No New Zoo Or Safari On Forest Land Without Our Approval: Supreme Court
NDTV
The Supreme court took note of the submission that the definition of forest under the 2023 amended law on conservation leaves out nearly 1.99 lakh sq km of forest land from the ambit of 'forest' which can be used for other purposes.
Any fresh proposal for opening a zoo or starting a 'safari' on forest land will now require the approval of the Supreme Court, which on Monday issued a slew of directions for forest conservation across the country.
The top court took note of the submission that the definition of forest under the 2023 amended law on conservation leaves out nearly 1.99 lakh sq km of forest land from the ambit of 'forest' which can be used for other purposes.
Dealing with a batch of petitions challenging the amendments to the forest conservation law of 2023, a bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra directed the state governments and union territories to provide the details of the forest land within their jurisdiction to the Centre by March 31 this year.
