Civilian settlements around defence areas in Ggn pose serious threat to security

The incident of four armed trespassers entering the National Security Guard campus in Manesar, which resulted in gunshots being fired within the campus, has once again raised the issue of security of military establishments in and around Gurugram.

Besides the NSG campus, Gurugram also houses of two Air Force stations and an Army cantonment area.

With the expansion of Gurugram over the years, resulting in a high number of civilian settlements cropping up around military establishments, security continues to be a major risk for the defence areas in the city.

The issue of relocation of the Air Force station, situated on the Delhi-Gurugram road, has been a raging issue for a long time. It has been proposed that the station should be relocated to an area further outskirts of the city. The matter is pending before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

There are people who wish that the Air Force station should remain where it is and demand that the civilian settlements be removed. There is another section of residents who have stressed upon the relocation of the station to the outskirts of the city.

"I am in the favour of the Air Force station in Old Delhi road to be relocated to a different part of Gurugram, like in Tauru where plenty of land is available. The matter is pending in the Punjab and Haryana High Court and we hope that a just verdict will be provided, "said Umesh Aggarwal, the sitting MLA from Gurugram.

A similar situation prevails at the Army cantonment in Gurugram. With the commercial complex of Udyog Vihar being developed around the area, key military installations run the risk becoming vulnerable.

Large-scale development around Sohna Road, where the second Air Force station is developed, also faces the same challenge.

A major problem for Defence personnel is to constantly deal with civilians who trespass into military areas, either by mistake or intentionally.

The rise in instances of trespassing at the Air Force station in Arjangarh, along the Delhi–Gurugram border, resulted in the Defence personnel issuing a strong warning a few months earlier.