October 23, 2025: The Bombay High Court has constituted a high-powered committee (HPC) to expedite the construction of a boundary wall around the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) to prevent further encroachments and safeguard what it described as the “crown jewel” of Mumbai and Thane.
The panel, led by Justice Dilip B. Bhosale, former Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court, will recommend measures for removing encroachments and rehabilitating eligible slum dwellers and other residents living within SGNP.
A bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam A. Ankhad passed the order on October 16 while hearing a plea filed by Samyak Janhit Seva Sanstha, a group representing SGNP residents, and a contempt petition by the NGO Conservation Action Trust. The petitioners pointed out that despite earlier court directions, the state government had constructed only 49 km of the 154 km boundary wall.
Senior advocate Janak Dwarkadas argued that the state had failed to comply with several earlier orders, amounting to “gross contempt of court.” In response, Advocate General Birendra Saraf assured the bench that steps were underway to complete the wall and rehabilitate encroachers, stating that “44 acres of land at Marol-Maroshi will be immediately made available” for resettlement, with the remaining 46 acres to follow soon.
The HPC will also include former state chief secretary Nitin Kareer, former DGP Subodh Kumar Jaiswal, and SGNP Director Anita Patil as member secretary. The court directed all state agencies to cooperate fully with the committee and warned of contempt action for non-compliance.
The bench has asked the HPC to submit its first report within three months of its inaugural meeting and scheduled the next hearing for February 19, 2026.
Source: The Indian Express
