Van Panchayat
वन पंचायतUttarakhand land records glossary · Land Types & Tenure
What is Van Panchayat?
Community-managed forest, unique to the Uttarakhand hills.
Since the 1930s, Kumaon and Garhwal villages have managed community forests through elected van panchayats - a system found almost nowhere else in India. Van panchayat land is forest for the village's use (fuel, fodder); it is not private property and cannot be bought.
Related terms
More in Land Types & Tenure
- Bhumidhar - The strongest form of land right - effectively full ownership.
- Sirdar - A historical tenure below bhumidhar - could farm but not sell; mostly upgraded now.
- Asami - The weakest tenure - a tenant of gaon sabha or of special-category land.
- ZA & LR Act - The 1950 law that abolished landlords and created today's tenure system.
- Section 143 (Land-use change) - The process that converts farm land into 'abadi' so it can be used for housing.
- Section 154 (Purchase limits) - The rule limiting how much agricultural land a non-farmer/outsider can buy.
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