Lucknow Zoo Relocation Faces Legal Hurdles as UP Govt Seeks Supreme Court Clearance

The Uttar Pradesh government's plan to establish a Kukrail Night Safari and relocate the Lucknow Zoo has encountered legal hurdles. In April 2025, the state government had informed the National Green Tribunal (NGT) about its decision to approach the Supreme Court for clearance of the project.

However, the petitioners in the case, led by Lucknow-based social activist Alok Singh, have now approached the NGT seeking directives for the state government to file a reply. The state has avoided doing so, citing the case's pendency in the Supreme Court.

The petitioners, who are being assisted pro bono by senior Supreme Court lawyer Salman Khurshid, have raised concerns over the night safari project, which they claim will lead to the felling of around 1,500 trees in the Kukrail reserve forest and cause irreversible damage to the natural ecosystem.

The case is scheduled for its next hearing before the principal bench of the NGT in New Delhi on October 28, 2025. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is yet to provide the next date for the hearing of the related petition filed by a group of former Indian Forest Service officers, which challenges the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Act, 2023.

The Kukrail Night Safari and Lucknow Zoo project has been under the Supreme Court's scrutiny since a 2023 petition was filed, alleging that the recent amendment to the Forest (Conservation) Act dilutes the definition of 'forest' as defined by the court in a 1996 judgment.