'Illegal tree felling happening': SC notice to Centre, flood-hit states
What's the story
The Supreme Court has taken note of rampant illegal tree felling in the Himalayan region, particularly in Himachal Pradesh. While considering a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on environmental degradation, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran stated that there is evidence in the media reports that there has been illegal felling of trees.
Remarks
'It ppears there has been illegal felling of the trees'
"We have seen unprecedented landslides and floods in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab. From the media reports, it is also noticed that in the flood, a huge number of wooden logs were flowing around." "Prima facie, it appears that there has been illegal felling of the trees which has been going on up hills," the bench observed.
Twitter Post
Video show massive logs being washed away
These floods in Himachal have exposed the biggest Timber smuggling racket. If this continues then Himachal will lose its entire vegetation and then every year there will be natural disasters pic.twitter.com/1tUwsnN2rE
— Anshul (@anshul_aliganj) September 1, 2025
Legal action
Solicitor General assures to discuss matter with Environment Secretary
The Supreme Court has issued notices to several authorities, including the Union of India through the Ministries of Environment and Jal Shakti, the National Disaster Management Authority (NHAI), and the states of Himachal, Uttarakhand, and Jammu and Kashmir. Chief Justice Gavai emphasized that this is a serious issue after watching media reports about illegal tree felling in Himachal and Uttarakhand. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta assured he would discuss this matter with the Secretary of the Ministry of Environment immediately.
Safety concerns
PIL highlights dangers of landslides in mountain tunnels
The court has directed the government to reply to the notice within three weeks. Along with the issue of environmental degradation in the Himalayan region, the PIL had also highlighted the dangers posed by landslides in mountain tunnels. The petitioner's counsel submitted that there were 14 tunnels between Chandigarh and Manali that become "death traps" during rain-induced landslides. He referenced a report about 300 individuals being stuck in a tunnel.