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IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH,

AT SHIMLA
PRESENTATION FORM

W.P. No. /2024

BETWEEN
Rishita Vekta and Ors.
…PETITIONERS
AND
State of Himachal Pradesh and Ors.. …
RESPONDENTS

INDEX

SL. NO. PARTICULARS PG NO.

1. SYNOPSIS AND LIST OF EVENTS 2-3

MEMORANDUM OF WRIT PETITION UNDER ARTICLE 226

2. 3-4
AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA

3. BRIEF FACTS 4-6

4. GROUNDS 6

5. PRAYER 6-7

6. VERIFYING AFFIDAVITS 8-9

7. ANNEXURE A 10

8. ANNEXURE B 11

9. ANNEXURE C 12

10. ANNEXURE D 13
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH,

AT SHIMLA
PRESENTATION FORM

W.P. No. /2024

BETWEEN
Rishita Vekta and Ors.
…PETITIONERS
AND
State of Himachal Pradesh and Ors. …
RESPONDENTS

SYNOPSIS

The present petition is filed on behalf of all the residents of Shimla who are aggrieved by
traffic congestion faced by them daily due to the huge influx of tourist vehicles that enter in
the town on a daily basis. Due to this traffic congestion residents are facing many problems
such as those going to schools and offices as well as other places for work or otherwise are
hindered in transportation a great deal. The problem has aggrandized in the peak tourism
periods i.e., from April to July. The month of July is also the harvest season for apples and
during this time there is already traffic of fruits carrying vehicles. Another major problem that
needs to be addressed through this petition is that the tourists that come to hill stations tend to
throw huge amounts of garbage here and there due to their ignorance and careless attitude
which causes a problem of sanitation to the people living here. Last year flash floods were
due to the change in environmental conditions in Himachal Pradesh due to which there was
not enough snow in the hilly regions which later caused heavy rainfalls in the region. The
hilly regions are areas to enjoy the scenic beauty of that place and it is the duty of every
citizen to preserve the ecological balance of these regions as these regions are not just
important for tourism purpose but they hold a significant value when it comes to decide the
weather conditions of India. Despite having no. of recourse available to curb out the problem
of environmental pollution, the Respondent Government has not effectively implemented
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rules so that the issue can be controlled and the place can be made better for living. This is
seriously affecting the fundamental right under Article 21 of Constitution of India which
guaranteed safe and healthy environment to people. Hence, this petition.

LIST OF EVENTS

DATE EVENTS

1.02.2021 Report was published by Centre on Climate Change of

Himachal Pradesh which stated that snow cover has
shrunk from 23,542 square km in 2019-2020 to 19,183
Km in 2021

13.06.2023 Flash floods broke out at Himachal Pradesh

20.08.2023 Police report submitted that in 9 km long Atal Tunnel

was crossed by 1400 vehicles in 24 hours and 13000
belonged to people from different states.

MEMORANDUM OF WRIT PETITION UNDER ARTICLE 226 OF

THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA

The petitioners herein humbly submit as follows:

1. The present petition is filed by the petitioner on the behalf of residents of Shimla who
are deeply aggrieved by the traffic congestion they are facing. The reason behind this
is local vehicles as well huge number of tourist vehicles that enters the premises of
Shimla district on different intervals of time.
2. Due to the heavy congestion in roads local residents are getting affecting on daily
basis. Those who wants to go for their work places, children who are supposed to go
schools are often late for their schools pertaining to the fact that there are so many
tourist vehicles hampering the transportation system of Shimla.
3. Heavy traffic on roads is not the only problem, there are other problems associated
with huge number of vehicles in Shimla. It is a hilly region and full of trees and
greenery all around but due to the pollution caused by these vehicles it is becoming a
place of high pollution level as well. The tourists that visit this beautiful place and
often throw garbage here and there causing land pollution as well.
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4. Vehicular pollution combined with land pollution has only resulted in a lot of damage
to the environment leading to global warming. This year experienced something very
unusual due to the same cause that snowfall that happens in the months of peak winter
season i.e., in December-January, this year it did not happen in those months but in
the months of February-March in which temperature tends to rise. Such indifferent
climate not only affects the people but also the animals who have made their home in
the mountains.

ARRAY OF PARTIES

5. The petitioners are public spirited people who wants to come forward to discuss the
problems of environmental pollution affecting public at large. Petitioner No.1 is
herself a resident of Shimla, currently studying in Lloyd Law College, Greater Noida.
The petitioner 1 has herself saw the condition of her domicile and thus, bringing this
petition in front of the High Court of the Himachal Pradesh. Petitioner No. 2 is a
person of high awareness when it comes to environment related matters. This
petitioner is also a student of Lloyd Law College, Greater Noida. Both of the
petitioners are law students thus, fully aware about the environmental scenarios,
legislation pertaining to it and are enthusiasts willing to work for a cause.
6. The petitioners are filling the present writ petition in public interest and public
welfare. Petitioners have no personal gains from the petition that has been presented
other than spirit of public welfare. That the persons affected by menace of traffic
congestion and pollution are local residents of Himachal Pradesh. Petitioners hereby,
through this petition wants to seek relief for the residents in the state.
7. The Respondents are State of Himachal Pradesh represented by the Departments of
Environment, Science and Technology, Health Safety & Regulations, and Urban
Development.

BRIEF FACTS

8. It is submitted that last year in the month of June and July, flash floods hit the state. In
that year there was no enough snow in the hilly regions which later caused heavy
rainfalls along with landslides. This is due to change in climatic conditions of this
state. The state welcomes huge number of tourists every year. In fact, economy of
Himachal is highly dependable upon tourism after agriculture. But the problems with
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high level of tourism is that it also brings certain climate challenges to the local
residents of this place as well.
(A copy of news article headed “Traffic hotspots of Shimla and solutions before SP
Shimla to manage…” has been attached below in Annexure A).

9. These factors not only cause climatic damages but leads to a huge amount of loss to
the economy of Himachal as the landslides that occurred due the climatic barriers
resulted in falling of many buildings that included residential, hotels, religious places
as well. The Himachal government had to recover such a huge amount of loss that
impacted the treasury of the government and a big amount of share assigned to other
sectors was used in this way.
10. A safe and healthy environment is no doubt a fundamental right of people in India
under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. Being deprived of the healthy
environment has changed the atmosphere of mountains. It has become difficult for the
residents of Himachal Pradesh to go on with their daily activities. From a very long
time, the practice is such that the schools and other institutions are remain closed in
the months of December and January considering it as peak time for winters and
snowfall which was practiced this year also but the snowfall instead of happening in
those two months occurred in later months which is a clear signal of global warming.
The report shows that there has been a decline in snow cover region for the entire
Himachal Pradesh Himalaya as they are experiencing declining ranging from 0.39%
to 22.42% in 2022-23.
(A copy of news article headed “Himalayan region of Himachal shows 0.39%...” has
been attached below in Annexure B).
11. This untimely snowfall and other factors lead to delay in exams of the students living
in Himachal Pradesh as the Board Exam conducted for the class of X and XII are also
conducted in the months of February and March, but due to climatic conditions,
extreme measures had to be taken by the Respondent government to regulate the
same.
12. Also, the infra projects that are being carried on allowed by the Respondent
government are not at all helping the ecological balance of the State but only harming
the nature, as the scale of deforestation is increasing, tourists are incoming, population
is increasing, resources available are being depleted, and so on. In past, we have seen
various cases where the States have done activities on their behalf to increase the
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tourism of their particular State but the Respondent government shall consider the
situation of the state of Himachal Pradesh that by increasing the tourism, they are
destroying the very factor for which people are visiting the State.
(A copy of the news article headed “Unplanned infra projects to climate crisis” has
been attached below in Annexure C).

13. Another shocking event also took place in the forests of Himachal that fired up due to
lack of moisture because of lack of snowfall and rain. As per the reports, the Forest
Fire incidents have increased seven times this year which is a very significant number
to deal with and the data shows that there have been 2050 incidents in 3 months as on
January 16, 2024.
(A copy of the news article headed “Himalayas on fire” has been attached in
Annexure D).

GROUNDS

14. THAT the safe and healthy environment is the fundamental right guaranteed under
Article 21 of the Constitution of India to the people of India and hence deserves the
intervention of the Hon’ble Court.
15. THAT the ignorance of the Respondent government from such a serious issue for the
State and not taking a strict action against the offenders is failure of the government in
fulfilling their respective duty towards the State and its people.
16. THAT there is evidence in the form of research, studies, observations that the factors
like tourism and pollution are causing a great harm to the environment of the State.
17. THAT the State is not conforming to the Directive Principle of State Policy provided
under Part IV of the Constitution of India violating Article 48 and Article 48A.

PRAYER

WHEREFORE, in light of the facts of the present petition and grounds pleaded by the
petitioners, it is humbly submitted that this Hon’ble Court be pleased to:
A. Issue a Writ of Mandamus or any other writ directing the state authorities to make
such arrangements that the vehicle entering Shimla are intercepted at a place
before entering Shimla town and tourists are guided to use public transport from
thereon, there should be made arrangements for proper parking system and
availability of public transport at regular time interval.
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B. Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other writ directing public officials to make such
rules so that to abate littering at all places.
C. Pass any such orders or guidelines which the court deems fit for the prevailing
circumstances and that would be best for the case.

PLACE: Himachal Pradesh

DATE: 13.04.2014

COUNSEL FOR
PETITIONERS
RAMAN CHAUHAN

Address for Service

Rahighat ward no.7,
Theog District Shimla,
Himachal Pradesh
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BEFORE THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH,

AT SHIMLA
IN
WP No. /2024
IN THE MATTER
Rishita Vekta & Ors. …PETITIONER
AND
State of Himachal Pradesh & Ors. …RESPONDENTS

VERIFYING AFFIDAVIT
I, Rishita Vekta, aged about 21 years, D/o, Rajendra Vekta, Theog, Shimla, Himachal
Pradesh, do hereby state and affirm an oath as follows:
1. I state that I am the Petitioner No. 1 in the accompanying Petition. I know the
facts of the case; Hence I am competent to swear to this affidavit.
2. I state that all the contents of paragraphs 1 to … of the accompanying Petition are
true to the best of my knowledge, information and belief.
3. I submit that the Annexure A to … annexed to the accompanying application are
originals or true copies of their originals.
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IDENTIFIED BY ME
DEPONENT
ADVOCATE
Place: Shimla
Date: SWORN TO BEFORE ME
BEFORE THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH,
AT SHIMLA
IN
WP No. /2024
IN THE MATTER
Rishita Vekta & Ors. …
PETITIONER
AND
State of Himachal Pradesh & Ors. …
RESPONDENTS

VERIFYING AFFIDAVIT
I, Nandini Gupta, aged about 21 years, D/o, Nitin Gupta, Bareilly do hereby state and affirm
an oath as follows:
1. I state that I am the Petitioner No. 2 in the accompanying Petition. I know the
facts of the case; Hence I am competent to swear to this affidavit.
2. I state that all the contents of paragraphs 1 to … of the accompanying Petition are
true to the best of my knowledge, information and belief.
3. I submit that the Annexure A to … annexed to the accompanying application are
originals or true copies of their originals.
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IDENTIFIED BY ME
DEPONENT
ADVOCATE
Place: Bareilly
Date: SWORN TO BEFORE ME
ANNEXURE A

Link: https://himbumail.com/home/latest/traffic-hotspots-of-shimla-and-solutions
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ANNEXURE B

Link: https://himbumail.com/environment/forests-rivers/himalaya-region-of-himachal-shows-
0-39-per-cent
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ANNEXURE C

Link: https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/unprecedented-floods-in-delhi-climate-
crisis-young-mountain-range-and-mindless-infrastructure-projects-to-blame-
101689276438322.html
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ANNEXURE D

Link: https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/climate-change/himalayas-on-fire-himachal-s-
tinder-dry-forests-on-its-brown-snowless-hills-burn-due-to-low-moisture-93935