The National Green Tribunal (NGT) directed the Survey of India , to submit the report showing the position of forest cover in India with specific reference to Northeast from the year 2000 onwards with each five years interval covering the period upto March, 2024.
The Bench of Justice Prakash Shrivastava, Justice Sudhir Agarwal, Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi and Dr. Afroz Ahmad in the original application, registered suo motu, considering the issue of loss of tree cover in the country.
In the previous order, the Tribunal had noted that the Five States, namely, Assam, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Manipur account for 60% of the loss of tree cover between 2001 to 2023.
The Tribunal on 20.05.2024 had impleaded the respondents and issued notice to them.
A short reply on behalf of the Respondent No. 1 CPCB has been filed disclosing that one 2022 matter is pending wherein application was filed raising the issue of illegal act of cutting, felling and pruning of trees and the Tribunal had constituted the joint Committee for formulating the policy, enactment of statutory framework and laying down of guidelines for the growth, protection, preservation, pruning and management of trees in the non-forest areas in the States and the Union Territories not having the same, in urban areas, and incidental issues.
It is stated that the joint Committee has deliberated and prepared a draft Model Act covering the relevant aspects in this regard.
Considering the issue involved, the Bench also implead the additional respondent being as under:
Respondent No. 4: Forest Survey of India through the Director General, Dehradun, Uttarakhand.
The description of Respondent No. 3 is corrected by the Bench as under:
Respondent No. 3: Survey of India, through the Surveyor General.
Respondent No. 3 is directed by the NGT to submit the report in terms of the previous order showing the position of forest cover in India with specific reference to Northeast from the year 2000 onwards with each five years interval covering the period upto March, 2024 and the matter is listed on18.11.2024.