India, Feb. 6 -- In an affidavit submitted to the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the Gautam Budh Nagar forest department has shared its concern over the existing laws not being stringent enough to punish people responsible for illegal tree felling, officials said on Wednesday.

The step came in the wake of a massive illegal deforestation case observed at a closed factory spread across nearly 63 hectares in Greater Noida's Surajpur, where around 1,000 fully grown trees were felled without required permissions in June 2024.

The violation of the Tree Protection Act, 1976 was first discovered at the factory premises that was taken over by a private firm. Authorities' inspection found two trucks full of felled logs, prompting the forest depar...