Supreme Court asks Uttarakhand High Court to decide plea of aviation firm against taking over of helipad by state

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Uttarakhand High Court to expeditiously decide two separate pleas by aviation firm Deccan Charters Pvt Ltd against repeated temporary acquisition of its private helipad at the Govind Ghat by the state government.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi asked the Registrar General of the state high court at Nainital to take instruction from the chief justice and list the two pending pleas of the aviation firm before a bench there in the week commencing March 9, 2026.

The bench asked the high court bench, which will be dealing with the pleas, to decide the petitions within two months.

Taking note of the upcoming ‘chardham yatra’ in the state, it said if the pleas are not decided within the stipulated time period then the aviation firm can approach the top court seeking revival of the plea here.

Deccan Charters Pvt Ltd, in its plea filed through lawyer Smarhar Singh, described the repeated taking over of its private helipad by the state government as "illegal, unabated, and unconstitutional".

The petition accused the state government of bypassing due process to hand over the functional helipad to a competitor, Pawan Hans Limited, while the high court allegedly failed to adjudicate on the matter despite multiple urgent pleas. Deccan Charters has operated helicopter shuttle services for the Shri Hemkund Sahibji Yatra since 2011.

The company holds a valid lease for the Govind Ghat helipad in Chamoli District until March 2027. However, the company alleges that since May 2024, the state administration has engaged in a pattern of "forceful takeovers" under the guise of temporary acquisition for the Yatra season.

The plea said the first acquisition of the helipad was undertaken by the state government on May 23, 2024.

Deccan Charters challenged this in the high court in 2024.

The second acquisition of the helipad took place on June 27, 2025.

While the first challenge was still pending, the state issued a second acquisition order for another six months, it said.

The petitioner alleges the state "broke the locks" of the helipad and handed the facility, constructed and maintained by Deccan, to Pawan Hans Limited to conduct commercial operations.

The firm alleged that the state government misused the power of "Eminent Domain" without following the mandatory procedures laid down in the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013.

The plea sought quashing of the acquisition orders of May 23, 2024, and June 27, 2025.

It also sought a direction to the state government to restore possession of the helipad to the company.

It also sought compensation for the losses suffered, calculated at a rate of Rs 5,000 per landing performed by Pawan Hans during the period of "illegal acquisition".

With the 2026 Char Dham Yatra set to commence in May, the aviation firm has sought urgent intervention to prevent what it describes as a recurring cycle of administrative high-handedness.

Taking note of the plea, the top court asked the high court to decide the plea expeditiously.