SC had began its journey as a protector of environment in a petition filed by retired forest officer T N Godavarman Thirumalpad in 1995 seeking protection of the Nilgiri forests from illegal felling of trees, and in the span of three decades, it has protected northeastern forests, Kashmir Khair trees, Aravalli hills, Western Ghats, Saranda forest, sanctuaries and stopped illegal stone quarries and mining.On Monday, the case related to the protection of Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh triggered the rethink on the part of SC. A bench of CJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi castigated the Haryana and Punjab govts for being in collusion with real estate agents to allow rapid urbanisation around the water body to throttle its catchment area.However, it said Punjab and Haryana HC, which is just 500 metres from the lake, would be better placed to gauge the local situation and pass appropriate orders. It asked amicus curiae and senior advocate K Parameshwar, additional solicitor general Aishwarya Bhati, and representative of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) to identify localised issues raised in a large number of petitions pending before the green bench.The cases involving local issues should be dealt with by HCs concerned, the bench said, adding, “We cannot sit here in Delhi and usurp the jurisdiction and wisdom of HCs, which are in a better position to handle the issues raised. Moreover, local environmentalists may not always be able to travel to Delhi to present the views of the local population. HCs would be in a much better position to consider views of local people.”Petitioner Thirumalpad passed away on June 1, 2016, at the age of 86. In his 1995 petition, he had moved SC being distressed by the systematic destruction of pristine forests in Gudalur in the Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu. On Dec 12, 1996, a bench led by then CJI J S Verma passed an interim order stopping felling of trees and all non-forest activities across the country.Senior advocate Harish Salve was appointed amicus curiae. SC, thereafter, banned movement of timber from northeast, and several orders followed as the top court kept an eagle eye on forests through continuous mandamus.
