New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the Jim Corbett National Park's decision to allow buses of a private operator in core area of the tiger reserve in Uttarakhand on a petition by Advocate Gaurav Kumar Bansal that it violates the Wildlife Protection Act.
A Bench of Chief Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde and Justices AS Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian issued notices to the Centre, Uttarakhand Government, National Tiger Conservation Authority, National Board of Wildlife and the officials of the Jim Corbette National Park.
The petitioner alleged that forest officials of the State in order to provide wrongful gain to a private sector company has allowed them to ply their private buses within the core area of the tiger reserve in an order issued on December 23, 2020.
He said by issuing the order, the Director of Jim Corbett National Park has not only violated the law of the land but also compromised with the safety, protection and conservation of the tiger, which is India's national animal.
The petition says Section 38 (O) of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 provides that Tiger Reserves shall not be diverted for ecologically unsustainable uses, and in case it is required, than it is mandatory for State of Uttarakhand and its Forest Department officials to do the same only after taking approval from National Board for Wildlife and on the advice of National Tiger Conservation Authority.
