97 kanals State land at Nagrota for cattle pound
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Nov 24: Division Bench of the State High Court comprising Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Rajesh Bindal has directed the Divisional Commissioner Jammu as well as Commissioner Jammu Municipal Corporation to place before the court the outcome of the demarcation exercise undertaken on November 12 jointly by Revenue Department, Forest Department and Jammu Municipal Corporation for the land identified for cattle pound at village Seri Khurd in Nagrota tehsil.
The Division Bench also directed the Jammu Municipal Corporation to file a status report with regard to the tagging of the animals which are required to be tagged in terms of order dated July 31, 2018. The DB further directed that such exercise shall continue till all animals within Municipal Limits of the Jammu city are tagged.
These directions were passed in the much publicized Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by SAVE (Save Animal Value Environment), an NGO working for welfare of animals through its Chairperson Devinder Kaur Madaan alias Rumpy Madaan seeking closure of 59 illegal/unregistered milk dairies running within the limits of Jammu Municipal Corporation. The PIL further seeks establishment of a cattle pound for stray animals.
When the PIL came up for hearing, Advocate Sheikh Shakeel Ahmed with Advocates Rahul Raina and Supriya Chouhan appearing for the petitioner submitted that pursuant to order dated October 23, 2018 a status report stands filed by Sanjeev Verma, Divisional Commissioner Jammu wherein it is stated that land measuring 42 kanals and 11 marlas stand handed over by the Revenue Department to the JMC for construction of a cattle pound.
It was further divulged in the status report that so far as the remaining land out of 97 kanals and 11 marlas which was required for the construction of the cattle pound as noted in the previous proceedings, the Forest Department is yet to handover the possession thereof to the JMC.
At this stage, Senior AAG H A Siddiqui appearing for the Forest Department informed the Division Bench that in case forest land has to be diverted for any purpose other than forestry, the Authority has to proceed in terms of Jammu and Kashmir Forest Conservation Act, 1997. He further submitted that there are categoric directions by the Apex Court in the much celebrated case of T N Godavarman V/s Union of India that forest land demarcated or un-demarcated cannot be used/converted for non-forest activity.
Advocate Ahmed while resisting the submissions of Senior AAG H A Siddiqui submitted that the joint demarcation of the land has been conducted on November 12, 2018 by the Revenue Department, Forest Department and Jammu Municipal Corporation in which it was found that there is no forest land involved.
Senior AAG S S Nanda and Senior AAG H A Siddiqui appearing for the State Government/JMC at this stage sought time from the Division Bench to ascertain the possession of the land and further assured the Division Bench that in case demarcation exercise was undertaken on November 12, 2018 or any other date the outcome thereof shall be placed before the court on the next date.
On this, the Division Bench said, “we make it clear that in case the land measuring 97 kanals and 11 marlas is available for construction of the cattle pound the same shall be expeditiously handed over to the Jammu Municipal Corporation”. The DB further directed the Jammu Municipal Corporation to file the status report disclosing the status of the construction of the cattle pound and also issued directions to the Divisional Commissioner Jammu to file a status report with regard to the directions.
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel