B. N. Agrawal, J. - (1.) These appeals by special leave are directed against the judgment rendered by Goa Bench of Bombay High Court in a writ application, which was filed by respondent Nos. 1 and 2 (hereinafter referred to as the contesting respondents) by way of public interest litigation, whereby the same has been allowed, permissions granted to the appellants for change of land use, construction and felling of trees in relation to Survey No. 69/4 measuring 11275 sq. mtrs. situate in Village Penha De Franca concerning the project undertaken by appellant No. 1 over the said land quashed, and the appellants were directed to remove all development works done thereon.
(2.) Survey No. 69/4 measuring 13593 sq. mtrs., by virtue of deed of partition amongst the co-owners of the property, came to the share of Manohar Lal Bhandiye (respondent No. 10) and his wife Shantabai Bhandiye in the month of December, 1965 wherein this property situate in Village Penha De Franca was specifically described as Palmar De Sam Tamas De Malim which means Coconut Plantation. In Goa Gazetteer of the year 1980 it was specifically enumerated that out of the trees standing over the aforesaid plot, only 6 were of forestry species. Out of the aforesaid land, an area of 1050 sq. mtrs. was sold to Gurudwara Committee in the year 1980 which constructed a three-storeyed Gurudwara thereon in the year 1986. In the same year a proposed Regional Plan was prepared by the Chief Town Planner under Section 9 of the Goa, Daman and Diu Town and Country Planning Act, 1974 (hereinafter referred to as the Town Planning Act) showing the entire area in which the aforesaid plot was situated as an orchard and not Government forest/natural cover and the same was first published in the local newspapers and suggestions and objections invited from members of the public. As no objection from any member of the public, including the contesting respondents, was received, the proposed plan was approved and published in the local newspapers as required under Section 15 of the Town Planning Act. Thereafter, in the year 1990 a proposed Outline Development Plan was prepared by the Chief Town Planner under Section 33 of the Town Planning Act wherein character of the land in question was shown as A-1 [Agricultural and Orchard [Natural Reserve] Zone] and A-2 (Agricultural and Natural Reserve Zone). The proposed Outline Development Plan was published in the local newspapers and suggestions and objections invited from members of the public as required under Section 35 of the Town Planning Act, but as no objections were received from any member of the public, much less the contesting respondents, to the zoning of the said plot as agriculture, it was duly approved and published in the local newspapers. On 27-9-1991 the Government of Goa in the Department of Forest issued guidelines for identifying forest within the State. In the year 1992, erstwhile owners of the plot in question applied to the Town and Country Planning Board to accord permission for making changes in the status of the land in question from A-1 and A-2 to S-2 (Settlement Zone) under Section 44 of the Town Planning Act which permission was granted by the Chief Town Planner as in spite of the issuance of public notice under Section 35 of the Town Planning Act, none objected to the conversion of land use from agriculture to settlement and the same was published in the local newspapers as required under Section 37 of the Town Planning Act pursuant to which the concerned Deputy Collector granted conversion sanad as required under Section 32(1) of the Goa Land Revenue Code converting the same from agricultural to residential/commercial.
(3.) On 4-2-1994 there was an agreement for sale and development of the plot in question between M/s. Sterling Landmarks formed by the aforesaid owners and Shri Costa and Shri DSouza and thereafter in the year 1995 a partnership firm was constituted by Shri Costa and Shri DSouza in the name of M/s. Key Holdings (Appellant No. 2). On 29-12-1995 an agreement was entered into between appellant No. 2 and The Tata Housing Development Co. Ltd. (appellant No. 1) for development of land measuring 11275 sq. mtrs. of the said Survey No. 69/4 whereafter on application being filed by the appellants, for according sanction to their building plan, the Town and Country Planning Department, after giving no-objection certificate to the Plan, forwarded the same to the concerned Gram Panchayat which granted licence for construction on 27-3-1996. In the meantime, appellant No. 2 purchased the aforesaid plot measuring 11275 sq. mtrs. (hereinafter referred to as appellants plot) from its owners on 13-2-1996. Subsequently, the plan of the Project was revised twice and no-objection certificate was granted by the Town and Country Planning Department whereafter the concerned Panchayat granted construction licence for the revised plan which was valid for a period of 3 years on a condition that natural landscape formed by trees as seen from river Mandovi was not to be disturbed. Thereafter, appellant No. 2 applied to the Tree Officer for according permission to fell 51 trees standing on the appellants plot as required under the Goa, Daman and Diu Preservation of Trees Act, 1984. Upon the said application, the Range Forest Officer, after making thorough inspection, submitted his report disclosing therein that he found 51 trees thereon all of which were immature and soil was laterite which cannot support existence of a forest and recommended for according permission, but the same was rejected by the Tree Officer on the sole ground that the appellants plot was just opposite the State Secretariat in the vicinity of which there was no building, but later on the Conservator of Forest, Goa, who was the appellate authority, granted permission to fell 32 trees out of 51 standing on the appellants plot, subject to the condition that the appellants were to plant 89 trees in their place while, as a matter of fact, the appellants plants approximately 720 trees on and around their plot. In December, 1996, appellant No. 1 started construction and developmental activity on the said plot.;