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Time of India
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Treat Zudpi Jungle as forest land, rules SC, exempts pre-1996 users
Nagpur: The Supreme Court on Thursday settled a long-running legal and ecological dispute involving over 86,000ha of Zudpi Jungle land in Vidarbha. It ruled that while the scrublands qualify as forests under the law, a one-time exception would be made to protect the interests of residents and institutions using the land prior to 1996. Delivering the verdict in a batch of applications linked to the 1996 TN Godavarman ruling, a division bench of CJI BR Gavai and Justice AG Masih accepted Central Empowered Committee (CEC) recommendations. It permitted the Maharashtra govt to seek regularisation of land use changes predating December 12, 1996. The order affects six districts – Nagpur, Wardha, Bhandara, Gondia, Chandrapur, and Gadchiroli – where large swathes of Zudpi Jungle were historically diverted for schools, hospitals, agriculture, and infrastructure without formal reclassification. "The Zudpi Jungle shall be considered as forest lands in line with the SC order of December 12, 1996," the bench held. "As an exception, and without being treated as a precedent, these lands allotted by the competent authority up to December 12, 1996, and for which land classification was not changed, the govt shall seek approval under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 for their deletion from the 'List of Forest Areas'. " The apex court directed the govt to submit consolidated district-wise proposals for such lands. "The govt shall ensure that the land use is not changed in the future under any circumstances and transfer is made only by inheritance," it said. The Centre, on receiving such proposals, has been instructed to grant clearance "without imposing any condition for compensatory afforestation or depositing Net Present Value (NPV) levies". The court also issued stern directions regarding post-1996 land allotments. "The govt shall give reasons why such allotments were made along with the list of officers who made such allotments in violation court's orders. The processing of such allotments shall be done by the central govt only after ensuring that punitive action was taken against the concerned officers under the Forest Act," the bench stated. Zudpi Jungle, historically classified in revenue records as wastelands with shrub vegetation and poor soil, dates back to British-era land settlement documents in the Central Provinces. Despite lacking dense forest cover, these lands were captured by the 1996 judgment's broad definition of forests, which brought them under the Forest Act and stalled both public and private use, triggering a legal and administrative stalemate. To resolve this, the apex court's ruling mandates the Centre and state to jointly devise a streamlined approval mechanism within three months for any legitimate diversion of Zudpi Jungle for non-forestry purposes. "The Zudpi Jungle will not be permitted to be used for compensatory afforestation unless there is chief secretary's certificate regarding the non-availability of non-forest land. In such cases, compensatory afforestation must be carried out on double the area of Zudpi Jungle land, as per the existing the MoEF&CC guidelines," it ruled. To curb further encroachments and misuse, the SC directed formation of a dedicated task force in each affected district comprising a sub-divisional magistrate, deputy superintendent of police, assistant conservator of forests, and a taluka inspector of land records. "They must identify and remove all encroachments made post-1980 within two years. All allotments for commercial purposes post October 25, 1980, must be treated at par with encroachments. " The court said all unallotted Zudpi plots of less than 3ha to be declared as 'Protected Forests'. These fragmented parcels, which cannot be managed as forests, would remain with the govt and cannot be transferred to private entities. In determining forest rights claims on these lands under the Forest Rights Act, 2006, historical satellite imagery has been authorised as a tool to assess eligibility. In conclusion, the court noted that while environmental protection remains paramount, the legacy of bureaucratic inaction and the socio-economic dependence of communities on these lands warranted a calibrated legal remedy. It tasked the CEC with monitoring the implementation of all directives and filing periodic progress reports. "We reiterate to the state govts and Union Territories to take steps to take possession of the land from the persons/institutions and hand over the same to the Forest Department. In case it is found that taking back the possession of the land would not be in the larger public interest, the state govts/Union Territories should recover its cost from the persons/institutions in occupation thereof and use that amount for the purpose of development of forests," the bench said.
Indian Express
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Supreme Court declares Zudpi jungles in Vidarbha as ‘forest lands'
The Supreme Court on Thursday held that the Zudpi jungle (shrub forest) lands in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra shall be considered as 'forest lands' and said their conversion cannot be undertaken without prior approval from the central government. The SC also told the state government and the Centre to jointly formulate a plan to process proposals for diverting such land for non-forest purposes over the next three months. The top court said that 'due to peculiar circumstances', as an exceptional measure — not to be treated as a precedent — Zudpi lands allotted by competent authorities up to December 12, 1996 (the date of the T N Godavarman judgment) may be considered for deletion from the 'list of forest areas'. However, this would apply only where land classification remained unchanged, and subject to approval to state government's proposal under the Forest (Conservation) Act (FCA), 1980. As per state's report, Zudpi lands, traditionally used as grazing areas and referred to as Gairan under the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966, are bushy tracts considered unsuitable for forest management. The court passed a judgement on a batch of pleas, including the state government's application seeking direction that the 86,409 hectares of Zudpi lands are unfit for forest management and that they do not come under the purview of FCA. A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) B R Gavai and Justice Augustine Masih directed the Maharashtra government to submit a consolidated proposal for each district. The bench led by CJI Gavai said that it could arrive at a solution to 'balance the rights of the citizens at large with the interest of the environment' due to efforts made by the court-ordered Central Empowered Committee (CEC). It directed that the Centre shall consider and approve such proposals by state without imposing any condition for compensatory afforestation or depositing Net Present Value (NPV) levies. The SC directed the Central and state governments to mutually consult and avail prior approval of CEC, so as devise a format for processing the proposal of diversion of Zudpi Jungle land for non-forestry activities within a period of three months. Welcoming the decision, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, 'It is indeed a landmark and historic decision and I wholeheartedly thank the CJI. The SC order will be a huge boost to development of Vidarbha, which was stalled for the last several decades as Zudpi jungle came under the reserved forest category. Though SC order paves the way for development, it also has put certain terms and conditions which are necessary to ensure perfect balance between the development and environment.' The state government, through Nagpur Divisional Commissioner, claimed that Zudpi lands from six districts of eastern Vidarbha, including Nagpur, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Bhandara, Wardha and Gondia (which were erstwhile part of Central provinces), have been used for various non-forest purposes for the past several decades. Advocate Siddharth Dharmadhikari for the state argued that due to reorganisation of states and inaction of certain bureaucrats, the revenue records were not corrected and such parcels erroneously continued to be Zudpi forest lands. He said the denial of relief would cause 'grave and irreparable damage to lakhs of citizens' and several projects will remain stuck. However, senior advocate Madhavi Divan, representing intervenor Prasad Khale argued that allowing de-notification of Zudpi forest lands would lead to degradation of healthy forests. Justice Gavai observed that large chunks of Zudpi jungle have been utilised for residential or agricultural purposes, government offices, public utilities such as schools and primary health centres and defence services among others. 'Citizens who are residing in the houses built on these lands for decades cannot be permitted to be dishoused. The agriculturists who have been allotted lands for their livelihood in order to give effect to the promise of social and economic equality to the citizens of this country cannot be deprived of their livelihood at this stage. The citizens cannot be deprived of public amenities which are essential for living in their day-to-day life in a dignified manner,' the bench noted. The SC said that the central government shall process state's proposals regarding allotments of Zudpi land made after 1996, ensuring that punitive action has been taken against the concerned officers who took the decision in violation of SC order. The court also directed the state to declare all un-allotted 'fragmented land parcels (with area less than 3 hectares and not adjoining any forest area)' as 'protected forests'. It told the district authorities to ensure no further encroachments, failing which, the concerned Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) will be held responsible. The SC ordered Special Task Forces in each district to remove encroachments made after October 25, 1980 (after FCA came in force), within two years. It said that after the scrutiny under FCA of state's proposal for diversion non-forest use, the lands shall not be diverted to any non-governmental entity. The SC directed the state revenue department to hand over possession of remaining area from the 7.76 lakh hectares, if any, to forest department within a year and the said land be utilised only for the purpose of compensatory afforestation. The court asked the CEC to monitor progress of the transfer of the forest land and said that the other Zudpi lands will not be allowed for compensatory afforestation unless the Chief Secretary certifies non-availability of non-forest land for the same.
