Removal of encroachments
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Jan 9: In a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by inhabitants of village Hari seeking direction to the respondents to initiate eviction proceedings against those who have encroached kanals of forest land falling in Compartment 51-A at village Hari in Surankote tehsil, a Division Bench of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court comprising Acting Chief Justice Tashi Rabstan and Justice Rajesh Sekri has granted four weeks time to Deputy AG to do the needful in terms of order dated 08.11.2021.
Vide this order, the High Court had directed for filing a fresh compliance/status report within one month clearly indicating the time-frame within which the entire forest land would be made free from encroachments and the steps which the Forest Department intend to take to prevent encroachments in future.
Deputy AG, appearing for the Forest Department, drew the attention of the court to the compliance report filed by the Divisional Forest Officer, Poonch on September 21, 2020 to show that the Forest Department is not sleeping over the matter and that 12 encroachers have been evicted from the forest land as a consequence of which about 409 kanals and 17 marlas of land has been retrieved.
Upon this, Division Bench said, “the report is completely silent as to the action which may have been taken against the remaining encroachers. It does not even specify the area of the land, which has been retrieved from each of the 12 encroachers, who have been evicted”, adding “the report does not even discloses if the 127 encroachers identified are disputing that they are not encroachers rather authorized occupants of land which is not a forest land or if disputes in this regard are pending before any competent authority”.
Accordingly, DB directed Deputy AG to file a fresh compliance/status report with full details with clear indication as to the time within which the entire forest land would be made free from encroachments and the steps which the Forest Department intend to take to ensure that no encroachment takes place in future.
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