New Delhi, Oct 21 The Supreme Court on Friday permitted the Uttar Pradesh government to implement its March 2019 decision to set up new wood-based industries, with an expected investment of Rs 3,000 crore.
A bench of Justices B.R. Gavai and B.V. Nagarathna said: "We find that for the sustainable development of the state and on account of the availability of the timber, sanction of granting licenses can be permitted to continue, however, as a responsible state, it needs to ensure that environmental concerns are duly attended to."
"We, therefore, direct the state government to ensure that while granting permission for felling trees of the prohibited species, it should strictly ensure that the permission is granted only when the conditions specified in the notification dated January 7, 2020 are satisfied."
The industry is expected to generate employment for more than 80,000 people especially in rural areas.
The bench said while it is allowing the appeals, setting aside the orders of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), and upholding the action of the state government in granting licenses, "we would like to remind the state and its authorities that it is their duty to protect the environment".
It said the conservation of forests plays a vital role in maintaining the ecology and it acts as processors of the water cycle and soil and also as providers of livelihoods. "The state and its authorities should ensure that necessary steps are taken for arresting the problem of declining forest and tree cover. The state and its authorities should make meaningful and concerted efforts to ensure that the green cover in the State of Uttar Pradesh is not reduced and to ensure that it increases," said the bench, in its 75-page judgment.
The top court allowed an appeal by the Uttar Pradesh government challenging the "lopsided view" taken by the NGT in quashing the decision by ignoring the Centre's support to the notification.
"We are of the considered view that the NGT has taken a lopsided view. It has failed to take into consideration the concerns expressed by the state. The NGT has committed patent error in ignoring the expert's report and sitting in appeal over the same. The learned NGT has also failed to take into consideration the stand taken by the MoEFCC, which supported the stand of the state," said the top court.
It said the applicants getting the license should scrupulously follow the mandate in the notification of planting 10 trees against one and maintaining them for five years.
The court also asked the NGT to examine credentials and bona fide of the applicants in such cases which affected the rights of many people. "We would, therefore, only request the learned NGT that, when credentials and bonafides of such litigants are seriously raised and when entertaining the grievance of such litigants, which is likely to adversely affect the rights of many, it should ensure the bonafides and credentials of such litigants," it said.
It also considered a report which said approximately five to six lakh metric tons of timber per year is exported to Yamuna Nagar from the western districts of Uttar Pradesh, i.e. Muzaffarnagar, Saharanpur, Shamli, Baghpat and Meerut as there is no sufficient market for this produce in the said area.
"The report further finds that the western districts of Uttar Pradesh, i.e. Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Saharanpur, Baghpat and Shamli, etc. do not have sufficient number of plywood and veneer units and as such, they are not sufficient for the entire farmers' produce available in the said area. The report itself shows that the western districts need around 80-85 plywood and veneer units. The report goes on further to show that there is dissatisfaction among the already existing industrialists about the assessment made by the FSI," it noted.
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