Central Information Commission asks forest departments to come clean on funds

India Today: New Delhi: Wednesday, 02 September 2015.

A Supreme Court order makes it mandatory for forest departments to create a fund in which money received from agencies, which seek cutting of trees, is kept.

The Central Information Commission (CIC) has said forest departments in states must disclose how funds for afforestation were being used, besides the species and locations of saplings being planted.

Drawing from agencies allowed to cut trees for infrastructure projects, states have put together a corpus of Rs 35,000 crore, but only a small part of it is being released, for which it was collected, Mail Today has learnt.

Information Commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu, in a recent order, told the Delhi forest department to make public species-wise information about compensatory afforestation for every quarter, with details of amount available and those spent on re-plantation.

The CIC was hearing an appeal filed by conservation biologist Sajid Idrisi, whose RTI application seeking from the Delhi forest department the number of trees allowed to be cut for infrastructure projects in Delhi between 2004 and 2014, failed to get the desired information.

Idrisi also wanted to know the species of trees cut during the period and the species and locations of saplings planted to make up for the green loss. The Delhi High Court recently asked the Delhi government to disclose the number of trees cut and the number of saplings planted and where the greening fund has gone.

Acharyulu said in his order: "People have the right to know how this money is being spent. It is the duty of the forest department to inform the appellant about the measures taken to compensate cutting of trees. The department has a duty to assess the loss and efforts to compensate. For that purpose, they have to maintain species-wise records of compensatory afforestation."

The Commission directed the forest department to furnish the information for 2010-2015 to the appellant within 15 days. For the remaining years, the information is to be furnished within three months.

A Supreme Court order makes it mandatory for forest departments in states to create a fund in which money received from agencies which seek cutting of trees is to be kept. Apart from re-plantation, this fund is also to be used in forest and wildlife conservation. But only a small part of this Rs 35,000 crore fund is being released for the purpose it was collected.

Idrisi told Mail Today: "Maintaining species-specific records is important because different species attain different canopy sizes. Therefore specific distance has to be maintained between saplings during plantation. Habitat requirements also differ from species to species. The number of trees cut if not replaced by new trees at similar habitats will lead affect green cover and biodiversity."