The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the
Uttarakhand government for moving at a "snail's pace" against its
senior officers accused of illegal constructions in Corbett Tiger Reserve.
While ordering for the departmental proceedings to
be concluded within three months, a bench of Justices B R Gavai and Augustine
George Masih deprecated the state's practice of moving speedily against junior
level officers but not against the senior officers.
It noted an affidavit of the state elaborated on the
departmental proceedings initiated against the officers.
Referring to a chart placed before it, the court
said the departmental proceedings were completed against 16 of the 17 officers
who were in the rank of ranger, deputy ranger, etc.
However, one of the officials died in a road
accident unfortunately, it added.
The bench said another chart indicated the
proceedings moving at a snail's pace against senior officers.
"We, therefore, direct the state government to
conclude all the departmental proceedings in respect of all the officers within
a period of three months from today," the bench said and posted the
hearing three months later.
The court was also dealing with the issue of
eco-sensitive zone notification for the Rajaji National Park and Jim Corbett
National Park in Uttarakhand.
The National Environment Policy of 2006 defines an
ESZ as areas or zones with identified environmental resources having
incomparable values that require special attention for their conservation
because of their landscape, wildlife, biodiversity, historical and natural
values.
The bench observed on March 5, it had granted time
for submitting a revised proposal for the identification of ESZ after taking
into consideration the suggestions given by the Centre.
The Uttarakhand counsel informed the bench that the
revised proposal was forwarded to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and
Climate Change on March 11.
The bench asked the ministry to consider the revised
proposal received from the state and take steps for publication of the final
notification after following the procedure prescribed under the law.
Additional solicitor general Aishwarya Bhati,
appearing for the ministry, assured the court that the process would be started
here on along with an attempt to complete the same at the earliest.
The matter was posted after 12 weeks.
In March 2024, the apex court came down heavily on
illegal construction activities and felling of trees in the reserve.
It had delivered a verdict on a plea alleging
destruction of the tiger habitat and a decline in the tiger density in the
Lansdowne Forest Division owing to illegal construction in the Pakhro Tiger
Safari as well as illicit felling of thousands of trees.
The CBI, which was probing the case, was directed to
file its status report in the matter.