MP High Court Halts Tree Transplantation, Questions Survival of ‘Shifted’ Trees

Digital Desk

The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Thursday imposed an immediate ban on tree cutting and transplantation in Bhopal, raising concerns that the ongoing process was leading to large-scale destruction rather than conservation. The Division Bench of Chief Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva and Justice Vinay Saraf issued the order while taking suo motu cognisance of reports on the cutting of 488 trees for a railway project in the state capital.

The court noted that more than 8,000 trees had already been felled for related projects, with the remaining 488 now facing the same fate. Citing a Dainik Bhaskar report published on November 17, the Bench said the situation poses a serious environmental threat. It directed authorities to halt all activity immediately.

Intervener Harpreet Singh Gupta informed the court that what is being labelled as “transplantation” was, in practice, the removal of large branches and key structural parts, leaving no chance of survival. He noted that despite earlier orders, the cutting continued and the manner in which trees were being transported made it impossible for them to live.

During the hearing, it emerged that Madhya Pradesh does not have an official tree transplantation policy. The court pulled up the concerned departments for granting permissions for mass cutting under the guise of shifting. It observed that trunks without branches “cannot survive if planted elsewhere,” terming the process direct felling rather than relocation.

Taking a stern view, the Bench issued notices to the Principal Secretary of the Legislative Assembly Secretariat and the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, directing both officials to appear personally at the next hearing. The court also ordered production of photographs of all trees claimed to have been transplanted so far.

The matter is scheduled for further hearing on November 26, with the court indicating it will accept only personal explanations, not file-based responses.