Kerala enacted the Kerala Forest (Vesting and Management o f Ecologically Fragile Lands) Act, 2003 to conserve ‘fragile ecosystems’ lying contiguous to reserve forests. As this Act led to several litigations and conflicts, the current concept of Ecologically Fragile Lands (EFL) was concept mapped among the different stakeholders, including ‘small and marginal’ farmers in the context of Wayanad district, Kerala. Several dimensions o f EFL, viz. ‘Ecological’, ‘Situational’, ‘Socioeconomic’, ‘Framework’ and ‘Better EFL’ were developed and debated to evolve a more acceptable EFL concept. The study also accentuates the relevance of public participation in conceiving socially inclusive forest laws and policies.
Keywords
Concept Mapping, Ecologically Fragile Lands, Participatory Approaches, Wayanad, Western Ghats.
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