Ensure rapid construction of boundary wall around Sanjay Gandhi National Park, protect Mumbai-Thane’s ‘crown jewel’ from encroachments: Bombay HC

The petitioners told the HC that while it had earlier directed the state government to construct a boundary wall along SGNP, such a wall has been constructed only for approximately 49 km out of 154 km.

A bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam A Ankhad on October 16 passed the order on a plea filed by Samyak Janhit Seva Sanstha, an association of residents from slums at SGNP.

It sought alternative accommodation, along with a contempt petition by the NGO Conservation Action Trust alleging non-compliance with HC orders of 1997 and 2003 that directed authorities to clear the SGNP area and ensure no further encroachments. The detailed order was made available this week.

Senior advocate Janak Dwarkadas and advocate Namrata Vinod, representing the petitioner, argued that various orders have been issued by the high court since 1997. However, the state government has not taken any effective steps to comply with these orders, including one instructing the construction of the boundary wall, and thus committed gross contempt of the court.

It was further submitted that several orders are yet to be complied with by the authorities, and the same has led to further encroachments in SGNP.

Advocate General Birendra Saraf assured the bench that the state government is taking all steps to comply with the earlier court orders. He also said that out of 90 acres of land at suburban Marol-Maroshi to rehabilitate the encroachers, approximately 44 acres of land will be immediately made available for residential development, and the remaining 46 acres will be processed “very soon” if the land is not included in the final notification for forest.

“Considering the present scenario, and to ensure that steps are taken for the protection of SGNP, a crown jewel for the cities of Mumbai and Thane, we called upon counsels appearing in this litigation to furnish a proposal which could streamline this process and ensure that the park is protected,” the HC noted in its order.

The HPC has former state chief secretary Nitin Kareer, former director general of police Subodh Kumar Jaiswal as its members and Anita Patil, Conservator of Forests and Director, SGNP, Borivali, as its member secretary.

Besides ensuring the construction of the boundary wall, the panel’s scope of reference will also include suggesting measures for compliance with past HC orders to protect the SGNP, as well as measures for identifying lands and constructing and funding rehabilitation tenements.

The committee will take inputs from all relevant agencies to identify lands where construction of rehabilitation tenements can be carried out and ensure the removal of encroachments. The panel will further inquire into interim applications pending before the HC filed by the state and other parties in the contempt plea.

The court sought cooperation from all state agencies with the panel, and failure to comply may result in appropriate proceedings, including a contempt action, against those concerned. Seeking the HPC’s report within three months from the date of its first meeting, the HC posted further hearing on the pleas to February 19, 2026.