By IANS,
Agartala : The ruling Left Front in Tripura wants same norms for non-tribals and tribals for getting ‘patta’ (title deeds) of forest land.
“We have been demanding that the central act should be modified suitably, and reduce the stipulated years so that the non-tribals also get the patta along with tribals,” a ruling combine spokesperson said here friday.
Currently, the law states that tribals living in forest for last 75 years are eligible for ‘patta’ while the time frame for non-tribals is more.
Besides reduction in the stipulated period for patta entitlement, the ruling Left Front has been demanding non-tribals as well be allowed to settle on the forest land.
According to state Tribal Welfare Minister Aghore Debbarma, 132,249 tribals and 34,937 non-tribals have applied for getting settlement in the forest through patta system.
The Tripura government has so far distributed land deeds among 116,000 tribals, he said. The tribals account for about 33 percent of Tripura’s 3.8 million population.