The Uttarakhand High Court has granted temporary relief to residents of Poochdi and Ranikhet Road in Ramnagar, directing that the administration must hear their side before taking punitive action against their constructions.
The court has also put encroachment-removal proceedings on hold for 4 months. The petitioners have been asked to submit their representations before the administration during this period.
Committee asked to submit status report
A division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari and Justice Subhash Upadhyay directed a high-level committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary, to submit a status report within 3 weeks.
The committee was formed following an earlier direction from the High Court. The order also requires the concerned departments to geo-map all government land and publish the related information on a digital portal.
The court further directed that the boundaries of van panchayats be identified. These directions are intended to provide clearer information about government land and forest-panchayat areas while the wider encroachment matter remains under consideration.
Case began with Padampuri complaint
The proceedings originated from a complaint about alleged encroachment on Forest Department land in the Padampuri area of Nainital. A person from Delhi had written to the Chief Justice about the issue.
The High Court accepted that letter as a public interest litigation. The case later expanded to include directions concerning encroachments and constructions in other areas.
The current order gives the residents of Poochdi and Ranikhet Road an opportunity to place their version before officials before any punitive step is taken against their constructions. It does not, on the facts available here, finally decide the legality of every construction covered by the proceedings.
Earlier directions on encroachments
On 17 October 2023, the High Court directed all district magistrates and divisional forest officers to remove encroachments and submit reports. The court issued further directions after those instructions were not complied with.
It also ordered the immediate removal of illegal resorts and encroachments constructed on kham land and at other locations. The latest directions add a hearing requirement for the affected residents and seek updated information from the high-level committee.
Conclusion
The High Court has paused encroachment-removal action in the specified Ramnagar areas for 4 months and required residents to be heard before punitive action. The Chief Secretary-led committee must submit its status report within 3 weeks.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Which Ramnagar residents received relief?
Residents of Poochdi and Ranikhet Road in Ramnagar received the relief described in the order.
Q. How long has encroachment-removal action been paused?
The High Court has paused the action for 4 months.
Q. What must the administration do before taking punitive action?
It must hear the residents’ side before taking punitive action against their constructions.
Q. What must the petitioners do now?
The petitioners must present their cases before the administration.
Q. Who heads the committee asked to submit a report?
The high-level committee is chaired by the Chief Secretary.
Q. When is the committee’s status report due?
The committee has been asked to submit its status report within 3 weeks.
Q. What information must departments publish?
The concerned departments must geo-map government land and publish the information on a digital portal.
Q. What other boundary-related direction did the court issue?
The court directed that the boundaries of van panchayats be identified.
