Important Environmental Laws Brought by the Colonial Government In India

Important Environmental Laws Brought by the Colonial Government In India

Waste Land Rules:

Colonial government brought in the Waste Land Act because it regarded all uncultivated land as wasteland. It produced neither revenue nor agricultural produce. By expanding cultivation it sought to increase its revenue collection. This land could also be used to produce commercial crops like jute, cotton and sugar whose demand was ever increasing in England due to rapid industrialisation.

Waste Land Act changed the lives of the pastoralist because in most areas, lands taken over were originally grazing tracts used by pastoralists. Expansion of cultivation therefore meant decline of pastures and problem for pastoralists. Lands taken over were given to selective individuals, many of whom were made village headmen.

Forest Acts:

The colonial government enacted the Forest Acts to help provide and grow more timber trees to meet the requirements of shipyards and railways. They believed grazing destroyed the saplings and young shoots of trees that germinated on forest floor.

The Acts changed the life of the pastoralists because (i) forests were hence classified into Reserved, Protected and Village Forests; (ii) The grazing rights of pastoralists were severely restricted. They were prevented from entering many forests that had earlier provided forage for their cattle, (iii) Even in areas where they were allowed entry, they needed permits. Permits regulated their lives. They specified the number of days they could spend in the forests. If they overstayed they were liable to fines. The permits made it easy for the government to control and identify them.

Criminal Tribes Act:

The British were suspicious of nomadic people. They wanted them to settle in villages. The Criminal Tribes Act was enacted to compel the nomadic people to settle in fixed places with fixed rights on particular fields so that they could be easily controlled. (i) By this Act those who hawked their goods-traders, pastoralists and craftsmen were classified as criminals by nature and birth, (ii) These communities were to live in notified village settlements, (iii) They were not allowed to move out without permit, (iv) Village police kept a continuous watch on them.

The law was stifling and curbed the movement of the pastoralists. They were always looked at with suspicion.

Grazing Tax:

As per the grazing tax pastoralists had to pay a tax on every animal they grazed on pastures. It was imposed because the colonial government wanted to enhance its revenue income and control grazing rights of the pastoralists.

Initially the tax collection was auctioned to private contractors but by 1880s government started collecting it directly from the pastoralists. Henceforth the cattle herder had to seek a permit to enter a grazing area to graze his cattle and pay tax on the basis of per head cattle. The grazing tax, apart from being restrictive, was an additional burden on the poor pastoralist.