Yesterday, On 25th October, A Supreme Court Bench led by Justice B.R. Gavai issued a contempt notice to the Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh in a case involving the preservation of the Kolleru Lake wetlands and bird sanctuary. The notice follows concerns over alleged violations of court orders aimed at protecting this ecologically sensitive area. The Supreme Court’s action highlights its commitment to enforcing environmental safeguards and holding officials accountable for non-compliance with judicial directives.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court, On Thursday, issued a contempt notice to the Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh regarding the alleged unauthorized construction of fish tanks at Kolleru Lake wetlands and Bird Sanctuary.
A three-judge bench, comprising Justices BR Gavai, Prashant Kumar Mishra, and KV Viswanathan, requested a response from Chief Secretary Neerabh Kumar Prasad after learning that the state has reportedly failed to comply with a 2006 court order aimed at restoring the Kolleru wildlife sanctuary.
The initial directive from the court, established in the case of TN Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India on April 10, 2006, instructed state officials to adhere to the recommendations made by the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) in its report dated March 20, 2006.
The CEC had mandated the restoration of the Kolleru wildlife sanctuary, which included the demolition of all fish tanks built within the sanctuary and those exceeding 100 acres in area by May 31, 2006. The Supreme Court has now called upon the Chief Secretary to explain why contempt proceedings should not be initiated for allegedly disregarding these directives.
The contempt petition submitted to the Supreme Court asserts that the use and transportation of materials for fish farming have not been halted in the region. Consequently, illegal fish farming operations continue to flourish due to the unimpeded supply of these materials.
The petitioner presented information obtained through the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI Act) from the Divisional Forest Officer, Wildlife Management Division, of the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department. This information revealed that approximately 6,908.48 hectares within the Kolleru Wildlife Sanctuary are being used for illegal aquaculture.
The petitioner has requested the court to instruct the Chief Secretary to enforce the directives issued in 2006 and to mandate the removal of unlawful encroachments in Kolleru Lake.
Advocate Akshay Mann represented the petitioner.