After 5-year legal battle, Forest dept to recover 1 acre forest in Dandeli

Bengaluru, DHNS: Days after the government ordered a crackdown on resorts in encroached forest land, the Forest Department has managed to secure a minor victory in vacating part of a resort from 1 acre 33 gunta of land in Uttara Kannada's Dandeli after a legal battle of more than five years.

In January 2018, the Dandeli range forest officer (RFO) raided Whistling Woodz resort in Badagund village of Ganeshgudi in Joida taluk and submitted a report to the assistant conservator of forest (ACF). The RFO stated that a 3-HP saw mill machine, teak wood logs and seesum logs were found stacked in the resort. The Uttara Kannada deputy commissioner who received a letter from the forest department issued show-cause notice to the resort and later cancelled the licence.

The proprietor of the resort, challenged the action before the Dharwad bench of the Karnataka High Court which granted a stay and ordered a joint survey. The petitioner said she had bought 7 acre 7 gunta land and had obtained necessary clearances to run the resort. She also gave an undertaking to the court to hand over any forest land if encroached.

The revenue and forest departments conducted a joint survey which found that the resort had encroached upon 1 acre 14 gunta of forest area. However, during the hearing in the court, the petitioner insisted that there was no encroachment.

The bench of Justice H P Sandesh, in an order dated August 31, noted that the petitioner has to keep her word. "Now the petitioner cannot blow hot and cold hostiling the earlier undertaking," it said.

Further the judge noted that the petitioner was present during the joint survey and had admitted to encroachment in the forest in a letter to the ACF. The letter categorically mentioned that she has invested Rs 2.5 crore for construction of cottages, generator shed and another building.

However, the court said the deputy commissioner cannot withdraw the entire permission rightfully given to the petitioner. It allowed the petitioner to run the resort in the converted part (4 acre 36 guntas) and remaining land she owned subject to conversion of the rest of the land.

The court said it cannot consider the contention of the additional advocate general that the resort encroached 3 acre 12 gunta of land owned by Karnataka Power Corporation Limited and 19 gunta of Kali river bed "as the said issue is not the subject matter of these writ petitions" but allowed officials concerned to take the necessary steps with regard to that aspect.

Activist Giridhar Kulkarni said the judgment was in the interest of forest and wildlife conservation. "I would like to congratulate the forest officials of Kanara Circle for their tremendous efforts. However, efforts should also be made by the department to check whether the access to the resorts and homestays in the state are through forest roads and if yes, how can the property owners bring in tourists through forest roads which is a clear case of trespassing," he said.

He said that right of way in the forests was limited for personal use by owners and their dependents and not for commercial purposes. "Many people are buying private lands in the middle of the forests with the intention of constructing resorts and homestays. They are using forest roads as access roads, which is a clear case of violation of right of way,” he added.