Expedite formation of Ridge management board: NGT

A bench comprising chairperson justice Prakash Shrivastava and expert member Afroz Ahmad said the board should start functioning and proceed with the assigned work at the earliest.

New Delhi:The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed agencies, including the Delhi forest department to expedite the constitution of Ridge Management Board (RMB) in the capital.

The tribunal has also sought details regarding notification status under Phase-1 of the central ridge and Phase-2 of southern ridge (HT archive)

The tribunal has also sought details regarding notification status under Phase-1 of the central ridge and Phase-2 of southern ridge. A notification under Section 20 of the Indian Forest Act gives full legal protection to a forest and declares it encroachment-free.

A bench comprising chairperson justice Prakash Shrivastava and expert member Afroz Ahmad, in its order dated May 18, said the board should start functioning and proceed with the assigned work at the earliest.

Last year, the Supreme Court granted statutory powers to a 13-member RMB, however, the body is yet to appoint two mandatory members from the civil society. : On April 13, HT reported that despite its constitution in December, the RMB is yet to hold a meeting as two mandatory members from civil society had not been appointed. The last meeting of the board took place in July 2025.

The Union environment ministry reconstituted the RMB, replacing the body formed in 1995, through a gazette notification issued on December 1, 2025. In line with the Supreme Court’s November directions, the board was also granted statutory powers to grant permissions related to the use of the Delhi Ridge and monitor encroachments and other violations threatening the ecologically sensitive area. The old body did not possess any statutory powers.

“Learned counsel appearing for Ridge Management Board (RMB) submits that constitution of DRMB is not yet complete but all approvals have come. He submits that first meeting will take place after DRMB is constituted. He has no instruction regarding the timeline in this regard,” the bench noted.

The NGT has been hearing multiple cases, seeking notification and demarcation of Delhi’s Ridge areas.