The high court has directed chief secretaries of Punjab and Haryana to sit with forest department officials of respective administrations and come up with policies and endeavors to increase the forest cover.
“In recent past, we are witnessing disastrous consequences ensuing for the public at large on account of various factors including damage to the environment in the form of cutting of trees. This is high time when the state of Punjab and state of Haryana must make endeavors to increase the forest cover over their geographical area,” the bench of chief justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and justice Rohit Kapoor observed while seeking affidavits from chief secretaries by October 28.
The order was passed while hearing a petition pending since 2025 in which expressing serious concerns over depleting green cover, the high court had stayed felling of trees for projects and other activities in December 2025 in Punjab and at a later date extended the same order to Haryana. Since the ban is continuing and the court is flooded with a large number of applications from government as well as private agencies. During the hearing on October 12, the court observed that it intends to dispose of the matter and come up with a broad framework according to which respective administrations would deal with requests for felling of trees. Hence, have sought affidavits from the states’ top bureaucrats so that the framework can be put in place.
“The policy shall identify the categories of additional land that may be utilised for the aforesaid purpose. The availability of such land shall be assessed and identified, particularly with reference to land vested in or available with gram panchayats and other public bodies, and a specific percentage of such land may be earmarked for plantation of trees. The policy shall also set out the measures to be adopted to ensure the protection and survival of the saplings so planted,” it said.
{{/usCountry}}“The policy shall identify the categories of additional land that may be utilised for the aforesaid purpose. The availability of such land shall be assessed and identified, particularly with reference to land vested in or available with gram panchayats and other public bodies, and a specific percentage of such land may be earmarked for plantation of trees. The policy shall also set out the measures to be adopted to ensure the protection and survival of the saplings so planted,” it said.
{{/usCountry}}The court underlined that tree and forest cover in Punjab and Haryana is almost at the bottom of the national figures. According to the India State of Forest Report, 2023, tree and forest cover over Punjab is 3.67% while for Haryana it is 3.65%, which are both drastically below the national average of 25.17% and far below the 33% benchmark envisaged under the National Forest Policy, 1988, it added.
HC grants permission for cutting of 8000 trees at 15 locations in two states for defence locations
Meanwhile, the Punjab and Haryana high court has granted permissions to cut 8000 trees at 15 locations in two states at defence locations for expansion and creation of infrastructure projects in two states.
The court took note of the undertaking by defence authorities that a minimum of five times of the number of trees to be cut would be planted within the same campus/premises. The trees would be maintained, attended and preserved by the concerned unit for a minimum period of ten years and that periodic watering, fencing, tree-guard protection and replacement of any tree that fails to survive shall be ensured throughout the said period.
The court said that it is allowing cutting of these trees “subject to strict compliance with the affidavit(s)/undertaking(s)”. “We also provide that as and when a new officer in-charge of the unit is posted, he shall be apprised of the affidavit/undertaking given (before the court)” it recorded. The court, however, warned that any breach of the undertaking would “give rise to initiation of contempt proceedings”.