Months after Himachal Pradesh HC quashed ESZ notification around Simbalbara park, stone crushers resume operations

Nearly five months after the Himachal Pradesh High Court invalidated the Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) declaration around the Col Sher Jung National Park Simbalbara, stone crushers have returned to operation in the area. The court's April 2026 decision overturned the 2022 ESZ notification, which had banned activities such as mining and stone crushing within a 10km radius of the protected area.

Despite the order, at least two stone crushers that had ceased operations since the ESZ declaration resumed functioning in June. A senior mining official confirmed that the resumption of operations followed the legal outcome of the court's quashing of the ESZ notification. The affected crushers, located near the Batta river and Sattipur village, had previously been subject to restrictions imposed by the Forest Department following the 2022 ESZ declaration.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change issued the 2022 ESZ notification for a 31.24 sq km area encompassing 19 villages, following recommendations from the state government. The decision to rescind the ESZ has had a direct impact on mining-related activities in the region, with the stone crushers now allowed to operate as per the rules without the ESZ restrictions in place.