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In Re: T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India

Writ Petition (Civil) · Neutral citation not assigned (Writ Petition (Civil) No. 202 of 1995)Decided 29 Nov 2021
Writ Petition (Civil) No. 202 of 1995
Justice L. Nageswara Rao · Justice B.R. Gavai · Justice B.V. Nagarathna

Background

This is not a final judgment on the main case. In the long-running forest case, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation asked the Court to declare certain stretches of land, including parts of the Delhi Ridge, to be non-forest areas so that Phase IV metro corridors could be built without forest clearance.

Decision Breakdown

This is not a final judgment. The Court did not decide whether the land is forest. It directed DMRC to apply under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 to the Chief Conservator of Forests, the Ridge Management Board and the Environment Ministry, which must decide within one to three months. It also gave general directions on tree planting and disposed of the applications.

Lesson Learnt

Even urgent public projects must go through the statutory forest clearance process instead of asking the Court to bypass it.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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