A bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar issued notice to the government on the plea which has also sought creation of a 'unified authority' to take steps to free the encroached defence land.
The direction by the bench, also comprising Justices D Y Chandrachud and S K Kaul, came after the court was informed by the counsel appearing for petitioner S N Bharadwaj about a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report tabled in Parliament on the matter.
The PAC report has also said that existence of multiple authorities like Directorate General of Defence Estates (DGDE) and local military authorities (LMAs), that look after the management of defence lands, have only aggravated the situation for want of clear demarcation of responsibility.
"Creation of a single unified authority, which shall look into the management and protection of defence lands, fast- track recovery of the encroached lands and shall also be responsible for monitoring and supervision of all field offices entrusted with the re sponsibility to manage defence lands and properties," the committee's December 31, 2013, report to the Parliament had recommended.
The NGO had said the defence establishment was the biggest land holder in the country with 17.31 lakh acres in its kitty.
Of this, less than 2 lakh acres were within the 62 notified cantonment areas, while over 15 lakh acres fell outside cantonment boundaries, it had said.