RTI for Scheduled Tribe Citizens

Part of the audience pillars alongside RTI for women, RTI for disability, and RTI for senior citizens.

• Individual Forest Rights (IFR) claim under FRA pending.
• Community Forest Rights (CFR) not recognised despite Gram Sabha resolution.
• PESA consent for mining / land acquisition bypassed.
• Pre-matric / Post-matric scholarship for ST not credited.
• Eklavya Model Residential School (EMRS) admissions / infrastructure.
• Minor Forest Produce (MFP) MSP not announced / not paid.
• TSP funds diverted from tribal purposes.
• Scheduled Tribe caste / validity certificate pending.

• Sub-Divisional Level Committee (SDLC) register — claims received, recommendations, pending.
• District Level Committee (DLC) minutes — approvals, rejections, reasoning.
• Gram Sabha resolutions on IFR / CFR — certified copies.
• Forest Department NOC or denial — with grounds.
• Titles issued under Section 3 — beneficiary list (anonymised).

• Consent letters of Gram Sabha for mining / land / other matters.
• Schedule-V area notification covering the panchayat.
• Tribe-specific reservation in Panchayat — rotation roster.
• Fifth Schedule governance — Tribes Advisory Council minutes.

• Pre-matric scholarship — state welfare / MoTA record, sanction order.
• Post-matric scholarship — institution-level verification, DBT UTR.
• National Fellowship for ST — UGC CPIO.
• Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) — vacancy, admission merit-list, infrastructure audit.
• Van Dhan Vikas Kendra (TRIFED) — beneficiary SHG list, procurement records.
• PM-JANMAN (Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups) — habitation coverage, scheme convergence.

• Minor Forest Produce MSP — state notification, procurement records, payment to primary collectors.
• Tribal-area developmental works (MPLADS / MLALADS) — utilisation.
• TSP allocation and utilisation — finance department record.

• Sickle-cell / SCA schemes — screening-camp records.
• Anganwadi / ICDS in tribal blocks — SNP issuance.
• Mobile medical units — visit-log and medicine supply.

To,
The Public Information Officer,
Office of the Sub-Divisional Officer / District Collectorate (SDLC/DLC for FRA),
[Sub-Division / District, State]

Subject: Information under Section 6(1) of the RTI Act, 2005, regarding my Forest Rights Act claim.

Sir/Madam,

I, [Name], resident of [Village, Gram Panchayat, Block, District], submit:

FRA claim reference / SDLC entry no.: ________
Claim type (IFR / CFR / habitat rights): ________
Gram Sabha resolution date: ________

Please provide:

1. SDLC register entry for my claim with date, fields verified, and current stage.
2. Gram Sabha resolution as certified by the SDLC.
3. DLC minutes in which my claim was / will be considered.
4. Forest Department field-verification report.
5. If rejected, the written ground and beneficiary's right of appeal timeline.
6. Claims received, approved, and rejected in my gram panchayat in the last 2 years (aggregate).
7. State-level monitoring report on FRA implementation for my district.
8. First Appellate Authority contact.

I declare I am an Indian citizen. IPO enclosed.

Yours faithfully,
[Signature, Date, Place]

• Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (FRA).
• Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA).
• Constitution of India — Fifth Schedule (central India tribes), Sixth Schedule (North-East).
• Tribal Sub-Plan guidelines, Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
• SCs and STs (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

• Gram Sabha is the repository of first records under FRA — its resolutions are public.
• Parallel NGT / High Court petition for forest-diversion / mining consent disputes.
• District Tribal Welfare Officer is often the most practical first-PIO.
• Section 7(1) proviso — forced eviction without FRA settlement invokes life-and-liberty; 48-hour reply.

Q1. Does FRA apply retrospectively?
Yes — for traditional forest dwelling prior to 13 December 2005; RTI extracts the cut-off-date verification.

Q2. Is Gram Sabha resolution binding on DLC?
Primarily binding; rejections need reasoned dissent. RTI extracts the reasoning.

Q3. What about tribals outside Schedule-V/VI areas?
FRA applies wherever a person qualifies as a forest dweller; state-level implementation varies.

Q4. TSP diversion — can RTI help?
Yes — Finance Department's TSP allocation and expenditure statements are public.

• RTI for MGNREGA wages
• RTI for scholarship delay
• RTI for water quality
• RTI for women
• RTI for disability
• RTI for senior citizens

• Forest Rights Act, 2006 + Rules, 2008 (amended 2012)
• PESA, 1996
• Constitution of India — Fifth & Sixth Schedules
• Ministry of Tribal Affairs guidelines

Last reviewed: 24 April 2026.