Hyderabad: Supreme Court on Monday stayed tree felling near KBR National Park while hearing a petition linked to road expansion works under the Strategic Road Development Programme (SRDP) in Hyderabad.
A bench comprising Justice B.V. Nagarathna and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan issued notices to the Centre and the Telangana government during the hearing.
The bench directed authorities not to cut trees within the 25 to 35 metre Eco-Sensitive Zone surrounding KBR National Park until further orders. Environmental activist Kajal Maheshwari approached the Supreme Court after the Telangana High Court declined to grant interim relief.
The interim order is expected to temporarily halt SRDP works near the park area. The court observed that environmental protection required urgent attention and imposed an immediate stay on tree felling activities.
According to the petition, KBR National Park is a highly sensitive urban forest zone notified under Section 35 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. The petitioner argued that authorities originally proposed a 25 to 35 metre buffer zone around the park.
KBR National Park buffer zone reduction challenged in court
The plea stated that the government later reduced the Eco-Sensitive Zone limit to between 3 metres and 29.8 metres. According to the petitioner, authorities made the changes to facilitate infrastructure projects, including SRDP road expansion works.
The petition further argued that the reduced buffer zone weakened environmental protection around the park and increased exposure to pollution and external noise. It also challenged the Union Environment Ministry’s notification issued on October 27, 2020.
Kajal Maheshwari alleged that authorities carried out no proper scientific or environmental assessment before reducing the Eco-Sensitive Zone. The petition claimed the move aimed to avoid higher land acquisition costs connected to road expansion projects.
According to the plea, more than 19,000 people submitted objections against the reduction of the buffer zone. However, officials allegedly ignored those objections before issuing the notification.
The petitioner also alleged that authorities falsely claimed they had conducted a public hearing before finalising the notification. She informed the court that she had earlier approached the Telangana High Court over alleged environmental violations around the park.
However, the High Court deferred the matter to May 5 without granting immediate relief. The Supreme Court has now scheduled the next hearing in the matter for July 27.
