Overview

• Murli Manohar Joshi and Karan Singh petitioned Chief Justice B. R. Gavai to review and recall the 2021 judgment that allowed double‑lane paved‑shoulder widening on key Himalayan highways.
• The appeal, endorsed by 57 public figures including Shekhar Pathak, Ramachandra Guha and K. N. Govindacharya, cites recent monsoon disasters and safety concerns in fragile terrain.
• It asks the court to quash a 2020 Road Transport Ministry circular enabling 12‑metre formation widths and to reinstate the earlier 5.5‑metre standard recommended for mountain roads in 2018.
• Citing the Bhagirathi Eco Sensitive Zone and the Dharali incident, the petition alleges widening has triggered massive landslides and frequent blockages on routes to Badrinath, Gangotri and Pithoragarh.
• The filing highlights an Uttarkashi–Gangotri bypass given in‑principle approval despite panel concerns, with estimates of about 3,000 trees to be felled and 17 hectares of forest affected, while noting the 2021 ruling set up an oversight committee and that roughly 629 of 825 km are reported complete.