wayanad district using qualitative methods of data collection. The FRA, it would seem, raised high expectations in the State Government circles and the Adivasi community. This was at a time when the Government of Kerala was grappling with a stalemate in the implementation of its own laws on adivasi land rights, due to the organized resistance from the settler-farmers and the non-adivasi workers employed in the plantations that were established to provide employment for adivasis. Our analysis shows that due to the inherent problems within the FRA as well as its complex and contested implementation, the FRA could not achieve the promised objectives of correcting historical injustice and provide effective land rights to the adivasis of Wayanad. The role played by the conservation lobby in thwarting the efforts of the Left government is discussed. While granting nominal possession rights (Record of Rights) to the dwelling sites of a small community of adivasis (Kattunaicker, who were traditional forest dwellers), the FRA has failed to provide them with substantive access and ownership rights to land and forests. The adivasis who were able to gain some rights to land have been those who were involved in land occupation struggles. The study reiterates the importance of struggles in gaining effective rights in land.

Identifiers

OPENALEX

W3157328047

DOI

10.3390/socsci10050158

ISSN

2076-0760

Documentary context

Documentary family

Scholarship

Source-reported types

article

Jurisdictions studied — explicit sources

IN

Natural entities mentioned

Forest

Entity mentions are not evidence of legal recognition. Jurisdiction studied is separate from author affiliation country.

Sources

DOAJ · Record 1

OpenAlex · Record 1 · Record 2

• DOI · https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10050158
• OpenAlex · https://openalex.org/W3157328047

Documented bibliographic relations

Source-declared references and links; they do not establish legal support or UGLC qualification. Up to 20 outgoing references are displayed.

• openalex:w1510027111 · CITES
• openalex:w1596465360 · CITES
• openalex:w1983981789 · CITES
• openalex:w2008106987 · CITES
• openalex:w2015444652 · CITES
• openalex:w2042873647 · CITES
• openalex:w2048308290 · CITES
• openalex:w2080494406 · CITES
• openalex:w2104859010 · CITES
• Implementation of the Forest Rights Act in the Western Ghats Region of Kerala · CITES
• openalex:w2111890625 · CITES
• openalex:w2171148471 · CITES
• openalex:w2324647398 · CITES
• openalex:w2344298105 · CITES
• openalex:w2588259089 · CITES
• openalex:w2906151105 · CITES
• openalex:w3096678097 · CITES
• openalex:w4255783388 · CITES
• openalex:w4302915285 · CITES
• openalex:w598782338 · CITES

2 incoming references within the detected corpus

Documentary status

Relevance pending

Library

This identity is not yet included in the Legal Library.