642 Trees Axed In South Delhi Ridge, SC Issues Criminal Contempt Notice to DDA VC

Supreme Court strongly rejected the DDA vice-chairman's affidavit, which stated that 642 trees were cut without his knowledge, saying it "cannot trust the DDA now".

Delhi Greens

The Supreme Court issued a criminal contempt notice to Delhi Development Authority vice-chairman Subhasish Panda on Thursday for allowing large-scale tree felling in the southern Ridge's Satbari area in order to build a road from Chhattarpur to Saarc University, news agency PTI reported. A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan expressed displeasure with the vice chairman's misleading affidavit, which presented incorrect facts in court. It also required the planting of 1.

The top court expressed strong disapproval of the DDA vice-chairman's affidavit, which stated that 642 trees were cut without his knowledge, saying it "cannot trust the DDA now". "I have been a judge in Constitutional courts for over 20 years, and I have never seen a body misrepresent facts or file incorrect affidavits. There must be some00 new trees for every tree felled by the DDA. limit, never before seen," Justice Oka stated orally.

The top court noted that tree felling continued for 10 days and that the DDA suppressed this fact despite knowing that no tree could be touched in the ridge area (per a 19995 order) without the court's permission. It was also noted that DDA officials misled the Delhi LG by failing to provide accurate information about tree felling.

"Such conduct (by DDA VC) and suppression constitute interference with the proper course of court proceedings and the administration of justice. We've already issued a show cause notice for civil contempt. As a result, the bench issued a criminal contempt notice. The Supreme Court also directed the DDA to halt all road construction activities.

"We believe that for every tree felled, the DDA should plant 100 new trees. As a result, we have directed the Forest Survey of India, Dehradun, to visit the road stretches to determine how many trees may have been cut and to assess the damage. "The entire record of the contractor must be shared. We request that the FSI team submit a preliminary report to this court by June 20," the bench stated.

The top court had previously issued a contempt notice to the vice-chairman of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for razing over 1,000 trees for the construction of an approach road. On March 4, the Supreme Court denied DDA permission to fell 1,051 trees, citing a lack of clarity in their application.

The Supreme Court ruled that, as an instrumentality of the State, the DDA must first attempt to protect the environment by requesting the felling of only those trees that are absolutely necessary. "They must consider whether alternatives can be explored to save the trees. Furthermore, they plan to build the road through a forest. There is no permission granted under the Forest Act.

"We direct the DDA to re-examine the proposal using experts in the field. The DDA's exercise is necessary to ensure that when public work is carried out, the bare minimum of trees are felled," the Supreme Court said.