To save Aravallis, residents protest against PLPA amendment Bill

Tribune News Service

Gurugram, February 15

A group of citizens, including school and college students, formed a human chain outside Town Hall in Gurugram today. They were holding posters and banners saying ‘Withdraw Punjab Land Preservation Act Amendment Bill 2019’ and ‘Aravalli Bachao’.

The protest was timed in such a way that Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s motorcade passed by at that time on the way to address a meeting.

The Assembly on February 27 last year passed a Bill to amend the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA), 1900.

“This amended Bill seeks to make the Act totally redundant in the state as it will open up 33 per cent of the area currently treated as forest land (under PLPA) in Haryana for urbanisation and real estate development when the state has the lowest forest cover in the country,” alleged Vaishali Rana, a protester.

“All that is remaining is for the Haryana Government is to notify the Bill in the gazette and it will become law opening 60,000 acres of the Aravallis in south Haryana and 10,000 acres in the Shivaliks near Chandigarh for construction activity,” said Puja, a protester.