The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has given the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government three months to restore forest boundaries in Galiyat, including Dungagali, and submit a progress report by September 16.
A bench comprising Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Faheem Wali issued the direction during the hearing of a petition filed by the Galiyat Tahafuz Movement. The case challenges decisions taken by the previous caretaker government regarding appointments to the Galiyat Development Authority (GDA) board and subsequent actions linked to construction on disputed land, including Hilda Estate.
The court directed Forest, Climate Change and Wildlife Secretary Junaid Khan to restore the original status of forests in the area and also hold a meeting with Survey of Pakistan officials on the issue.
During the hearing, the forest secretary told the court that the Survey of Pakistan had carried out a demarcation survey of Gallies Reserved Forests in 2015-16 over 307,424 kanals, identifying 7,616 kanals as encroached land. He said 6,632 kanals were later retrieved through anti-encroachment operations, while 984 kanals remained occupied.
He added that a fresh survey in 2020-21 identified 1,017 kanals under encroachment. Of that, 744 kanals were recovered, while 243 kanals remained under occupation, mostly due to litigation. The secretary said further action led to the recovery of another 58.3 kanals, reducing the encroached area to 184.8 kanals.
According to the latest position shared in court, the remaining encroached land now stands at 159 kanals. Of this, 45.45 kanals are tied up in litigation, while 113.5 kanals involve discrepancies between revenue and forest department records.
The secretary told the bench that conflicting land records were one of the biggest hurdles, as some documents showed land as belonging to the forest department while other records described the same land as privately owned.
The court observed that it wanted the forest area identified in the 2015 and 2016 Survey of Pakistan maps restored to its original position, with action taken against encroachers. It also said the forest secretary should formally take up record alterations with the revenue department.
Justice Arshad Ali remarked that the growing number of hotels in Galiyat had badly affected the environment. He warned that if the current situation continued, places like Nathiagali could lose their natural appeal and eventually turn into heat-stressed areas.
The bench also questioned whether hotel construction alone could be called development, while pointing to long traffic jams in Galiyat.
During the hearing, GDA Director General Mohammad Fawad said no new NOCs were currently being issued. He told the court that fresh building rules had been framed under which NOCs and construction permits would only be granted for non-forest land within GDA limits.
When asked how much time was needed to restore the forest boundaries, the forest secretary said the task was technical in nature and would require at least three months, after which the court fixed September 16 for a report.
