RANCHI, India, Jan. 13 -- Jharkhand High Court issued the following order on Dec. 13:

1. On 12.08.2025, this Court passed the following orders: 1.

"The deponent-Assistant Conservator of Forests, Dhanbad has sworn a counter affidavit dated 8th August, 2025 and we shall have to reproduce the paragraph nos. 10, 21, 22 and 23 of the said affidavit, which read as under:

"10. That pursuant to the above direction issued by this Hon'ble Court, now wherever large scale felling of trees is proposed to be carried out for any project in the State of Jharkhand, the proposal for felling trees is put before the High Powered Committee of the concerned district which comprises of the officers mentioned above and the High Power Committee after due consideration grants permission for felling of trees ensuring the following:-

a. The permission to cut trees is granted only where the cutting is indispensable;

b. Minimum number of trees are permitted to be cut;

c. Where there is possible instead of cutting transplanting of trees is directed to be carried out;

d. Directions are issued to the agency which is seeking cutting of trees to plant 10 times the number of trees cut and to take care of such plantation for initial years till it becomes healthy enough to survive on its own.

21. That with respect to the statements made in paragraphs-11 to 26 of the writ petition it is humbly stated and submitted that for expansion of the Gopalichak Colliery, a proposal was received by the High Powered Committee of the district of Dhanbad for felling 2034 trees. The High Powered Committee in its meeting dated 18.10.2022 gave following recommendation:-

a. Out of 2034 trees, 329 trees the circumference of which is less than 7 inches, those should be transplanted using hitech machines and the remaining 1705 trees were permitted to cut.

b. The user agency was required to do plantation 10 times the number of trees cut i.e. 17050 plants had to planted with iron/bamboo gabions/barbed wire fencing/bock plantation, around the project area on priority basis.

c. The direction of the High Power committee was communicated to the Project Director, Gopalichak Colliery vide letter no. 2561 dated 05.11.2022 issued by Divisional Forest Officer, Dhanbad.

22. That pursuant to the direction issued by the High Power Committee, 18000 saplings were planted on the banks of Barkar river which is more than 10 times the number of trees which was supposed to be cut. Saplings were planted in the year 2024-25.

23. That apart from that the forest department has planted 3200 saplings in the Putki-Balihari region. Saplings were planted in the year 2019-20 at Aralgaria."

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/ecourtindiaHC/cases/display_pdf.php?filename=tuqye3PhFs%2BBDn75ghiOpF4qidXEHM%2FawRwWFCt0%2B3NtT944%2FgUaoClnwqe%2B41sT&caseno=WPC/1669/2023&cCode=1&cino=JHHC010099292023&state_code=7&appFlag=)

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