Supreme Court halts tree felling near KBR Park
Hyderabad : The Supreme Court on Monday stayed tree felling in the eco-sensitive zone surrounding KBR National Park in Hyderabad and issued notice on a petition challenging the reduction of the protected buffer area around the park.
A bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan directed that no trees should be felled within the 25-35 metre eco-sensitive zone around the park until further orders.
The interim direction came during the hearing of a petition filed by Kaajal Maheshwari, who challenged the Telangana High Court’s refusal to grant interim relief in the matter.
Petition challenges reduced eco-sensitive buffer
The petition stated that KBR National Park, notified under Section 35 of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, is one of Hyderabad’s key urban forests and ecological green zones.
According to the plea, the original proposal between 2012 and 2015 was to maintain an eco-sensitive zone of 25 to 35 metres around the park, including green buffer areas developed by the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA). However, the proposal was allegedly reduced over time to facilitate infrastructure works under the Strategic Road Development Plan (SRDP).
The final notification issued by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on October 27, 2020 fixed the eco-sensitive zone at widths varying from three metres to 29.8 metres around the park boundary.
Plea alleges ecological and procedural violations
The petitioner argued that such a narrow buffer defeats the purpose of an eco-sensitive zone, which is intended to function as a “shock absorber” protecting wildlife habitats and national parks from disruptive external activities.
The plea alleged that the reduction was not based on scientific ecological assessment but was influenced by infrastructure considerations, including avoiding land acquisition costs.
It also alleged procedural irregularities, stating that although over 19,000 people had opposed the dilution of environmental protections, their objections were not meaningfully considered. The petition further claimed that the State falsely stated that a public hearing had been conducted before the final notification was issued.
The special leave petition challenges the Telangana High Court’s interim order dated March 31, 2026 in a pending public interest litigation. The High Court had adjourned the matter to May 5 after asking petitioners to research permissible and restricted activities in the eco-sensitive zone instead of granting interim relief.
Senior Advocate K Vivek Reddy, Advocate Mithun Shashank and Advocate-on-Record Manish Tiwari appeared for the petitioner.
The next hearing in the matter is scheduled for July 27.
