India, May 23 -- The National Green Tribunal (NGT) criticised the Uttar Pradesh forest department over the illegal felling of 980 trees on the premises of the defunct Daewoo Motors (now acquired by Shakuntalam Landcraft Pvt Ltd) in Surajpur in Greater Noida.

In a hearing on May 13, 2025, NGT observed significant lapses in identifying those responsible for the tree felling and in recovering the missing timber. The illegal felling came to light in June 2024 when local activists complained to the forest department about it. NGT took suo motu cognizance of the issue in July 2024.

"980 trees have been cut and only three are in the prohibited category, meaning the felling of 977 trees in this case is unregulated. There is no regulatory framew...