🛑 BREAKING | Supreme Court Stays Apple Tree Felling Order
New Delhi/Shimla – Big temporary relief for green warriors and small farmers ...
The Chief Justice of Supreme Court of India bench has put a hold on the controversial High Court order that allowed cutting of hundreds of green apple trees in Himachal Praded.
SC Halted Tree Felling in Shimla, Granted Relief in Environmental PIL by Tikender Panwar, former deputy Mayor of Shimla and environment activist.
The apex court granted permission to file the Special Leave Petition (SLP) and issued notice to the State government.
A bench led by Chief Justice of India, along with Justices K. Vinod Chandran and N.V. Anjaria, heard the matter tagged as Diary No. 40056/2025, which challenged the July 2 order of the Himachal Pradesh High Court in CWPIL No. 09/2015.
The court granted interim relief by staying the High Court’s directive on tree cutting till further orders. However, it clarified that the State government is free to proceed with the auction of fruits from the harvest.
Senior Advocate PV Dinesh, representing the petitioners, argued against the High Court’s recent directions, contending they could lead to irreversible environmental damage.
The court, taking note of the urgency, allowed service of notice through the Standing Counsel of the State. Advocate-on-Record Ms. Sugandha Anand accepted the notice on behalf of the Himachal Pradesh government.
The matter has now been tagged with a similar case — Diary No. 41041 of 2025 — indicating that broader environmental concerns involving tree felling in the ecologically sensitive hill state may come under scrutiny.
Subhash Chandran, Lawyer for petitioner told ANI that the Supreme Court has stayed the High court order on tree cutting and has issued directions to the state government to auction the fruit, but not cut the trees as it could result in ecological problems.
We hope the Supreme Court will permanently banned the the tree cutting, he added.
Former deputy mayor of Shimla and environmental activist Panwar has moved the Supreme Court, challenging the Himachal Pradesh High Court’s controversial directive that ordered the cutting of thousands of fruit-laden apple trees grown on forest land in the state’s apple belt.
In his petition, Panwar has argued that the July 2 High Court order—asking forest officials to axe apple orchards on allegedly encroached land—is unjustified, overlooks the ecological value of these trees, and threatens the livelihoods of thousands of small farmers.
He said the directive lacked any environmental assessment and violates the constitutional right to livelihood under Article 21.
The large-scale felling of trees—many fully mature and in peak fruiting season—is happening in sensitive hill slopes where soil erosion and landslide risks are already high. Experts fear that this could worsen disasters during the ongoing monsoon.
Over 3,800 apple trees have already been chopped down in areas like Kotgarh, Chaithla, and Rohru. Estimates suggest nearly 50,000 trees could face the axe if the current pace continues.
Panwar, along with co-petitioner and advocate Rajiv Rai, has urged the top court to consider alternatives—such as letting the state harvest and auction the fruit or handing over the orchards to cooperatives rather than resorting to destruction.
Importantly, the Himachal Pradesh government has also approached the Supreme Court, seeking relief from the High Court’s blanket order, citing the economic and social fallout on local orchardists.
The petitioners have stressed that the court’s direction makes no distinction between large land grabbers and marginal hill farmers who have been growing apples for decades.
Welcoming the Supreme court order Rakesh Singha, former Theog MLA, member of Himachal Seb Utpadak Sangh said they were pleading for the same thing before the state government that the cutting of green apple trees and sealing of homes of farmers were a 'criminal act' and should be stopped.
Singha, Sanjay Chauhan from Seb Utpadak Sangh in video message urged the farmers across state to participate in the Gherao Secretariat call of the Sangh and Himachal Kisan Sabha on July 29 so that the state government wakes up and frame policy and stop eviction of farmers and sealing of homes.
The cutting of apple trees of two small farmers including a widow in Sarahan village had evoked strong reaction of the entire community and civil society of Himachal Pradesh.
Meanwhile, Singha has cautioned DFO, Kullu for not stopping the cutting of apple trees as the ordered should have been conveyed to all DFOs by the state government. We will initiate individual cases against those who are not obeying the Supreme Court ruling, Singha warned through a video.
No eviction can be done under the Public Premises Act without deciding the title of the land, Singha claims.
The legal battle has now become a key flashpoint in the debate over forest conservation versus agrarian livelihood in the hill state.
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