‘Gross' forest law violations: Centre orders Assam to take legal action against top official
The construction of the camps has been under a cloud since early 2024 and faced scrutiny from the environment ministry as well as the National Green Tribunal's principal bench and eastern zone bench (Kolkata).
The ministry's order, dated May 29, comes even as its Forest Advisory Committee granted ex post facto clearances to the commando camps earlier this year, after the imposition of penalties.
Yadava had authorised Assam Police commando battalion camps in the Geleky forest, Sivasagar district, and in Damchera, Hailakandi district, over 26 hectares and 11 hectares of forest land, respectively. The ministry sent two separate directions to the Assam government, regarding the violations at the two camps.
The ministry's order for action against Yadava was obtained by Assam-based activist Rohit Choudhury under the Right to Information Act.
The top Indian Forest Service officer was served a showcause notice in May 2024, after he was deemed guilty of violating the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam 2023.
In October 2024, Yadava defended his decision to give the go-ahead to the camps in his capacity as the then principal conservator of forest (PCCF) and head of the forest force (HoFF) in Assam.
The ministry deemed this explanation to be legally untenable. 'Shri M K Yadava, the then PCCF and HoFF, Govt of Assam had no authority to grant permission for clearing of forest land for non-forest activity without the prior permission of Central Govt as per…Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam and Rules, Guidelines and Notifications,' the ministry's Shillong office noted in its May 29 order.
The ministry said this amounted to a 'gross violation' of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, and added that it was also against the legal principles framed by courts and tribunals.
Yadava's submission to the 2024 showcause notice, the ministry noted, failed to prove he was not liable to be proceeded against and punished as per provisions of the Van Adhiniyam and its Rules.
The ministry's order thus authorised the divisional forest officer concerned 'to take legal action against the offender and furnish an action-taken report' within 45 days.
Under Rule 15 (2) of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Rules 2023, information on offences and violations has to be communicated to the state forest department for filing a complaint against offenders before a court.
Though he retired on February 29, 2024, Yadava was given a tenure extension till March 2025 and another one after that, even as his decisions were under scrutiny.
Yadava did not respond to calls and queries sent by The Indian Express. Sandeep Kumar, PCCF and HoFF, Assam, did not respond to queries seeking comment on the ministry's order.
Pee Lee Ete, Deputy Inspector-General of Forests in the environment ministry, who sent the directions to the Assam government in May told The Indian Express, 'We have taken action as per the provisions under law. We are waiting for an action-taken report from the state government.'
In April 2024, even as the Union environment ministry had already directed the Assam government to stop work on the Damchera camp, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma sought its regularisation.
Sarma wrote to Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, requesting that the environment ministry accord a 'post facto' approval to the camp, which was granted eventually. Sarma had sought to justify the camps on forest land citing national security and forest encroachment as reasons.
Ministry probe and NGT scrutiny
In December 2023, the NGT's principal bench took up the matter about the commando camp in Damchera based on media reports. Consequently, the environment ministry sought a detailed factual report from its regional office in Shillong. Meanwhile, Assam-based activist Rohit Choudhury filed an application before the Kolkata bench of the NGT on the other camp in Geleky forest.
A site inspection of the Damchera camp revealed that the Assam forest department had constructed residential buildings for officers, garages, ration and clothing stores, and a small hospital on an area of 11.5 hectares. The site inspection report stated that the work was in violation of norms, and based on the report, the environment ministry had directed the Assam government to halt work.
Using the inspection report, the Shilling regional office had served a notice to Yadava. A similar site inspection report on the Geleky camp was submitted by the Shillong office to the NGT and the environment ministry and found the camp to be in violation of the law.
While the NGT's principal bench has disposed of the Damchera case after Centre granted post facto approval, the Geleky case is pending before the Kolkata bench.
An award-winning journalist with 14 years of experience, Nikhil Ghanekar is an Assistant Editor with the National Bureau [Government] of The Indian Express in New Delhi. He primarily covers environmental policy matters which involve tracking key decisions and inner workings of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. He also covers the functioning of the National Green Tribunal and writes on the impact of environmental policies on wildlife conservation, forestry issues and climate change.
Nikhil joined The Indian Express in 2024. Originally from Mumbai, he has worked in publications such as Tehelka, Hindustan Times, DNA Newspaper, News18 and Indiaspend. In the past 14 years, he has written on a range of subjects such as sports, current affairs, civic issues, city centric environment news, central government policies and politics. ... Read More
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