The Supreme Court passed an interim order directing states and Union Territories to act according to the definition of forest laid down in the 1996 judgment in T.N Godavarman Thirumalpad vs Union of India while the process of identifying land records as forests in government records is carried out as per the 2023 amendment to Forest (Conservation) Act.
A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra passed the interim order while hearing the batch of writ petitions challenging the 2023 amendments to the Forest Conservation Act.
The petitioner submitted that the expansive definition of forest laid down in the Godavarman judgment has been narrowed by Section 1A inserted by the 2023 amendment. The section states that a land has to be either notified as a forest or specifically recorded as a forest in a government record to qualify as a forest. However, as per the Godavarman judgment, forest has to be understood in terms of its dictionary meaning.
The petitioners also noted that as per Rule 16 of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Rules, 2023, the state governments and Union Territory Administrations, within a period of one year from the notification of the 2023 amendment, shall formulate a consolidated record of forest lands.
As this process is yet to be completed, the petitioners raised the apprehension of lands, which are forests as per the Godavarman judgment, getting diverted for non-forest use in the meantime. The apex court was informed that the narrowing of the definition would leave out nearly 1.99 lakh square kilometers of forest land from the ambit of forest.
Taking cognizance of these concerns, the bench remarked that pending the completion of exercise by the administration of the state governments and Union Territories, under Rule 16, the principles which are elucidated in the judgment of this court in TN Godavarman must be continued to be observed.
It added that as a matter of fact, it is evident that Rule 16 includes within its ambit forest-like areas to be identified by the expert committee, unclassed forest lands and community forest lands. It continued that in the interregnum therefore, while being guided by the provisions of the statute and those contained in Rule 16, the state governments and UT administrations shall peremptorily ensure compliance with the ambit of expression forest as explained in the decision in TN Godarman.
The top court directed the Union of India, through the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, to issue a circular to all states/UTs in terms of the above order.
The Court also directed that the central government shall, within a period of 2 weeks from the date of this order, require all states/UTs to provide a comprehensive record of land which has been identified as forests by the expert committees constituted by the States/UTs as per the TN Godavarman judgment.
It ruled that all states and UTs must comply with the directions by forwarding the reports of the expert committees by March 31, 2024 and that the records shall be maintained by the MoEFF and shall be duly digitised and made available on the official website by April 15, 2024.
The court maintained that the Expert Committees which are formed as per Rule 16 of the 2023 Rules shall duly bear in mind the work carried out by the previous expert committees formed as per the Godavarman judgment. The Supreme Court clarified that the expert committees formed as per the 2023 rules will be at liberty to expand the ambit of forest lands which are worthy of protection.
The Court also issued another direction to the effect that any proposal for the establishment of zoo/safaris referred to in the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 owned by government or any authority in forest areas other than protected areas shall not be finally approved save and except with the prior permission of the Court.
The court added that where any such proposal is sought to be implemented, it shall be moved by the central government or as the case may be by the competent authority for the prior approval of the Court. The Supreme Court listed the petitions for final disposal in the month of July 2024.
Meanwhile, Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Union Government, contended that the amendments were passed in furtherance of the directions in the Godavarman judgment to protect the forests as per the dictionary meaning.