The Uttarakhand High Court has taken a serious view of the ecological degradation and geological vulnerabilities in the Mussoorie diversion area and the Doon Valley. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Gupta and Justice Subhash Upadhyay has directed the state government to file a detailed reply within four weeks regarding a plea that warns of imminent landslide risks and unregulated construction in these sensitive zones.
The court’s intervention comes in response to an application filed by social worker and environmentalist Reenu Paul within an ongoing Public Interest Litigation (PIL). The plea underscores a burgeoning crisis in the Mussoorie diversion area—a critical stretch connecting the Dehradun foothills to the slopes of Mussoorie.
According to the petition, the region is witnessing dangerous developments, including construction on unstable slopes that have led to visible land subsidence. The petitioner highlighted the appearance of ground cracks in areas like Jharipani, suggesting that the current pace of urban expansion is ignoring the region’s fragile geological reality.
The plea presented to the High Court relied on a combination of news reports, satellite imagery, and geo-tagged photographs to substantiate the claims of ecological degradation. Crucially, the petition pointed out that for the first time, fault lines have been officially marked in the Dehradun master plan. Despite this recognition of risk, construction in these geologically sensitive zones continues, raising alarms about potential disasters.
Further concerns were raised regarding informal settlements, or bastis, located on vulnerable hill slopes. The plea argued that these settlements could significantly exacerbate the impact of natural calamities, posing a direct threat to human life, property, and the regional ecology.
This is not the first time the High Court has addressed the issue. In 2021, the court had issued strict instructions to the Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA) Chairman and the Dehradun Municipal Commissioner to inspect the affected areas and seal all illegal constructions.
At that time, the court had also mandated legal action against unauthorized contractors and required a status report on the enforcement of building regulations. The current application seeks immediate intervention to ensure these earlier directives are being upheld in the face of worsening environmental conditions.
The state government now has four weeks to explain its stance and outline the measures being taken to mitigate the risks of landslides and unregulated urban sprawl in one of Uttarakhand’s most sensitive ecological corridors.
