Jaipur: The Central Zone bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has flagged Rajasthan govt’s failure to clearly state whether it has complied with the Supreme Court’s directives to identify and notify deemed forest land, even as such land continues to be bought and sold.The case concerns land parcels in Village Padasoli, Tehsil Bassi, where applicant Hemraj Meena alleged that plots recorded as Beed and Banjad — categories often treated as deemed forest — were sold by private parties for commercial use. Revenue records, including jamabandi (agriculture record) entries, show the land in the names of private respondents, with mutation orders passed on June 28, 2025.An official familiar with the matter said, “Counsel for the state is directed to submit the notification in compliance with the previous order within one month before the registrar, Central Zone bench, through online or other modes, failing which the registrar shall place the matter before the tribunal.”The bench, comprising judicial member Justice Sheo Kumar Singh and expert member Sudhir Kumar Chaturvedi, noted that sale, purchase, mutation and title disputes fall under civil and revenue courts under the Registration Act, Transfer of Property Act and state land laws.However, the tribunal said the environmental issue — whether the land should have been identified and protected as deemed forest — remains unresolved. Meena said the tribunal referred to the TN Godavarman Thirumulpad vs Union of India judgement, which requires states to identify, survey and demarcate deemed forests within a fixed timeframe.Meena argued that despite these directions and committee recommendations approved in 2018, Rajasthan has not issued a clear notification identifying such areas. The tribunal order said, “This is a lack of clarity that raises the possibility that ecologically sensitive land may be diverted without due legal safeguards.”The bench directed the state to place on record the status of the notification within one month, warning that failure to clarify compliance could invite further judicial scrutiny.
