Shimla | July 25 – Former deputy mayor of Shimla and environmental activist Tikender Singh 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.
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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