The Meghalaya High Court has directed the State government to keep in abeyance felling of trees in and around the Lower New Colony area, Laitumkhrah.
The order also covers all those trees under East Khasi Hills district.
The division bench of Chief Justice Indra Prasanna Mukerji and Justice Wanlura Diengdoh of the Meghalaya court while hearing a PIL, seeking its intervention to stop illegal or irregular felling of trees, directed the government to disclose all pending applications for felling of trees and that they should be processed and disposed strictly in accordance with the Meghalaya Tree (Preservation) Act, 1976 and the Meghalaya Tree (Preservation) Rules, 1976.
It also directed the State to file the status, procedure followed and the outcome of each pending application.
The court said the state must file an affidavit on the information and action taken by February 28 with a copy served on the Advocate-on record for the petitioner.
“Considering the nature, scope and impact of the writ petition, we include the entire East Khasi Hills District within the purview of the petition and this order,” the court said.
The court quoted the writ petition filed by the petitioner that as per the Meghalaya Tree (Preservation) Act, 1976 and the Meghalaya Tree (Preservation) Rules, 1976, before according permission to fell a tree in the State, an application has to be made by the Divisional Forest Officer in Form-I of the said Rules, followed by an enquiry by the Divisional Forest Officer before such permission is granted. The Nagar Van Yojana (NVJ) scheme of the Government of India in 2020 restrained felling of trees and promoted “urban forestry”.
The petitioner said without following due procedure, the State government had indiscriminately felled trees in the area, on complaints being made by individuals that the trees were either obstructing ingress or egress or were standing dangerously. Such felling of trees also includes felling of heritage trees which are over a century old.
While ND Chullai, Additional Advocate General who appeared for the state respondents has filed an affidavit on the allegations on June 18, 2024, the court said, “We do not find any indication therein as to whether the procedure in the above rules has been followed.”
“If any felling of trees has already been done irregularly or illegally it is irreversible. We direct that wherever such felling has taken place, the respondents will take steps to plant trees more or less of the same type or description, so as to restore the ecology of the area,” the court said.
The next hearing on the PIL will be held on March 5, 2025.
