Delhi asks if certain deemed forests can be used for works

EXPERTS SAID THAT THE REMOVAL OF DEEMED FORESTS FROM THE CAPITAL WILL BE VIOLATIVE OF SUPREME COURT ORDERS

- Jayashree Nandi

The Delhi government has asked the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) if “deemed forest” areas in the Capital that do not meet the tree density criteria can be utilised for developmental projects.

The move comes after the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Act, 2023, which exempts unrecorded “deemed forests” from it ambit, came into force on December 1.

The Delhi government move was met with scepticism by experts, who said that the removal of deemed forests from the Capital will be violative of Supreme Court orders.

Before the amended Act came into force, forest governance in India was largely influenced by a 1996 Supreme Court judgment in the TN Godavarman vs Union of India case, in which the court interpreted the meaning of the word “forest as its dictionary definition”.

In compliance with the Supreme Court order, and other similar directives, the Delhi government declared that deemed forests were areas about 2.5 acres large that have a density of 100 trees per acre; 1km stretches of land along roads and drains where trees have been planted; and those already marked as forests in revenue records.