EDITORIAL 1: Why environmentalists have criticised Haryana govt’s definition of ‘forest’
Context
The Haryana government on Monday officially defined the dictionary meaning of ‘forest’.
Haryana’s definition
- In its notification, Haryana’s Environment, Forest and Wildlife department stated: “A patch of land shall be deemed to be ‘forest as per dictionary meaning’ if it fulfils following conditions:
1. It has a minimum area of five hectares, if it is in isolation, and a minimum area of two hectares, if it is in contiguity with the government notified forests; and
2. It has a canopy density of 0.4 (40%) or more.
- The notification further specifies that “all linear/compact/agro-forestry plantations and orchards situated outside the government notified forests shall not be treated as forests under the above definition”.
- Such linear plantations are frequently found along roads, canals and railway tracks, where they can serve multiple purposes.
SC’s directives in March
- The Haryana government’s notification came after the Supreme Court directed all States and Union Territories to define what constitutes a “forest” and commence surveys to identify forest areas in their respective jurisdictions.
- The court said that States and UTs must constitute expert committees within one month to identify “forest-like areas”, “unclassified forest lands”, and “community forest lands”, and that these committees must complete their mapping of forest lands and submit a report to the Centre within six months.
- The court further said that the process must strictly follow the 2011 Lafarge Umiam Mining guidelines, mandating a GIS-based decision-support database that includes — district-wise plots that may qualify as “forest” under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 (FCA); Core, buffer, and eco-sensitive zones of protected areas; important wildlife migratory corridors; lands diverted from forest use in the past; and supporting maps like TOPO-sheets and Forest Survey of India maps.
Godavarman & the FCA
- The Forest Conservation Act of 1980 was meant to stop forest land from being used for non-forest purposes without approval from the central government.
- In 1996 the Supreme Court in the T N Godavarman case said that the word forest should be understood in its dictionary meaning.
- This meant that any land with forest like characteristics even if not officially declared a forest would still be protected under the Act.
- In 2023 the government amended the FCA arguing that this wide definition was blocking development projects including basic infrastructure like toilets in tribal schools.
- The amendment limited the Act to only officially notified forests or those listed in government records.
- This change was challenged in the Supreme Court by retired forest officers and NGOs who claimed it weakened forest protection.
- In response the Court in February 2024 directed all states and union territories to continue following the Godavarman definition until a final verdict is given.
- In March the Court asked the central government to collect and consolidate reports from all states and UTs. The next hearing is scheduled for September 9 2025.
Haryana’s unending dilemma: Forest or not a forest
- But environmentalists have been critical of Haryana’s definition which, they say, creates “a very high threshold” for a land to be classified as forest.
- The Aravallis in the south and west (of Haryana) get only 300 to 600 mm rainfall annually. This low rainfall and the rocky terrain creates tough conditions for growth of forests in the Aravalli.
- Vegetation here has adapted over millions of years into a stunted growth of thorny and dry deciduous species and scrub forest conditions.
Conclusion
The decision to keep such a high threshold of forest cover will exclude much the Aravallis from the protective embrace of the FCA and that this definition was prima facie violative of the 1996 Godavarman judgement. The minimum area threshold of 2 and 5 hectares is also unreasonably high for such a dry state and should have been kept at 1 and 2 hectares, respectively.