Denotify NH-44 stretch, reduce green belt width: Karnal residents to Haryana Chief Minister

Karnal, August 2

City residents have requested Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar to denotify a stretch of the National Highway 44 between Baldi bypass and Namastey Chowk. By doing so, the width of the green belt along the stretch can be reduced from 100 m to 30 m. As a result, development activities can be taken up, which, residents say, will generate revenue and jobs.

They have written to Khattar in this regard. Along with their letter, they have attached a reply by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), in which it “admitted” that technically the stretch could not be referred to as a bypass, but since the stretch had been mentioned as a bypass in the schedule annexed with the Punjab Scheduled Roads and Controlled Areas Restriction of Unregulated Development Act, 1963, it was designated as a bypass. The NHAI also suggested that the state government could de-notify the stretch.

Kailash Gupta, a resident, said: “In Haryana, building line norms along scheduled roads are governed by the provisions of the Punjab Scheduled Road Act of 1963. As per the Act, a green belt of 30 m is required along the right to way of any scheduled road. In case of a bypass, the green belt’s width is 100 m. The 30 m no-construction zone or green belt is not mandatory in case the scheduled road is passing through the municipal limits. This is not applicable if the road is a bypass.”

“The stretch from the Baldi bypass nd Namastey Chowk passes through the city. It is within the limits of the Karnal Municipal Corporation. The NHAI has also admitted that technically, it is not a bypass. So we request the CM to de-notify the stretch, reducing the width of the green belt to 30 m from 100 m,” he added. — TNS