News: Raze walls built in Aravalis: Greens to Municipal Corporation of Gurugram-12-12-2020
GURUGRAM: Several environmentalists on Friday wrote to the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) commissioner seeking demolition of the walls being constructed in the Aravali hills of Raisina village in Ansals Aravali Retreat, which is in violation of the Aravali Notification Act, 1992. The move comes after TOI on Thursday reported that construction activities are still going on in the protected area despite several notices.
The area in question is gair mumkin pahar in the Aravali range and is notified under general section 4 of the Punjab Land Preservation (Haryana Amendment) Act (PLPA), which prohibits tree felling. It is also notified under the Aravali Notification Act, which prohibits all construction activities.
These constructions have started even though show cause notices were issued in June to hundreds of farmhouses in the Raisina hills, giving a three-day time period to respond, but no action has been taken on the ground.
“As you may be aware, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had in its order dated October 23, 2018, in OA 3 of 2013 directed for removal of construction and restoration of forests in Gurgaon and Faridabad districts of Haryana. The order stated that any construction raised on the forest area or the area otherwise covered by notification dated 07.05.1992 without permission of the competent authority (after the date of the said notification) has to be treated as illegal and such forest land has to be restored,” said SS Oberoi, an environmentalist.
He added, “I understand that the Sohna Municipal Council has issued demolition notices and then show cause notices to all constructions in violation of the Aravali Notification in May and June 2020. However, no demolitions have taken place in the past six months in the Raisina hills and this clearly emboldened new construction, which violates: the Aravali Notification Act, Natural Conservation Zone of the Regional Plan 2021, Deemed forest jurisprudence of the Supreme Court under Godavarman judgment of 12.12.1996, and MC Mehta Aravali judgements.”
Another activist, Vivek Kamboj, said, “The state government has repeatedly failed to take action agai-nst illegal construction in the Aravalis.”
Meanwhile, officials of the Sohna Municipal Council said that they are taking action against illegal construction in the area. “Our teams are conducting a survey in the area to ensure that no illegal construction takes place. We had stopped constructions in the area,” said a senior official.
