PANAJI: The Bombay high court in Goa has pulled up the state government for failing to conduct a census of trees despite the directions of the court.
A bench of justices Mahesh Sonak and R N Laddha said that with the enactment of the Trees Act 1984, the government was duty-bound to carry out the tree census even in the absence of any directions from the court and added that it is not open to the Trees Authorities to either shirk or avoid compliance by putting forth a “barrage of so-called technical difficulties”.
The court asked the Tree Authorities to come up with effective solutions to carry out the survey and comply with the statutory as well as the judicial mandate.
“Despite the enactment of the Trees Act in 1984, there was practically no compliance. Therefore, even in the absence of any directions from the Court, the authorities were duty-bound to comply with its mandate. Therefore, at this stage, it is not open to the Trees Authorities to either shirk or avoid compliance by putting forth a barrage of so-called technical difficulties. The Tree Authorities should come up with effective solutions and comply with the statutory as well as the judicial mandate,” the high court said.
In a reply filed before the high court, the Goa government expressed its inability to conduct a tree census in the state citing operational and logistical difficulties.
The government informed the high court that the two Tree Authorities (North and South Goa) which met in March “while considering all the aspects involved in carrying out of a tree census across an area of approximately 2,500 sq. kms in the State and the sheer magnitude of logistics and the work involved felt that…to begin with first tree census may be carried out within the jurisdictional limits of the City Corporation of Panjim area| (CCP) and Margao Municipal Council (MMC) i.e one each in North & South Goa District (instead of the whole state).”
{{/usCountry}}The government informed the high court that the two Tree Authorities (North and South Goa) which met in March “while considering all the aspects involved in carrying out of a tree census across an area of approximately 2,500 sq. kms in the State and the sheer magnitude of logistics and the work involved felt that…to begin with first tree census may be carried out within the jurisdictional limits of the City Corporation of Panjim area| (CCP) and Margao Municipal Council (MMC) i.e one each in North & South Goa District (instead of the whole state).”
{{/usCountry}}However, the high court said. “The Tree Authorities cannot, at this belated stage, express the view that the process will first be carried out only in the two towns of Panaji and Margao. Further, except for the expression of such a view, no such census has been carried out even in Panaji and Margao to date. Thus, it is quite clear that there is no compliance with [the] direction and instead, some groundwork is being laid to avoid compliances.”
In July last year, while disposing a petition filed by the Living Heritage Foundation, the Bombay high court at Goa ordered the Goa north and south Goa Tree Authorities, which have been lying defunct at least since 2012, to wake up and carry out a census of the existing trees in the state, which is one of the statutory requirements of the body constituted under the Goa Preservation of Trees Act.
The court was hearing a public interest litigation filed by NGO Living Heritage Foundation seeking the revival of the tree authorities of north and south Goa.
The court had disposed of the petition in July 2021 by directing the state to implement the various mandates prescribed under the Goa, Daman, and Diu Preservation of Trees Act, 1984 (Trees Act). The court further directed the state to file their compliance reports from time to time.