Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: Goa is yet to clear more than 7,200 claims filed under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), with the State government now working towards a December 2026 deadline to complete the long-pending process.
According to data presented in the Rajya Sabha, a total of 10,377 claims have been filed in Goa under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006. Of these, 9,978 are individual claims and 399 relate to community rights.
By June 30, authorities had granted 1,270 titles — 1,250 to individual claimants and 20 for community rights. Another 1,901 applications had been turned down, while more than 7,200 remained under consideration.
The latest deadline comes after the government failed to meet its previous target of December 19, 2025. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had earlier announced a special campaign to speed up the examination and disposal of applications that had remained pending for years.
Officials have pointed to several factors behind the delays. These include applicants failing to submit supporting records, limited cooperation during the verification process and non-attendance at field inspections and gram sabha meetings.
Applications have also been rejected in cases where the claimed plots were identified as revenue land instead of forest land. Lack of adequate proof, failure to fulfil statutory requirements and the absence of claimants during field verification have also contributed to rejections.
The FRA, enacted in 2006, provides a legal framework for recognising the rights of forest-dependent Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers over forest land and resources. Goa began accepting applications after the legislation came into force.
The State’s struggle to dispose of these claims is not new. A December 2013 deadline had earlier been set when approximately 7,000 applications were pending. Despite repeated efforts and revised targets by successive governments, a sizeable backlog continues.
The process involves multiple levels of scrutiny. Forest Rights Committees conduct preliminary field verification with forest officials and claimants, after which gram sabhas examine eligible applications. Approved claims are then sent to the Sub-Divisional Level Committee and subsequently to the District Level Committee for the final decision.
