Spare Aravallis, don’t reduce forest cover: Protesters to govt

Bijendra Ahlawat

Tribune News Service

Faridabad/Gurugram, Feb 24

Hundreds of residents of Faridabad and Gurugram took to the streets on Sunday to protest the reported move of the state government to amend the Punjab Land Preservation Act 1900 (PLPA), allowing non-forest activities in the area.

Around 400 protesters assembled at Khusboo Chowk near Sector 26 of Gurugram around 10 am. They raised slogans and held banners opposing the move. The protesters included over a dozen foreign nationals residing here.

Jitender Bhadana of Save Aravalli, the NGO which organised the event, alleged that the PLPA amendment would erase around 95 per cent of the green cover. He stated that around 22,000 hectares in the two districts came under the PLPA.

He said the Bill would pave the way for scrapping Section 4 and 5 of the Act, which prohibited commercial activity and construction. He pointed out that forest cover in the state was 3.59 per cent instead of the mandatory 20 per cent.

Another protest was held at Ankhir Chowk in Faridabad, where dozens of local residents demanded withdrawal of the amendment. Activists of Save Faridabad, an NGO, wore black badges. They claimed that the amendment would finish the green lungs of the NCR.

Tigaon MLA Lalit Nagar lambasted the state government on the issue. He said the Congress would launch an agitation if the idea was not dropped. "The amendment will validate grabbing of hundreds of hectares of forest land in the Surajkund area," said LN Prasher, advocate.

Chetan Agarwal, forestry analyst, on Sunday said the move would destroy almost 60,000 acres of forest, which was around 50 per cent of the entire Aravalli range in southern Haryana.

He said it signalled the intent to deny the tag of forest to the Aravallis to allow the entry of real estate. He said the amendment would make the PLPA non-applicable to urban areas of Gurugram and Faridabad.

Vijay Dhasmana, ecologist, said the Aravallis were critical for recharging groundwater, which was depleting at 5 feet per year.