The National Green Tribunal (NGT) is addressing concerns over the alleged illegal felling of 112,000 trees for a road project along the Upper Ganga Canal.
The case involves the construction of a 111 km Kawar Marg from Muradnagar to Purkaji near the Uttarakhand border.
The NGT directed the Survey of India to submit satellite images showing the extent of tree cutting.
Despite initial delays, the Surveyor General of Survey of India has now submitted compliance reports, including satellite imagery from 2018 and 2023. However, images from 2024 are unavailable.
The Principal Bench of Justice Prakash Shrivastava, Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi and Dr A. Senthil Vell has accepted the reports and directed the Surveyor General to conduct an aerial survey using drones to assess the current situation and identify the extent of tree cutting. The survey should be completed within 30 days.
The next hearing is scheduled for November 6, 2024.