The Indian Forest Act, 1927

(1) This Act may be called the Indian Forest Act, 1927. 1[(2) It extends to the whole of India except the territories which, immediately before the 1stNovember, 1956, were comprised in Part B States. (3) It applies to the territories which, immediately before the 1st November, 1956, were comprised inthe States of Bihar, Bombay, Coorg, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and WestBengal; but the Government of any State may by notification in the Official Gazette bring this Act intoforce2 in the whole or any specified part of that State to which this Act extends and where it is not inforce.] STATE AMENDMENT Maharashtra.-- Amendment of section 1 of Act XVI of 1927.--In section 1 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927 (XVI of1927), in its application to the whole of the State of Maharashtra as provided by section 2 (hereinafterreferred to as "the principal Act"),-- (i) to sub-section (2), after the words and letter "Part B States", the words "other than theHyderabad area of the State of Maharashtra" shall be added; (ii) to sub-section (3), the following proviso shall be added, namely:-- "Provided that, on the commencement of the Indian Forest (Maharashtra Unification andAmendment) Act, 1960 (Mah. VI of 1961), this Act shall be in force in the Hyderabad area of theState of Maharashtra." [Vide Maharashtra Act VI of 1961, s. 3]

In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject orcontext, -- (1) "cattle" includes elephants, camels, buffaloes, horses, mares, geldings, ponies, colts, fillies,mules, asses, pigs, rams, ewes, sheep, lambs, goats and kids; (2) "Forest-officer" means any person whom 1*** the 2[State Government] or any officerempowered by 1*** the 2[State Government] in this behalf, may appoint to carry out all or any of thepurposes of this Act or to do anything required by this Act or any rule made there under to be done bya Forest-officer; (3) "forest-offence" means an offence punishable under this Act or under any rule madethereunder; (4) "forest-produce" includes-- (a) the following whether found in, or brought from, a forest or not, that is to say:-- timber, charcoal, caoutchouc, catechu, wood-oil, resin, natural varnish, bark, lac, mahuaflowers, mahua seeds 3[, kuth] and myrabolams, and (b) the following when found in, or brought from, a forest, that is to say:-- (i) trees and leaves, flowers and fruits, and all other parts or produce not hereinbeforementioned, of trees, (ii) plants not being trees (including grass, creepers, reeds and moss), and all parts orproduce of such plants, (iii) wild animals and skins, tusks, horns, bones, silk, cocoons, honey and wax, and allother parts or produce of animals, and (iv) peat, surface soil, rock, and minerals (including limestone, laterite, mineral oils, andall products of mines or quarries); 4[(4A) "owner" includes a Court of Wards in respect of property under the superintendence or chargeof such Court;] (5) "river" includes any stream, canal, creek or other channels, natural or artifical; (6) "timber" includes trees when they have fallen or have been felled, and all wood whether cut up orfashioned or hollowed out for any purpose or not; and (7) "tree" includes palms, 5***, stumps, brush-wood and canes. STATE AMENDMENTS Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh (UTs)-- (i) Section 2."for clause (1), the following clauses shall be substituted, namely:-- (1) "authorised officer" means an officer authorized under sub-section (2) of section 52; (1A) cattle include elephants, camels, buffaloes, horses, mares, geldings, ponies, colts, fillies, mules, asses, pigs, ram, ewes, sheep, lambs, goats and kids; (1B) "forest based industry" means an industry or unit in which any forest produce is used as raw material or as a source of energy. (ii) for clause (4), the following clause shall be substituted, namely:- (4) "forest-produce" include-- (a) timber, charcoal, caoutchouc, catechu, wood-oil, resin, natural varnish, bark, lac, kuth, myrobalans, dioscorea, firewood, humus, rasaunt, morels (Morchella spp), Aconitum spp, Podophyllum spp, Picrorhizaspp, Trillium spp, Nardostachys spp, Taxus spp, Valerianassp, Rheum spp, wild animals, skins, tusks, horns, bones and all other parts or produce of wild animals whether found in, or brought from, a forest or not; and (b) the following when found in, or brought from, a forest, namely:-- (i) trees and leaves, flowers and fruits, roots and all other parts or produce of trees not specified in clause (a); (ii) plants not being trees (including grass, bamboos, creepers, reeds and moss and lichen), and all parts or produce of such plants; (iii) silk, cocoons, honey and wax; and (iv) peat, surface soil, rock, and minerals (including limestone, laterite, mineral oils, and all products of mines or quarries). (iii) after clause (5), insert the following clause, namely:- (5A) "saw mill" means any plant and machinery with which and the premises (including the precincts thereof) in which or in any part of which sawing is carried on with the aid of electrical or mechanical power. (iv) after clause (6), insert the following clause, namely:- (6A) "transporter" includes a person, a private agency, a Government Department, Corporation or any other agency engaged in transport of forest produce whether on his own or on behalf of any other person; (v) after clause (7), insert the following clause; (8) "wild animal" shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972. [Vide the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization (Adaptation of Central Laws) Order, 2020, notificationNo. S.O. 1123(E) dated (18-3-2020) and Vide Union Territory of Ladakh Reorganisation (Adaptation ofCentral Laws) Order, 2020, notification No. S.O.3774(E), dated (23-10-2020).] Tripura.-- Amendment of section 2. --In section 2 of the principal Act,-- (a) In clause (4)-- (i) in sub-clause (a), for the words "and myrobolams", the words "myrobolams, gum,sal seeds, sal leaves, kendu leaves, wild animals, skins, tusks, horns and bones, and all otherparts of produce of wild animals" shall be substituted ; (ii) in sub-clause (b), in item (iii), the words "Wild animals and skins tusks, horns andbones" and the words "and all other parts or produce of animals" shall be omitted; (b) after clause (7), the following clause shall be inserted namely:-- "(8) wild animals shall have same meaning as defined in the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.] [Vide the Tripura Act 10 of 1984, s. 3] Uttar Pradesh Amendment of section 2 of Act no. XVI of 1927.--In section 2 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927,hereinafter referred to as the principal Act, for clause (1) the following clause shall be substituted,namely:-- "(1) "authorised officer" means an officer authorised under sub-section (1) of section 52-A; (1-A) "cattle" includes elephants, camels, buffaloes, horses, mares, geldings, ponies, colts, fillies,mules, asses, pigs, rams, ewes, sheep, lambs, goats and kids;" [Vide Uttar Pradesh Act 1 of 2001, s. 2] Uttarakhand.-- Amendment of section 2 of Act no. XVI of 1927.--In section 2 of Indian Forest Act, 1927,hereinafter referred to as the principal Act, the following clause shall be inserted, namely:-- 2-A. "authorised officer" means an officer authorised under sub-section (1) of section 52-A. [Vide Uttaranchal Act 10 of 2002, s. 2] Maharashtra.-- Amendment of section 2 of Act XVI of 1927.--In section 2 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927, in subclause (4), after the words "tamborni leaves" the words "rosha grass, rauwolfia serpentine" shall beinserted. [Vide Bombay Act XVII of 1956, s. 2] Amendment of section 2 of Act XVI of 1927.--In section 2 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927(hereinafter referred to as "the said Act"), in sub-clause (a) of clause (4), after the word "kuth" the words", apta and temburni leaves" shall be inserted. [Vide Bombay Act XXIV of 1955, s. 2] Amendment of section 2 of Act XVI of 1927.--In section 2 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927, in itsapplication to the State of Maharashtra, in sub-clause (a) of clause (4), for the words", rosha grans,rauwolfia serpentine" the words "rosha grass including oil derived therefrom, ranwolfia serpentine" shallbe substituted. [Vide Maharashtra Act XXVII of 1968, s. 2] Amendment of section 2 of Act XVI of 1927.--In section 2 of the principal act, after clause (4A),the following clauses shall be inserted, namely:-- "(4B) "Police Officer" means a Police Officer defined in the Bombay Police Act, 1951; (4C) Revenue Officer means a Revenue Officer as defined in the Bombay Land Revenue Code,1879, or where that Code is not in force, as defined in a law corresponding to that Code; [Vide Maharashtra Act VI of 1961, s. 4] Insertion of new section 2A in Act XVI of 1927.--After section 2 of the principal Act, thefollowing section shall be inserted, namely:-- "2A. Construction of certain references to Central or Bombay Acts.--In the application of thisAct to any area of the State of Maharashtra other than the Bombay area thereof, any reference to aprovision of a Central or Bombay Act shall, where no such Act is in force in that area, be construed asa reference to the provision of the corresponding law, if any, in force in that area." [Vide Maharashtra Act VI of 1961, s. 5] Maharashtra.-- Amendment of section 2 of Act XVI of 1927.--In section 2 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927, in itsapplication to the State of Maharashtra (hereinafter referred to as "the principal Act"), of In clause (4C), for the words and figures "the Bombay Land Revenue Code, 1879 (Bom. V of 1879), or, where that Codeis not in force, as defined in a law corresponding to that Code;" the words and figures "the MaharashtraLand Revenue Code, 1966 (Mah. XLI of 1966)" shall be substituted. [Vide Maharashtra Act VII of 1985, s. 2]

The 1[State Government[ may constitute any forest-land or waste-landwhich is the property of Government, or over which the Government has proprietary rights, or to thewhole or any part of the forest-produce of which the Government is entitled, a reserved forest in themanner hereinafter provided. STATE AMENDMENT Uttar Pradesh Substitution of new section for section 3 of Act XVI of 1927.--For section 3 of the Indian Forest Act,1927 (hereinafter called the principal Act), the following shall be substituted namely-- "Powers to reserve forests.--The State Government may constitute any forest land or any otherland (not being land for the time being comprised in any holding or in any village abadi) which is theproperty of Government or over which the Government has proprietary rights, or to the whole or anypart of the forest produce of which the Government is entitled, a reserve forest in the mannerhereinafter provided. Explanation-- The expression 'holding' shall have the meaning assigned to it in the U.P. TenancyAct, 1939, and the expression 'village abadi' shall have the meaning assigned to it in the U.P. VillageAbadi Act, 1947." [Vide Uttar Pradesh Act, XXIII of 1965, s. 2]

(1) Whenever it has been decided to constitute any land areserved forest, the 1[State Government] shall issue a notification in the 2[Official Gazette]-- (a) declaring that it has been decided to constitute such land a reserved forest; (b) specifying, as nearly as possible, the situation and limits of such land; and (c) appointing an officer (hereinafter called "the Forest Settlement-officer") to inquire into anddetermine the existence, nature and extent of any rights alleged to exist in favour of any person in orover any land comprised within such limits, or in or over any forest-produce, and to deal with thesame as provided in this Chapter. Explanation.--For the purpose of clause (b), it shall be sufficient to describe the limits of the forestby roads, rivers, ridges or other well-known or readily intelligible boundaries. (2) The officer appointed under clause (c) of sub-section (1) shall ordinarily be a person not holdingany forest-office except that of Forest Settlement-officer. (3) Nothing in this section shall prevent the 3[State Government] from appointing any number ofofficers not exceeding three, not more than one of whom shall be a person holding any forest-officeexcept as aforesaid, to perform the duties of a Forest Settlement-officer under this Act.

After the issue of a notification under section 4, no right shall beacquired in or over the land comprised in such notification, except by succession or under a grant orcontract in writing made or entered into by or on behalf of the Government or some person in whom suchright was vested when the notification was issued; and no fresh clearings for cultivation or for any otherpurpose shall be made in such land except in accordance with such rules as may be made by the 1[StateGovernment] in this behalf. STATE AMENDMENT Uttar Pradesh Substitution of new section for section 5.--For section 5 of the principal Act, the following shall besubstituted, namely-- "5. Bar of accrual of forest rights.--After the issue of a notification under section 4, no right shallbe acquired in or over the land comprised in such notification, except by succession or under a grant orcontract in writing made or entered into by or on behalf of the Government or some person in whom suchright was vested when the notification was issued; and no fresh clearings for cultivation or for any otherpurpose shall be made in such land nor any tree therein felled, girdled, lopped, tapped, or burnt, or itsbark or leaves tripped off, or the same otherwise damaged, nor any forest-produce removed therefrom,except in accordance with such rules as may be made by the State Government in this behalf." [Vide Uttar Pradesh Act XXIII of 1965, s. 3]