Trees Being Illegally Cut In Hills: SC On Frequent Floods, Landslides

The Supreme Court, alarmed by videos of timber logs in rivers, suspects illegal tree felling. Notices were issued to central ministries, and Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and J&K governments.

A landslide-hit area in Himachal Pradesh

Source : PTI

The Supreme Court on Thursday, September 4, raised an alarm over rampant illegal tree felling in the Himalayan region after videos showed timber logs being swept away by floodwaters in Himachal Pradesh. A bench of Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran described the situation as a matter of grave concern.

"We have seen unprecedented landslides and floods in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab. From the media reports, it is noticed that in the flood, a huge amount of wood was flowing along. Prima facie, it appears that there has been illegal felling of trees. Thus, issue notice to respondents. Returnable in two weeks. Liberty to serve central agencies. NHAI is a party," the court said,” the bench observed while hearing a Public Interest Litigation on environmental degradation in the Himalayas.

Multiple videos of logs floating on river downstream have gone viral, sparking claims of timber mafia at work.

The video below shows logs floating down the Chamba.

Nature is sending a warning… excessive wood logs in the Ravi River indicate active wood mafia operations in Himachal Pradesh.

Visuals from ravi river Chamba. pic.twitter.com/7x3CH0EU1G

— Go Himachal (@GoHimachal_) August 29, 2025

The court has issued notices to the Union government, specifically the Ministries of Environment and Jal Shakti, along with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), and the state governments of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir.

After dictating the order, CJI Gavai made a pointed remark to Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, underscoring the seriousness of the matter. “It is a serious issue. In media, we have seen that a large number of wooden logs are flowing around in Himachal and Uttarakhand. Illegal tree felling is going on,” he was quoted as saying by legal news website Live Law.

Group of people were seen attempting to retrieve a large log being swept away by the strong floodwaters of the Yamuna River in Haryana, amid rising water levels and dangerous currents. pic.twitter.com/sYmqW18wfc

— Naveen Reddy (@navin_ankampali) September 3, 2025

Responding to this, Mehta assured the bench that he would immediately speak to the Environment Ministry Secretary and direct communication with the Chief Secretaries of the concerned states.

During the hearing, the petitioner's counsel highlighted another pressing concern — the safety risks posed by tunnels in the region. He pointed out that there are fourteen tunnels between Chandigarh and Manali which turn into near "death traps" during heavy rains and landslides, citing an incident where around 300 people were left stranded inside one such tunnel.