Gauhati High Court seeks status report from Assam govt on translocated trees

Guwahati: The Gauhati High Court has directed the Assam government to submit a status report on the translocation of 76 trees in connection with the GNB Road Flyover project.

The order, issued by the bench of Justice Michael Zothankhuma and Justice Anjan Moni Kalita, came on Monday during the hearing on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL)  filed by senior journalist Mahesh Deka and activist Jayanta Gogoi raising concerns over translocation of trees in the Ambari area for the elevated GNB Road Flyover project .

Vikram Rajkhowa, the counsel for the petitioner, raised concerns that the Assam government has not yet formulated a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the translocation of trees.

He also stated that the 76 trees, which were translocated to the Assam Textile Institute, have begun to dry up.

On July 22, the High Court had directed the Assam government to present its Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for tree translocation and felling in construction projects.

In response, P. Baruah, representing the Assam government, informed the court that the Advocate General was facing personal difficulties and requested an adjournment.

She countered the petitioner's claim by stating that all 76 translocated trees have, as of the hearing date, started to sprout new leaves. The court has subsequently ordered the State to furnish a status report to verify this claim.

The court has scheduled the next hearing for September 18, 2025.

In the interim, the Registry has been instructed to place the petitioner's affidavit-in-reply on record.