SC to Telangana: Restore Trees or Officials May Face Jail Time

The Supreme Court on Thursday told the Telangana government that it must either restore the trees it felled in the Kancha Gachibowli forest area near the University of Hyderabad campus or face the possibility of its officers being sent to jail.

A bench of Justices BR Gavai and AG Masih also said that the felling of the trees prima facie appeared to be “pre-planned”.

The case concerns a 400-acre area in the Kancha Gachibowli forest, which hosts diverse species of flora and fauna. The Congress government in Telangana had planned to auction this land for IT park development, but the decision faced protests from multiple groups.

On March 30, bulldozers started clearing trees and vegetation across a 100-acre area near the University of Hyderabad campus. Protests against the tree felling led to clashes between university students and the police.

On April 3, the Supreme Court took suo motu notice of the issue and ordered an immediate halt to all tree-felling activities in the area.

The court directed the state’s chief secretary to submit an affidavit detailing the “compelling urgency to carry out developmental activities, including the removal of trees from the alleged forest area.”

The state government was directed to clarify whether it had obtained environmental impact assessment certification and other necessary permissions from the forest department for the development activities. The court also requested information on the planned disposal of the felled trees and sought a response regarding the spot inspection report conducted by the court-appointed Central Empowered Committee.

On April 16, the court ordered the state government to formulate a plan for the restoration of the 100 acres of land.

During Thursday’s hearing, advocate AM Singhvi, representing the state government, informed the bench that all deforestation activities in the area have ceased. According to reports, he stated, “Everything has stopped, nothing is happening there.”

Advocate K Parameshwar, appearing as amicus curiae, informed the bench that the state government’s reply merely defended its position and proposed proceeding with IT construction at the site, without presenting any restoration plan.

In response, Gavai said: “If you want the chief secretary and half a dozen officers to shift to a temporary prison, we can do that...We are always advocates of sustainable development. The question here is felling of 1,000 trees, taking wrong advantage of the long vacation [used for deforestation].”

The court scheduled the matter for further hearing on July 23.

Also Read: SC Halts Tree Felling in Kancha Gachibowli amid Telangana Govt’s Land Clearance Drive