Punjab & Haryana High Court Temporarily Prohibits Cutting Of Trees In Haryana Without Court's Permission
Saksham Vaishya
3 April 2026 6:20 PM IST
The Punjab & Haryana High Court has expressed displeasure over the failure of authorities to respond to its query regarding the availability of land for afforestation in lieu of trees proposed to be cut for the Zirakpur–Panchkula bypass. The Court observed that the inaction of the authorities reflects a lack of seriousness towards ecological concerns and warrants immediate remedial measures.
A division bench of Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Sanjiv Berry was hearing a public interest litigation concerning the proposed cutting of approximately 5000 trees for the construction of the Zirakpur–Panchkula bypass. During the hearing, the Court posed a specific query to the National Highways Authority of India as to whether the States of Punjab and Haryana were willing to provide land in the close vicinity for afforestation in lieu of the trees proposed to be felled; however, no response was forthcoming, and time was sought to obtain instructions.
The Court also directed the NHAI to place on record all realignment proposals considered by its technical team in order to ascertain whether any alternative alignment for the proposed bypass had been examined. It was further brought to the notice of the Court that, as per the Indian State Forest Report 2023, the forest cover in Haryana is only 3.65% of its geographical area.
Taking note of the low forest cover and the absence of any satisfactory response from the authorities, the Court observed that the functionaries of the State of Haryana appeared neither serious nor conscious of the potential ecological consequences. It held that such inactivity necessitated intervention by the Court.
“… it appears that the functionaries of the State of Haryana are neither serious nor they seem conscious of the impending ecological catastrophe… inactivity of the respondents requires drastic remedial measures by this Court,” the Court observed.
Accordingly, the Court directed that no tree of any age or species shall be cut in the State of Haryana, including the approximately 5000 trees proposed for the bypass project, without prior permission of the Court until the next date of hearing. The NHAI also assured the Court that no tree would be cut for the project until further orders are passed.
Case Title: Sunil Kumar Sharma and others Vs. Union of India & Ors. [CM-156-CWPIL-2026 & CWP-PIL-70-2026]