Saving Rock Garden: Residents to hold ‘Chipko Movement’ today

The fight to protect the Rock Garden and its green spaces appears to have entered a crucial phase. Despite public outcry, multiple protests and two large-scale signature campaigns, construction work on the road-widening project is still going on. As a result, frustrated residents have escalated their efforts, launching an email campaign, shooting these to Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria, MP Manish Tewari, UT Adviser, Forest Department, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change of India, Chandigarh’s Engineering Department and Urban Planning.

Meanwhile, members of the ‘Saving Chandigarh’ group have called for a protest on the lines of ‘Chipko Movement’ on March 4 at the Rock Garden at 5.30pm. Environmentalists, students, artists and citizens concerned will gather at the Rock Garden, symbolically embracing trees to protect them from being cut down.

Residents were shocked to see heavy machinery and workers continuing with the controversial road-widening project, which involves razing of a portion of Rock Garden’s historic wall and felling of trees. The Administration’s refusal to acknowledge public sentiment has angered citizens, who argue that the destruction of green spaces and heritage sites was not development, but devastation.

With the Administration refusing to engage in meaningful dialogue, citizens have now taken their battle online, flooding the Governor’s inbox with emails demanding an immediate halt to the project.

Activist RK Garg raised concerns over the UT Engineering Department issuing tenders before securing approval from the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. “The UT Administration should focus on transparency by making all relevant information public, rather than attempting to cover up the issue,” he stated.

Residents also met Chief Forest Conservator Officer at Paryavaran Bhawan. Samita Kaur, environmentalist, shared, “The officer gave few minutes of his time only to inform that the Forest Department has allowed only 0.0272 hectares. He will be sending someone to check if more area than allowed is being used for road widening.”

As per official records, the green ministry sanctioned the diversion of 0.0272 hectares and 0.2159 hectares of forest land for road expansion near Rock Garden and the Punjab and Haryana High Court on January 16. The approval was granted in accordance with Section 2 of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.