Former Judge Waziri to head the committee on protecting Delhi forest
Committee and Commission
5 min read
The Delhi High Court has appointed a former Delhi High Court judge ,Justice Najmi Waziri as chairman of an internal departmental committee of city officials dealing with the protection of forests in the National Capital Territory of Delhi.
The Bench of Justice Tushar Rao Gedela was considering an application filed through amicus curiae Aditya Narayan Prasad. The application sought a modification of its December 21, 2023 order.
Committee on Protection of Delhi Forest
The Delhi High Court in December last year had ordered the setting up of an internal department on the protection of Delhi’s forest. The committee was to consist of the chief conservator of forest, the conservator of forest and deputy conservator of forest (protecting and monitoring) and the deputy conservator of forest concerned with the preservation of deemed forests.
The Court directed the committee to take concrete steps for preservation, protection, reclamation and enhancement of both protected and deemed forests.
Giving reason for the appointment of the Justice Najmi Waziri as chairperson of the committee Justice Gedela observed that other land-owning agencies have failed to assist the committee in collating the necessary documents and record, the court opined that the appointment of a retired judge would bind the agencies to work seriously.
The court ordered all the concerned departments of the Delhi government to cooperate with the committee and asked the Delhi government to provide secretarial facilities and assistance to Justice Waziri.
Green Judge of Delhi Justice Waziri
Justice Waziri of Delhi High Court was famous as the green judge of Delhi. During his tenure as a judge he passed several orders on increasing the green cover of Delhi. He issued at least 150 judgments where the funds deposited by defaulting litigants as costs were used to plant trees .
His order over five years in various cases led to the planting of over 370,000 trees in various parts of Delhi which also contributed in developing two parks in Delhi. He retired from the Delhi Court in July 2023.
Forest In National Capital Territory Delhi
The National Capital Territory of Delhi is a Union Territory with a popularly elected legislative assembly.
According to the Forest Department of Delhi the total recorded forest area in Delhi is 85 sq. km which is 5.73% of the geographic area Delhi. The Reserved and Protected Forests constituted 91.76% and 8.24% of the total forest area respectively.
City forests are also being developed in Delhi. City Forests in Delhi are urban forest pockets which have been developed for the citizens with the purpose of providing ecosystem services like Oxygen, Groundwater Recharge, Carbon Sequestration, Pollution Mitigation, Nature based Healing, Wellness Education, Awareness and ecotourism. There are 17 city forests in Delhi according to the Delhi Forest department.
