The High Court of Himachal Pradesh, while hearing a suo motu public interest litigation (PIL) concerning road construction in ecologically fragile areas, has reiterated that no construction or tarring will take place on forest roads until further orders.
The directions were passed by a division bench comprising chief justice GS Sandhawalia and justice Bipin C Negi after the amicus curiae reported that 55 roads in the ecologically fragile Seraj assembly constituency had been constructed in violation of forest conservation laws.
The HC’s October 8 order, which has now been made available, also brought under scrutiny the presence of 16 helipads in Seraj and the permissions granted for infrastructure projects in sensitive forest landscapes. Reiterating its August 17 order, the bench said, “No construction and tarring would be done on the forest roads till further orders.”
The direction followed submissions by amicus curiae Deven Khanna, who placed before the court a chart indicating that 55 roads had been constructed in violation of the Himachal Pradesh Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, within the Seraj assembly constituency under the Nachan forest division. According to the submissions recorded in the order, proposals for forest clearance from the user agency were yet to be received in a majority of these cases, although the roads were already in place.
The court also noted that work on these roads remained incomplete. The Bagsaid-Rahidhar-Kathyali-Dharwar-Dhansal road, measuring 10.165 km, was shown as “in progress, approved”. The documents also contained a separate list of roads approved under the Forest Rights Act, 2006, in Seraj after August 19, 2024.
{{/usCountry}}The court also noted that work on these roads remained incomplete. The Bagsaid-Rahidhar-Kathyali-Dharwar-Dhansal road, measuring 10.165 km, was shown as “in progress, approved”. The documents also contained a separate list of roads approved under the Forest Rights Act, 2006, in Seraj after August 19, 2024.
{{/usCountry}}Notably, the Seraj constituency is represented by former chief minister Jai Ram Thakur, under whose reign the region saw major infrastructure growth.
The amicus curiae also questioned the manner in which permissions had been granted under the Forest Rights Act, 2006. The order records the submission that some permissions appeared to have been granted for purposes that were neither for the benefit of forest dwellers nor forests.
Regarding the 16 helipads in Seraj, Khanna submitted that such facilities in forest areas could disturb wildlife and warranted an assessment of their environmental impact. The court also took note of submissions regarding the large-scale felling of green trees for road construction.
The HC order does not impose a separate blanket stay on all development activities or all helipad projects, nor does it record a final finding that everyone of the 55 roads or all 16 helipads are illegal.
The matter has been listed for its next hearing on December 2.