Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi
New Delhi, Jul 10: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) to complete proceedings within the next three months to recover more than Rs 2.65 crore in environmental compensation from Banaras Hindu University (BHU) for the illegal felling of 33 trees on its Varanasi campus.
In an order dated July 7, made public on Thursday, a bench comprising NGT Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and expert member Afroz Ahmad noted that the UPPCB had already assessed environmental compensation of Rs 2,65,06,877.08 and instructed the board to complete the recovery process within the extended deadline.
The tribunal observed that the UPPCB had failed to comply with its earlier direction issued in August 2025, which required the proceedings to be completed within three months.
The case arose from a petition filed by advocate Saurabh Tiwari, who alleged that trees were being illegally felled within BHU's 1,300-acre campus. Acting on the complaint, the NGT constituted a joint committee, which found that 33 trees, including seven sandalwood trees and 26 others of different species, had been cut illegally.
Based on the committee's findings, the tribunal had directed the UPPCB to assess the environmental compensation and recover the amount from the university. After the deadline lapsed without compliance, the petitioner approached the NGT seeking enforcement of its earlier order.
During the latest hearing, counsel for the UPPCB informed the tribunal that although the recovery proceedings had been delayed due to certain orders of the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court and the Supreme Court, the compensation had now been quantified and the recovery process had commenced.
The tribunal also took note of a report submitted by the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), which stated that BHU had undertaken compensatory afforestation by planting 978 saplings in 2025. Of these, 859 were found to be healthy and surviving during inspection.
While acknowledging the progress made in compensatory plantation, the NGT directed the UPPCB to complete the recovery proceedings for the environmental compensation within the extended three-month period.