The Delhi High Court is hearing a public interest litigation that questions the functioning of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and its Standing Committee. The petition alleges that the bodies have become a “clearing house” for diversions of protected areas for roads, mining, industry, and other non-conservation uses.
The case is significant because the NBWL is the apex wildlife statutory authority under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The petition seeks binding guidelines on decision-making and raises concerns about the frequency and scale of approvals given to proposals involving protected land.
What the petition alleges
According to the petitioners, the Standing Committee approved over 97% of proposals to divert, reduce, or de-notify protected land between 2014 and 2026. They also claim that the committee often considers more than 100 proposals in a single day, which, in their view, weakens scrutiny.
The petition is led by retired Indian Forest Service officer Prakriti Srivastava and includes M.K. Ranjitsinh, who is described in the petition as the principal drafter of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The petition argues that the Standing Committee has effectively become the operational decision-making arm because the full NBWL has not met regularly.
Background: what existed earlier
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