Form expert panels to identify forests: SC tells states, UTs

A bench headed by justice Bhushan R Gavai noted that identification is key to protecting the forest cover in the country.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday set a six-month deadline for states and Union territories to complete the exercise of identifying forests by appointing expert committees and carrying out the scientific demarcation of land. The top court also warned that chief secretaries and administrators would be held personally liable if they failed to stick to the time line.

A bench headed by justice Bhushan R Gavai noted that identification is key to protecting the forest cover in the country. (HT PHOTO)

Dealing with a set of petitions challenging the amendments to the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 (FCA), a bench headed by justice Bhushan R Gavai noted that identification is key to protecting the forest cover in the country. It cited Rule 16(1) of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, Rules 2023, which require all states and Union territories to prepare a consolidated record of such lands, including forest-like areas constituted for this purpose, and will extend to unclassed or community forests.

Realising that this process is still not complete in several states and UTs, the bench, also comprising justice Augustine George Masih, said, “We direct all states and UTs in which expert committee is not constituted, to complete the exercise within one month.... The said committee shall complete the exercise under Rule 16(1) within six months and submit a report to the Union of India that will be placed before this court.”

Additional solicitor general (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati appearing for Centre, informed the court that on February 19, 2024, the top court had passed a similar order asking all states/UTs to complete the exercise of identification as required to be done under Rule 16(1) by March 31, 2024, and a year has already gone by.

The court then clarified, “If the order of this court is not carried out in letter and spirit, we will hold the chief secretary of state or administrator of UT personally responsible for the lapse and will consider taking appropriate steps.”

It directed the matter to be taken up after six months.

The Centre filed an affidavit before the court explaining the steps taken to comply with the court’s February 19 order last year. It said, “33 States/UTs have submitted the information regarding the reports of the Expert Committee in compliance with the TN Godavarman judgment of the top court dated December 12, 1996 while 4 states/UTs have constituted the Expert Committee only pursuant to the top court’s order.”

Bhati told the court that after several rounds of meetings held with states, only three states -- Sikkim, Odisha and Gujarat -- fully complied with Rule 16(1) as the identification also requires the ground-truthing of the lands. The remaining states sought time up to four months to complete the exercise.

Senior advocate Prashanto Chandra Sen, appearing for some of the petitioners who have challenged the FCA amendments, pointed out that the Rule 16(1) exercise will be meaningless if the top court’s judgment in Lafarge case (2011) is not complied with.

The 2011 judgment called for the creation and regular updating of a Geographic Information System (GIS)-based decision support database containing the district-wise details of the location and boundary of each plot of land to be defined as forest. This judgment, which further strengthened the 1996 Godavarman decision that gave a broad meaning to the definition of forests, required states to carry out the exercise of identifying forest lands.

Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for another set of petitioners, demanded that till identification process is not complete, there should be no question of diversion of existing forests. Advocate Prashant Bhushan, also representing the petitioners, said the delay by states is critical and leads to suspicion that the states are not serious about protection of forests.

According to the India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2023, the total forest and tree cover in the country is 8.27 lakh square kilometres, roughly over 25% of the geographical area of the country. The petitioners have pointed out that between ISFR 2021 and 2023, 1488 sq kms of unclassed forests have been lost.