The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal filed by the NGO Goa Foundation challenging the National Green Tribunal’s order and supporting the Goa government’s criteria for identifying private forests.

The court has accepted the government’s criteria and vacated the stay on granting Sanads for lands in Goa, also accepting CREDAI’s appeal. The state argued that the criteria for identifying forests had been finalized in 1991, following the Bombay High Court’s judgment in 1990.

The court observed that the appellant was attempting to take a contrary stand on the issue of criteria for identifying forests.