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Indian Express
2 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘Order was pan-Himachal': HC frowns upon selective clearing of illegal apple orchards
Pulling up the Himachal Pradesh government over its 'selective' clearing of apple orchards on encroached forest land, the high court has asked why drive was not being carried out across the state, as was ordered. A division bench of Justices Vivek Singh Thakur and Bipin Singh Negi directed the state government to clarify 'why the eviction operations were being carried out only in select regions such as Chaithla village, Rohru and Kotgarh, while similar action was conspicuously absent in other parts of the state'. The bench issued the directions Tuesday. A copy of the order was made available Wednesday. Hearing a set of Public Interest Litigations (PILs) filed on rampant encroachment on forest land across the state, particularly for commercial horticultural use, the bench expressed concern over the absence of a 'pan-Himachal' approach, despite earlier judicial orders and clear directions from the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (HoFF) to initiate uniform eviction of illegal orchards. Meanwhile, in compliance with previous orders, the Forest Department, through the office of Advocate General, submitted a status report stating that 'as many as 3,659 apple and other fruit-bearing trees had been felled on encroached forest land till July 15. Of these, 2,456 trees were aggregated from the encroached forest land in Chaithla village, 713 trees were removed from the Rohru Forest Division and 490 trees from Kotgarh. The bench, however, observed, 'There is no update on similar action being taken in other forest divisions, raising concerns over partial implementation of the eviction order.' The court again emphasised that 'encroachments and their removal cannot be limited to a few regions, and must be enforced uniformly' across Himachal. 'It has again been clarified, as also in earlier orders, that encroachment from government/forest land, including the removal of fruit-bearing trees, has to be undertaken pan-Himachal Pradesh and not limited only to the areas referred to in the instructions,' the bench said. 'It appears the action for removal of encroachment/orchards from the forest land is being undertaken only in the Rohru and the Kotgarh Forest Divisions, including Chaithla village, but in these instructions there is no information with respect to removal of encroachment/orchards in other areas of the State of Himachal,' it added. The bench granted the state one week to file a comprehensive status report detailing eviction and enforcement action across the state. The matter will next be heard on July 29. Meanwhile, the high court's January 8 judgment, particularly paragraph 35, also came under scrutiny. Amicus Curiae Senior Advocate Jiya Lal Bhardwaj pointed out that 'relevant compliance affidavits have not yet been filed by the authorities'. To this, the court directed that the affidavit(s) in compliance must be submitted before the next hearing, and any pending objections to filings must be resolved. Under paragraph 35 of the January 8 order, instruction was issued to forest/revenue/officials of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to not allow any further encroachment by the encroachers. The paragraph also asks to compile a record of fresh encroachments and the status of earlier encroachments. During the hearing, replies from several individuals named in the case — Sohan Lal, Madan Lal, Dinesh Tajta, Kamla Devi, Lila Tajta, Sheela, Daya Chauhan, Mira, Rita, Sanjay, Sandeep, Vikrant, and Raj Kumar — were recorded, while a request for ten days for Mast Ram's reply was granted due to his medical condition. Senior Advocate VS Chauhan, appearing for one of the petitioners, informed the court, 'Sohan Lal, aged 78, is suffering from multiple age-related ailments and sought exemption from personal appearance in future hearings.' The bench accepted the request, exempting him from appearing in court unless specifically directed. Meanwhile, in a separate application, the court allowed an exemption to Mast Ram, who is undergoing cancer treatment, from attending the proceedings on medical grounds. The PILs at the centre of the case have been ongoing since 2014 and 2015, reflecting the long-drawn legal battle over the politically sensitive issue of forest land encroachment, especially for apple cultivation, a key economic driver in many parts of the hill state. Despite multiple orders from the HC, enforcement has often been sporadic, delayed or met with local resistance, given the livelihoods tied to these orchards.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
2,000 fruit trees cut: Himachal Pradesh high court says continue to clear forest land
Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh high court on Wednesday reiterated that state govt authorities must ensure apple and other fruit trees planted on encroached forest land in the state were removed in equal terms. The division bench, comprising Justice Vivek Singh Thakur and Justice Bipin Chander Negi, was apprised by the state govt that officials of the forest and revenue departments, under the ongoing drive, had so far removed over 2,000 trees of apples and other fruits from encroached forest land mainly in three villages of Shimla district — Chaithla in Kotkhai tehsil and Sarahan village in Kumarsain tehsil. During the previous hearing on July 14, the court clarified that the order for the removal of apple trees from forest land was not limited to orchards where attempts were being made to reoccupy govt land. The court also directed the state govt on Wednesday to file a fresh status report on the next date of hearing about the strict compliance of the court orders for the removal of encroachment in a transparent manner. The status report must also mention the undue profit earned by encroachers by not only cutting down the forest trees but also utilising the land over the years by sowing crops and raising orchards so that recovery proceedings can be initiated against them. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like American Investor Warren Buffett Recommends: 5 Books For Turning Your Life Around Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo The court also observed loopholes in the status reports being filed in the court and the factual ground position pertaining to the encroachment over govt land. Minister Raises Concern Education minister Rohit Thakur, who is MLA from the apple-growing Jubbal-Kotkhai constituency, on Wednesday said it was a matter of serious concern and fruit-bearing trees should not have been cut during monsoon, which is when plantation drives are carried out. He added that though the eviction drive was being carried out on high court directions, he would take up the issue with chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, as it was not good to cut fruit trees when the crop was ready for harvest in just a few weeks. The minister added at least small farmers needed to be saved. In 2015-16, the then Congress govt took an initiative to come up with a policy to benefit farmers who owned less than five bighas of need-based encroachment by landless or small farmers, but the govt changed in 2017, said Thakur. Himachal Kisan Sabha and Himachal Seb Utpadak Sangh, led-by former MLA from Shimla and CPI(M) leader Rakesh Singha, have been urging the immediate intervention of the chief minister to stop the eviction proceedings. They have also given a call to gherao the Himachal Pradesh Secretariat in Shimla on July 29.
Indian Express
06-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
High Court orders removal of apple orchards from encroached forest lands
In a judgment with far reaching effect, a division bench of Himachal Pradesh High Court has directed the State Forest Department to 'immediately remove' all apple orchards from encroached forest lands across the state where evictions had already taken place, and recover the cost of felling, stump removal and plantation from the encroachers as arrears of land revenue. The directive came in continuation of judicial monitoring in two Public Interest Litigations (PILs) on which the high court took suo moto cognisance in 2014 and 2015. A division bench of Justices Vivek Singh Thakur and Bipin C Negi Wednesday directed the officials concerned to take stern action against individuals obstructing the implementation and the issuance of bailable warrants. 'With respect to the submission of learned Advocate General qua persons/encroachers, who are obstructing the state machinery in implementing the judgment passed by this court, let bailable warrants each in the sum of Rs 25,000 with one surety each in the like amount be issued against the persons mentioned in the above referred documents, returnable for July 14, 2025 with a notice to explain as to why they should not be punished for obstructing the implementation of the orders/directions passed by this court. Insofar as the Revenue Village to which these individuals belong, cutting/removal of apple trees shall be done forthwith and progress reports be filed on or before the next date of hearing,' the order, brought to the public domain on Saturday, reads. The bench also took serious note of repeated and organised attempts by evicted encroachers to reoccupy forest lands. Advocate General (AG) Anup Rattan, appearing for the state, along with Additional Advocate General (AAG) Varun Chandel, informed the court that despite earlier evictions, individuals named in government communications on January 31, 2025 and GD Entry No. 31 recorded at the Kotkhai police station on July 1, 2025, continued to obstruct officials attempting to enforce the Court's earlier orders. The submissions, supported by a Joint Committee report dated July 1, 2025, which disclosed that 'evicted encroachers are placing hail nets and continuing to manage apple crops on forest lands, disrupting official access and enforcement efforts'. The AG submitted, 'The Forest Department is unable to micro-manage these orchards and that apple trees, being non-forest species, are to be replaced with indigenous forest vegetation.' Supporting the state's stand, senior advocate JL Bhardwaj, serving as amicus curiae, stressed 'the urgency of strong judicial intervention' to prevent recurrence of encroachments. Considering the seriousness of the matter, the Court ordered complete removal of apple trees and orchards from such forest lands, and directed that 'reforestation efforts be undertaken on a war footing, leveraging the ongoing monsoon season'. Bhardwaj told The Indian Express, 'In 2014, the high court received two letters, highlighting the encroachment menace on the forest lands, where encroachers cultivated orchards, especially apple orchards. The Court received another letter in 2015 and clubbed it with the earlier matter taken up. Thousands of bighas of forest land in Himachal Pradesh are under illegal encroachment. This order will be implemented across the state. The Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police have been directed to provide all necessary support to ensure compliance, including police protection to forest officials.' The Court directed that replantation with forest species be carried out either by the forest department or with the assistance of NGOs or private agencies engaged in afforestation. 'Crucially, the cost of felling, stump removal, and plantation is to be recovered from the encroachers as arrears of land revenue.' In addition, the Court took stern action against individuals obstructing implementation. For the villages from which these individuals hail, the Court directed immediate removal of all apple trees, with progress to be reported by the next hearing date fixed on July 14. The bench clarified that these directions were in addition to the orders passed earlier on January 8, 2025, in the same PILs. Meanwhile, the high court also acknowledged evidence that evicted encroachers are repeatedly attempting to reoccupy forest land, particularly areas where apple orchards were planted. The court stated in the order that photographs showed the use of hail nets to protect apple crops on these lands. The Court also accepted the forest department's stand that apple trees were noted as non-forest species, and the court recognised the state's intent to replace them with indigenous forest species. In an affidavit filed before the NGT in March 2025, Himachal Pradesh Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) Sameer Rastogi submitted that a total of 8,374 cases of encroachments, involving approximately 5,689 hectares of forest land, were detected between 2001 and 2023. Out of these, 9,903 cases covering an area of 3,097 hectares were successfully evicted, while remaining cases are under process, Rastogi had submitted.
