HC puts brake on construction activity in Nauroji Nagar project

NEW DELHI: Responding to a plea by the citizens, the Delhi high court on Thursday ordered that no construction work shall be carried out in Nauroji Nagar residential project in the national capital. A bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V Kameswar Rao rejected a plea of the Central Government seeking permission to continue the construction work in the Nauroji Nagar project. The bench observed that the construction may lead to traffic chaos as the area is close to Kidwai Nagar and Sarojini Nagar.

However, the court allowed the NBCC, formerly National Buildings Construction Corporation, to carry out repairing work, if required, to avoid any untoward incident which could endanger human life.

The National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) and the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) — agencies supposed to execute the redevelopment projects in Sarojini Nagar, Nauroji Nagar, Netaji Nagar, Thyagraj Nagar, Kasturba Nagar, Mohammadpur, and Sriniwaspuri — had initially sought permission to cut close to 16,500 trees.

Regarding this matter, the court has asked the Central Government to file an affidavit on its reconsideration of residential projects and listed the matter for further hearing on September 6. The court was hearing several pleas, including one filed by orthopedic surgeon Kaushal Kant Mishra, who challenged the permission granted to cut thousands of trees for the residential redevelopment project. The NBCC together with the Central Public Works Department is executing the project.

In the last seven years, the Delhi Forest Department (DFC) has granted permission to cut at least 44,833 trees. But the figure does not include the proposal to chop close to 14,000 trees in south Delhi for redevelopment of seven government colonies. It was this move that, in a way, broke the camel's back. With the decision being met with protests, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) ordered a redesign and declared that no more trees will be cut for the project, which has already seen 1,500 trees chopped this month.