The National Green Tribunal’s Principal Bench in New Delhi has taken suo motu cognizance of a news report highlighting the Punjab Forest Department’s concerns over extensive construction on the periphery of Chandigarh.
The construction activities, primarily consisting of farmhouses and plots, are taking place on lands recently delisted from forest status in villages such as Mirzapur, Jyanti Majri, and Karoran.
These lands now fall under the jurisdiction of the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA).
The Tribunal expressed concerns that these constructions threaten local biodiversity and the integrity of forested regions surrounding Chandigarh.
The constructions pose significant risks to local flora and fauna, leading to habitat destruction and fragmentation, and potentially causing loss of biodiversity, including endangered species.
Additionally, the delisted lands are adjacent to protected forest areas where construction is prohibited under the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA).
The Forest Department has identified 116 unauthorized constructions and requested GMADA to take action.
The Principal Bench of Justice Prakash Shrivastava, Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi, Dr. A. Senthil Vel and Dr. Afroz Ahamd has impleaded the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Punjab, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and the District Magistrate of Chandigarh as respondents in the matter.
They have been directed to file their responses in the form of affidavits before the Tribunal by January 21, 2025.
The next hearing is scheduled for January 28, 2025.