In a judgment dated March 28, 2008, the Supreme Court had classified Indian forests into six categories and fixed their Net Present Value (NPV). Therefore, Class I projects have the highest monetary value and class VI have the lowest value. The forests in Kutch were reportedly classified under Eco Class II (with NPV of Rs 7.30 lakh per hectare) and Eco Class IV (with NPV of Rs 4.30 lakh per hectare). However, the Deputy Conservator of Forests, (Kutch East) had considered this land as Eco Class IV and therefore only recovered Rs 87.97 crore as NPV of 2008.42 hectare forest land from the company. It has also recommended action against officials responsible for the inappropriate classification of land.

Source: Indian Express September 23, 2022 12:58 UTC