The term "forest land" under section 2 of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 was interpreted by the Supreme Court of India to include not only "forest" a dictionary sense but also all areas recorded as forest in government records irrespective of its ownership, in the landmark case of ____________.

Correct option is C

The correct answer is (c) T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India

Explanation:
• In the landmark 1996 case of T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India, the Supreme Court expanded the definition of "forest" under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.
• The Court ruled that the term "forest" must be understood in its dictionary sense and also includes any area recorded as forest in government records, regardless of ownership.
• This judgment stopped all non-forest activities (like sawmills and mining) inside such areas without prior approval from the Central Government.
• It is often called the "Forest Case" because it led to continuous monitoring of forest conservation by the Supreme Court.

Information Booster:
• The judgment introduced the concept of "Deemed Forests"—land that looks like a forest but is not officially classified as one.
• It established a Central Empowered Committee (CEC) to monitor the implementation of the court's orders.

Additional Knowledge:
(a) M.C. Mehta v. Union of India: .
• While M.C. Mehta filed many environmental cases (e.g., Ganga pollution, Taj Trapezium), this specific forest definition came from the Godavarman case.
(b) Rural Litigation & Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P.: .
• Also known as the Dehradun Mussourie hills quarrying case, it dealt specifically with limestone mining in the Shivalik range.
(d) B.L. Wadhera v. Union of India: .
• This case primarily dealt with the duty of municipal corporations (Delhi) to clear garbage and maintain public hygiene.