Gurugram: DTCP, civic body prepare to raze illegal farmhouses in Raisina forests

gurugram: With strict instructions from the National Green Tribunal to clear all illegal structures that have come up in the Raisina Aravallis forest by January 2021, public agencies in Gurugram have now begun surveying around 350 farmhouses to check for illegal or unauthorised construction.

In fact, sources in the know have said that of these farmhouses, over 100 are structures that do not seem to be registered to a particular owner whatsoever. Officials said the survey should be completed soon and by September 15, the demolition drive will commence. Agencies such as the Department of Town and Country Planning have said notices are already being sent to some farmhouse owners in the area.

"Following the directions, we have begun surveying the illegal structures and if all goes according to the plans will carry out the demolitions of these structures as well. There are a large number of farmhouse owners whose details are not available with the officials and we are trying to find out their details," said a senior official from the DTCP.

The process of developing farmhouses in the forest areas of Aravallis has been an ongoing process since 1992. Besides Raisina, large numbers of illegal farmhouses and illegal structures have also come up in the areas of Gairatpur, Mangar and Bandhwari forests.

Several social activists for long had been raising complaints that how the strong builder lobbies were continuously exploiting forest areas and Bandhwari Aravalli forests. Strong evidence was given on how the farmhouses were built on the Natural Conservation Zone (NCZ). Not only were the hillocks of Aravallis cut so that a road can be built within the forest area but there was also a school that had come up around the forest area that too had destroyed the Aravalli hillocks so that the land could be flattened.

Having already played a proactive role in the past towards preservation of the Aravallis, the Supreme Court took note of this issue and immediately directed the Haryana Government to present a report to it on the exploitation of Aravallis in the month of

September.

In order to show something to the courts, the departments of Gurugram District Administration in the form of Department and Town and Country Planning (DTCP) and Municipal Corporation of Gurugram have demolished 19 farmhouses that have come up illegally at Bandhwari forests

so far.