In T.N. GODAVARMAN THIRUMULPAD v. UNION OF INDIA, (1997) 2 SCC 267, th…

Question

In T.N. GODAVARMAN THIRUMULPAD v. UNION OF INDIA, (1997) 2 SCC 267, the Supreme Court interpreted 'FOREST' under the Forest Conservation Act 1980 to mean:

Accepted Answer

C. any area meeting the DICTIONARY MEANING of 'forest' — covering all statutorily recognised forests, all areas recorded as forest in government records, AND those areas which are FORESTS BY APPEARANCE

1. T.N. Godavarman v. UoI (1997) is a sweeping PIL on forest conservation.
2. The Supreme Court held that the word 'forest' in the Forest Conservation Act 1980 must be understood in its DICTIONARY MEANING — covering all statutorily recognised forests, all areas recorded as forest in government records (irrespective of ownership), AND all areas which are FORESTS BY APPEARANCE.
3. The case became a 'continuing mandamus' with ongoing supervisory orders for decades.
4. The Court suspended all non-forest activity in forest areas without prior Central Government approval under Section 2 FCA 1980.
5. Hence option B is correct.
_Source: EPA 1986 / Constitution of India / Stockholm/Rio/Paris / Indian SC environmental jurisprudence — T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India, (1997) 2 SCC 267_

Answer

only forests notified by the Central Government in writing (cf. T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India, (1997) 2 SCC 267) (cf. T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India, (1997) 2 SCC 267)

Answer

only forests above 1000 meters altitude in any State (cf. T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India, (1997) 2 SCC 267) (cf. T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India, (1997) 2 SCC 267)

Answer

only forests within national parks or sanctuaries (cf. T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India, (1997) 2 SCC 267) (cf. T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India, (1997) 2 SCC 267)