NEW DELHI: In a blow to the Union government’s effort to divert forest land for non-forestry purposes, the Supreme Court has reinstated some earlier provisions meant to conserve deemed forest which was formally not recorded as forest in the state forest department’s records. The court has also directed not to allow the setting up of zoos or safaris on forest land. Last year, the government passed contentious amendments to the Forest (Conservation) Amendment (FCA) Act 2023 which diluted many conservation provisions despite protests from every stakeholder including members of the Joint Parliamentary Committee. After this amendment, many retired Indian forest officials, environmentalists and activists approached the Supreme Court against the amendment, demanding an interim stay of the guidelines and the rules issued by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC). Also, the petitioners argued that the amendment as it would change the governance of the forest and spell disaster for the country’s forest resources together with the livelihood of millions of people dependent on those resources. On November 30, last year, the MoEFCC assured the court that no precipitative action would be taken so as to dilute the dictionary meaning of forest as observed in the Supreme Court judgement in TN GodavarmanThirumalpad case in 1996.
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