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2024 Supreme(Online)(NGT) 3401
NATIONAL GREEN TRIBUNAL NEW DELHI (PRINCIPAL BENCH)
Sudhir Agarwal, Judicial Member, Afroz Ahmad, Expert Member
Lal Ji Kumar – Appellant
Versus
Divisional Forest Officer-Nainital – Respondent
Original Application No. 709/2023 (IA No. 272/2024)
For the Appellants/Petitioners: None
For the Respondents: Mr. Deepak Bora, Ms. Saima Khatoon, Ms. Kahkashan Naseem, Mr. C S Joshi, Mr. Balendu Shekhar, Ms. Tanisha Samanta, Mr. Neeraj Kumar, Mr. Mukesh Verma, Ms. Vatsala Tripathi
NGT refrains from adjudicating land title disputes between revenue and forest lands, directing State to resolve boundary issues using expert surveys before enforcing forest laws.
Headnote:The applicant sought directions under the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 for demarcation of boundaries between revenue and forest land in Village Gethiya, Nainital, Uttarakhand, removal of encroachments on Khasra Nos. 397, 421, 423, 424, and possession by forest authorities, citing dismantled pillars and ignored complaints. Joint Committee reports revealed disputes, particularly over Khasra No. 424, between revenue records and forest maps from 1897-99 and 1955-56 settlements, with Survey of India confirming portions as forest land. The Tribunal found a title dispute unfit for adjudication, directing State resolution. Key issue framed: Whether Khasra No. 424 or parts thereof constitute reserved forest land with encroachments requiring removal. Ratio: Tribunal lacks jurisdiction over title disputes; such matters belong to civil courts. State must finalize boundaries using Survey of India report; violations of Forest Conservation Act, 1980 trigger enforcement, but premature orders on encroachments unwarranted pending decision. Original Application disposed directing State of Uttarakhand to decide boundary dispute over Khasra No. 424 per Survey of India report within two months, take action on encroachments if found, submit compliance by 15.12.2024; respondent 7 at liberty to pursue civil remedies.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. application seeks demarcation and encroachment removal on disputed forest-revenue land. (Para 1 , 2 , 3 , 4) |
| 2. joint committee identifies boundary dispute over khasra 424; district committee to resolve. (Para 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10) |
| 3. surveys confirm khasra 424 overlaps reserved forest per historical maps. (Para 11 , 12 , 13 , 14) |
| 4. title dispute not for ngt; state to finalize boundaries before enforcement. (Para 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20) |
| 5. oa disposed; state decide expeditiously, compliance required. (Para 21 , 22 , 23 , 24) |
ORDER
1. Mr. Lal Ji Kumar has filed present application under the provisions of National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (hereinafter referred to as ‘NGT Act, 2010’) for issue of directions to the concerned authorities to demarcate boundary line between Revenue and Forest land precisely and scientifically, by establishing boundary pillars with precise geo coordinates according to the approved/notified Revenue Maps, remove encroachments on forest land and take possession of the same.
2. Applicant has stated that Gethiya, a small Revenue village having area approximately 5 to 7 hectares is located on a hill top in Nainital, Uttarakhand. It is surrounded on all its side by the Reserved Forest. Some unknown persons have dismantled boundary pillars demarcating boundary lines between forest land and revenue land and made encroachments over forest land including Khasra numbers 421, 423 and 424. Complaints were made to the concerned authorities but no action has been taken.
3. Complaint was registered on 28.11.2023 and Tribunal found it appropriate to issue notices to respondents impleaded in Original Application (hereinafter referred to as ‘OA’) i.e. Divisional Forest Officer, Nainital Forest Division, District Magistrate, Nainital and Commissioner/Secretary Board of Revenue, Uttarakhand. Tribunal also found it appropriate to obtain a factual report for which it constituted a Joint Committee comprising representative of Uttarakhand Pollution Control Board (hereinafter referred to as ‘UKPCB’); Divisional Forest Officer, Nainital (hereinafter referred to as ‘DFO, Nainital’); and District Magistrate, Nainital (hereinafter referred to as ‘DM, Nainital’).
4. Committee was required to submit report within 2 months.
5. Joint Committee report was submitted through UK PCB which stated as under:-
Translation by Tribunal
“2- According to the revenue records, from the observation of Khatauni of Khasra No. 397, 421, 423, 424 of Village Gethiya Patti Bhawali, Khasra No. 397 area is 0.307, 421 area is 0.135, 423 area is 0.129. Total area of 03 Khasra nos. is 0.571 hectare. At present, in Non-ZA Khatauni Account No. 70, Government of Uttarakhand Category 09(3)3 is recorded as barren, which is in the barren condition on the spot and in its actual form. No encroachment of any kind was found on that place. During the joint survey, the Forest Department also declared Khasra nos. 397, 421, 423 to be outside its area. But Khasra no. 424 was declared within its limit by the Forest Department, whereas according to the Revenue Department, Khasra no. 424 area 1.097 hectare is registered in the name of account holders like Hansa Dutt etc. under the rights of landholders with category 01 (a) transferable rights. According to the recent settlement map, the boundary of Khasra no. 424 matches with the boundary of the Forest Department, in which pillar numbers 08 and 09 of the Forest Department are located outside Khasra no. 424.
2- The Forest Department has informed that according to the map of the Department, Khasra no. 424 is coming under Kuria Compartment no. 05 under Manora Range. Apart from this, the Deputy Divisional Forest Officer, Nainital, Forest Division, Nainital has informed vide letter number 197/13-1 dated 15.01.2024 that earlier a dispute had also arisen regarding this land, in which the Divisional Forest Officer, Nainital Forest Division, Nainital had sent a letter no. 2554/27-19 dated 28.01.2021 to get the survey work d
