The Union government's plan to notify Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary (DWLS) in Arunachal Pradesh as a tiger reserve has caused unrest among the indigenous Idu Mishmi tribe.
The Idu Mishmi tribe believes that if the Dibang sanctuary becomes a Tiger Reserve, their rights to the forest will be further limited, which will affect their livelihood. The community’s apex body, the Idu Mishmi Cultural Literary Society, has dubbed it a ploy to “dislodge” the locals from their homes. “The tiger reserve will cover a lot of areas and there will be no place for us to stay,” said Ista Pulu, who heads the body.
The Idu Mishmi is a sub-tribe of the Mishmi group in Arunachal Pradesh and neighbouring Tibet. The other two groups are Digaru and Miju. The community is known for its expert craftsmanship and weaving, and they primarily live in Mishmi Hills, bordering Tibet.
On 24 May 2023, a large number of women in the Dibang Valley district took out a peaceful rally in protest against the proposed Tiger Reserve and re-demarcation of Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary and submitted a memorandum to the District Forest Officer (DFO) with a request to look into the grievances of the people of the district.
The community says that they had registered their protest from the time of the proposal to make Dibang Valley a wildlife sanctuary. The local Idu Mishmis claimed that it was notified as a wildlife sanctuary without following due procedures. They added that the government did not settle the residents’ land ownership claims before declaring it a protected area.
Ebbo Mili, an advocate from the Idu Mishmi community, says that as per the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act or Forest Rights Act (FRA), a meeting should have been conducted with the locals before declaring the Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary, which didn’t happen. “Idu Mishmis are forest dwellers, FRA was applicable here and a meeting should have been arranged chaired by the Gram Panchayat. However, the District Collector (DC) wrote a letter saying that there were no claims or objections by the villagers despite them being given eight months. They arbitrarily declared it as Wildlife Sanctuary and didn’t entertain the claims and objections.”
“According to the Wildlife Protection Act, if the government takes land, there has to be a meeting and if there’s rehabilitation needed, relocation needed, everything needs to be done. But nothing was addressed,” said Itanagar-based advocate Ebbo Mili, an Idu Mishmi himself.
While the plan to declare DWLS a Tiger Reserve had been in the offing for several years, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) approved the plan in April 2023 at its meeting. The NTCA had written to the Forest Department twice – in 2014 and 2016 – seeking a proposal from the state government for declaration of the sanctuary as a tiger reserve.
In December 2012, the local Idu Mishmi people had spotted three tiger cubs in the Dibang Valley and informed the Forest Department officials. In 2014, the Wildlife Institute of India and the NTCA recorded the presence of 11 tigers in a radius of 336 square kilometers in this valley.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources
Demand to cancel the project
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Region Classification
Urban and Rural
Type of Land
Common
Forest
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Other Natural Resource extraction/dependence, Other environmental services, Water bodies, Government or community-regulated urban commons
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Data Unavailable
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
Type of investment:
Year of Estimation
Has the Conflict Ended?
No
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
No
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Non-implementation/violation of FRA
Non-consultation with stakeholders
Violation of environmental laws
Legal Status:
In Court
Status of Case In Court
Disposed
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
No
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Gauhati High Court (Itanagar Bench)
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
No
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
PCCF Arunachal Pradesh, Forest Department Dibang Valley
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
IDU (Mishmi) ELITE SOCIETY (IMES), All Idu Mishmi Students Union (AIMSU), Dibang Valley Students' Union (DVSU),
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
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