SC upholds NGT’s order asking Goa govt to notify private land as forest

In 2018, the NGT ordered the Goa government to notify an area of 46.11 square kilometres of privately owned land as private forest

The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal filed by the Goa government challenging a decision of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) which had, back in 2018, ordered it to notify 46 square kilometres of land as a private forest.

Supreme Court. (HT archive)

In a brief order, the bench of Justices Rohinton Fali Nariman and Aniruddha Bose said, “We find no ground to interfere with the impugned order passed by the Tribunal. The appeal is, accordingly, dismissed.”

In 2018, the NGT ordered the Goa government to notify an area of 46.11 square kilometres of privately owned land as private forest, bringing to a close an over two-decade old saga in which various committees were set up seeking to include or exclude privately held land forests in Goa and give them statutory protection.

The NGT order came on a petition filed by Goa Foundation alleging that the state was dragging its feet on demarcating private forests. The organisation based its plea on a 1997 SC direction to the states to identify areas which are “forests”, irrespective of whether they are so notified, recognised or classified under any law, and irrespective of their ownership.

Privately held lands spread across five hectares or more, contiguous with or near existing protected forests and with more than 75% of the trees of forest species are to be earmarked as private forests.

However, the Goa government resisted doing so, claiming that such notification was prejudicial to the owners of these lands and had, instead, appointed revenue officer Anthony D’Souza to file a report.

In his report, D’Souza recommended identification of land as private forest can be done only if the entire survey holding of the affected party is demarcated and taken up for tree count and had sought that no final notification be issued.