SC Fines Rs 1 Lakh Per Tree for Illegal Felling of 454 Trees

The Supreme Court on Wednesday stated that cutting down a large number of trees is more severe than taking human lives. The apex court ordered a man to pay a fine of Rs 1 lakh per illegally felled tree. A bench comprising Justices Abhay S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan dismissed an appeal filed by the individual accused of cutting 454 trees in the protected Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ).

The bench emphasized that there is no scope for leniency in environmental matters and asserted that cutting down a large number of trees is more grievous than killing human beings. The judges also noted that it would take at least 100 years to restore the greenery lost due to the felling of 454 trees.

The Supreme Court approved the report submitted by the Central Empowered Committee (CEC), which recommended a fine of Rs 1 lakh per tree for Shivshankar Agarwal, who felled the trees in the Dalmia agricultural fields in Mathura-Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh. The court further directed Agarwal to replant trees in a nearby area and stated that the contempt case against him would only be dismissed after compliance.