Declining area and quality of community property resources highlight the need for their conservation in mission mode.
What are Common Property Resources?
Common Property Resources - CPRs are community-owned lands consisting of local natural resources like forests, pastures, and water bodies.
Types of CPRs
Land Resources - Panchayat lands, Government revenue lands, Village common lands, Village thrashing lands
Forest Resources-Unclassified Forest lands, woodlands and wastelands
Water Resources - River banks, Tanks and Natural lakes, Groundwater, Wetland and mangrove areas
Ownership – Government land under the ownership of local bodies or Community.
Collective Usage – It is accessible to all community members for grazing, collecting fodder, fuelwood, and other minor forest products.
Common Property Land Resources in total geographical area - 15 %.
What are the significances of CPR?
Economic Security - For landless and marginal farmers, CPRs are a lifeline, providing resources to support their livestock, upon which they heavily rely for income.
Food Security – They provide uncultivated food to the community, bio resources to the local people.
Tribal Livelihood Security - Tribals, particularly vulnerable tribal groups and other traditional forest dwellers rely on forests and common resources for their livelihoods.
Ecological Benefit – They hold significant bio diversity by supporting wild animals, birds and flora.
Knowledge Management – They act as preserver of traditional knowledge on natural resources.
Livestock Management – 40 to 70 % of the green fodder consumed by animals in the country comes from CPR such as non-cultivated land, pastures, public land, barren land, fallow land and forests.
India currently faces a 35-40 % deficit in dry and green fodder.
Resource for Households - CPRs offer materials like fuelwood and medicinal plants, reducing household expenses and promoting well-being.
What are the threats faced by CPR?
Encroachment –Privatization of CPR lands by allotting to housing and other non-agricultural uses or by formalizing illegal encroachments.
Population Growth - Rapid population growth increases the demand for resources, often leading to unsustainable exploitation.
Degradation – Changes in the character of the CPR due to over unsustainable use , natural disasters and climate change.
Invasive Species - Invasive shrubs such as Lantana camara hinder fodder production in CPR lands.
Legal and Management Issues - Ambiguities in legal frameworks and management practices often hinder the effective conservation and use of CPRs.
Development Activities – CPR lands are often diverted for development needs like roads, bridges and industrial establishments.
Cultural Changes - Shifts in cultural practices and values can impact how communities manage and use common resources
What can be done to conserve CPR?
A mission mode approach can be implemented for the conservation and management of CPR.
Grant villagers right to use, manage and protect the resources under the Community Forest Resource Rights.
Strengthen the Public Land Protection Cell (PLPC) to protect and free the land from encroachment.
Eradicate invasive species from CPR lands to restore its effective usage.
Create an ecological register to document the available resources, trees, plants, uncultivated food, forest produce, herbs, birds and other wildlife.
Empower gram sabhas to reclaim community forest resource rights for forest land and approach the District PLPC to take appropriate action on the encroached areas.
Use of schemes like Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme for the protection and development of CPR lands.
