New Delhi, March 26: Pronouncing red-alert for the environmental violators,the Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that cutting a large number of trees is worse than killing human beings.
Imposing a hefty fine worth Rs 1 lakh per tree on a man who illegally felled 454 trees in the protected Taj Trapezium Zone, disposed of a case rooted from ravaging a lush green forest.
The Apex court in its verdict said that ‘No Mercy to the offender involved in violation of Environmental norms.
Hearing the case, a bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan rejected the plea of one Shiv Shankar Agarwal, who had illegally chopped down trees in Mathura-Vrindavan’s Dalmia Farms.
The Supreme Court upheld the recommendation of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC), ordering Agarwal to pay Rs 1 lakh per tree, totaling Rs 4.54 crore.
To mitigate the ecological damage, the bench directed Agarwal to take up large scale plantation at the designated site to making compensatory forest.
The Apex Court also reversed its 2019 order, reinstating the requirement for prior permission to cut trees on private and non-forest lands within the Taj Trapezium Zone.
