The Supreme Court bench, comprising Justices A.S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan, admitted an appeal filed by Birendra Singh, who had challenged the Uttarakhand High Court’s decision to grant permission for the hotel project. The court has revived the stay on any tree felling and construction activities at the site in the Jilling Estate.
NEW DELHI: Last week, in the Jilling Estate area of Uttarakhand, the Supreme Court stayed a major hotel project in the Bhimtal-Mukteshwar region. The decision comes just days after the apex court expressed serious concerns over the Uttarakhand government’s lack of preventive measures to control the recurring forest fires in the state.
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The Supreme Court bench, comprising Justices A.S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan, admitted an appeal filed by Birendra Singh, who had challenged the Uttarakhand High Court’s decision to grant permission for the hotel project. The court has revived the stay on any tree felling and construction activities at the site in the Jilling Estate.
The bench stated
“In the meantime, the interim order dated November 23, 2022, passed by the High Court, will continue to operate until further orders.” The High Court, in its April 9 judgment, vacated the interim stay granted on November 23, 2022, and allowed construction by Devanya Hotel and Resort Pvt Ltd.
The High Court noted,
“No part of the respondents’ land falls within the forest area, and hence they are permitted to carry out construction as per the permission granted on February 17, 2022. If the construction exceeds 20,000 square feet, the competent authority will have the jurisdiction to initiate appropriate actions in accordance with the law…”
The petitioner’s counsel, P.B. Suresh and Vipin Nair, argued that the High Court had erred in allowing the construction activities based on a ‘single-window clearance,’ despite the project proponent failing to obtain the mandatory prior environmental clearance under the Environment Impact Assessment Notification of 2006.
The counsel emphasized that if the thickly forested patch was permitted to be deforested for the hotel project, which intends to carry out construction activities on an area of 20,000 square feet, it would cause irreparable damage to the fragile ecology of the area, adversely impacting the state’s efforts to maintain adequate forest cover.
The Supreme Court has directed the project proponent, Devanya Hotel and Resort Pvt Ltd, to file its response to the petition within six weeks and has scheduled the matter for further hearing on August 12.
Earlier, the forest fires in Uttarakhand continue to wreak havoc, with fresh incidents reported in various regions, especially in the Kumaon area. Eight forest fire incidents were recorded, with four occurring in the Kumaon region alone. The scale of the destruction emphasizes the urgency of the situation and the need for immediate action.
The devastating fires, which have engulfed regions such as Nainital and Rudraprayag, have already destroyed approximately 33.34 hectares of precious forest land.
In response to the escalating forest fires, the Indian Army and Air Force have been deployed to assist in the firefighting efforts. The combined forces are utilizing helicopters to control and extinguish the fires. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami confirmed the involvement of the military in combating the fires, particularly in the Nainital region, where several hectares of green cover have already been engulfed. This collaborative effort aims to contain the fires and prevent further destruction.
Former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat emphasized the significance of increasing humidity in forest areas. Citing a comprehensive plan developed in 2015-16, Rawat stated that controlling forest fires requires measures to raise humidity levels. He expressed dissatisfaction with the current state government’s approach to addressing the fires, suggesting a lack of seriousness in tackling the issue.
