LUCKNOW, July 31 -- The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court has taken a tough stand on the felling of grafted mango trees, such as the Dussehri variety, in the state's mango-producing areas, including Malihabad. The court directed the state government to file a response in this matter within three weeks. The petitioner will then be able to file a counter-response within two weeks. A division bench of Justice Alok Mathur and Justice Amitabh Kumar Rai passed this order on July 27 on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by one Mahesh Sahu who sought directives to check felling of grafted trees. The petition named the principal secretary of the forest, environment and climate change department, UP, as a party. The petitioner stated that the January 7, 2020, notification prohibited the felling of grafted trees, including native mango trees. However, a previous notification issued in 2017 had included these trees in the felling list. As a result, grafted mango trees were being indiscriminately felled in the mango-producing areas of the state. This was having a profound impact on the preservation of grafted mango varieties, he added. He stated that the extension of the February 25, 2026 notification was illegal and arbitrary, leading to the cutting of grafted mango trees. On this, the court sought a reply from the state government and fixed the next hearing of the case on September 11, 2026....