India, April 24 -- For a third consecutive year, Gram Sabhas (village assemblies) across Baipariguda block in Odisha's Koraput district are locked in an uphill battle to exercise a right the law has already granted them - the right to independently collect and sell kendu leaves, the forest product widely known as Green Gold.

Despite holding Community Forest Rights (CFR) under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, and despite resolutions, meetings, and letters to the highest levels of government, these Gram Sabhas are still waiting for one piece of paper: a deregulation letter from the state government. Without it, their lawfully recognised rights remain, in practice, worthless.

Only on paper

FRA 2006 - formally known as the Scheduled Trib...