New Delhi, Jan. 6 -- The Supreme Court on Monday ordered the Uttarakhand government to place before it a comprehensive account of all persons occupying forest land in Rishikesh, strongly indicating that the scale of encroachment could not have occurred without "collusion and connivance" of state authorities and political patronage. A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi described the situation as "shocking" and questioned how thousands of acres of forest land continued to remain under private occupation despite the withdrawal of the original allotment more than four decades ago. "It seems to us that each and every person holding executive position was accountable for consistent and persistent negligence in the matter, even as it appears to be a case of collusion and connivance with landgrabbers," stated the bench in its order, directing the state to disclose the identity of occupiers to ascertain whether they enjoyed protection from authorities tasked with safeguarding the land. The court was hearing the matter after the state submitted an interim report pursuant to the apex court's December 22 order, which initiated suo motu proceedings over large-scale encroachment of forest land in Rishikesh. Unimpressed with the state's explanation, the bench asked why the authorities needed court intervention to reclaim land that belonged to the government. "What have you done since 2000 when your state came into existence?" the bench asked, adding that it took the state "23 years to wake up and do the ritual of taking back the land". P4...