The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has taken suo motu cognizance of the alleged listing of Khuga Reserved Forest land near Churachandpur in Manipur for sale.
The petition is registered suo motu on the basis of the news item dated 19.08.2024.
As per the article, the incident came to light after a video in the Kuki dialect promoting the sale of plots within the Khuga Reserved Forest as part of an “August offer” amidst significant deforestation in the area, went viral.
The news item further highlights that the Manipur Government had declared the Khuga Reserved Forest a protected area under the Manipur Forest Act of 1960 in 1962 to preserve its biodiversity and ecosystem.
The article further questions the enforcement of legal protections for the land and why such illegal transactions are occurring despite these protections.
The above news item indicated the violation of the provisions of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 and the Environment Protection Act, 1986.
The news item raises substantial issues relating to compliance with environmental norms and implementation of the provisions of scheduled enactment.
“Power of the Tribunal to take up the matter in suo motu exercise of power has been recognized by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the matter of “Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai vs. Ankita Sinha & Ors.” reported in 2021 SCC Online SC 897.”
Hence, the Principal Bench of Justice Prakash Shrivastava, Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi and Dr A. Senthil Vel impleaded the following as respondents in the matter:
i. Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Manipur.
ii. Divisional Forest Officer, Churachandpur Forest Division.
iii. Ministry of Environment and Forest.
iv. Deputy Commissioner, Churachandpur Deputy Commissioner.
The Bench issued notice to the Respondents.
Since the matter relates to the Eastern Zonal Bench, Kolkata, therefore, the Bench transferred the matter to the Eastern Zonal Bench for appropriate further action. Office is directed by the NGT to transfer the original record to the Eastern Zonal Bench and the matter is listed on 01.10.2024.
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