Haryana assembly committee recommends probe into grant of forest NOC to developer
The no-objection certificate was a part of the trail of illegalities that started with the allotment of 3.93 acres to the developer by the municipal corporation of Faridabad in the PLPA-notified area: CAG
The committee on public accounts of the Haryana Vidhan Sabha has recommended a thorough inquiry by the state forest department into the genuineness of a December 11, 2006, letter by which a no-objection certificate (NOC) was issued in favour of a developer, Godavari Shilpkala, certifying that the khasra numbers of the developer’s land in Faridabad were not covered under provisions of the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA).
However, a compliance audit by the comptroller and auditor general (CAG), which compared the khasra numbers of the developer’s land, the PLPA notification of August 18, 1992, and the khasra numbers mentioned in the NOC revealed that whole stretch of 3.93 acres allotted by the MCF (on which Pinnacle Tower was constructed) was covered under the PLPA notified area.
The NOC, according to the CAG report, was a part of the trail of illegalities that started with the allotment of 3.93 acres to the developer by the municipal corporation Faridabad (MCF) in the PLPA-notified area; abetted through sanction of building plans for commercial office space in contravention to the change of land use agreement; facilitation through issuing of forest NOC on PLPA-notified area by an officer not authorised to do so and culminated into the illegal execution of conveyance deeds at the offices of the sub-registrars, Faridabad and Badhkal.
‘No office record of NOC’
“The range forest officer, Ballabhgarh, intimated on January 5, 2022, that an NOC had been despatched on December 11, 2006, to the developer. But no office record of this NOC was in existence in the office. On further scrutiny in the office of the deputy conservator of forests, Faridabad, it was intimated that the range forest officer was not the competent authority to issue such an NOC. Thus, the range forest officer had facilitated non-forestry activities in contravention to the law. The forest department had not initiated any action despite being cognizant of the violations,” the audit said.
The CAG, in its report, on compliance audit of urban development clusters for the year ending March 31, 2021, had observed that the MCF allotted 3.93 acres notified under the PLPA to the developer.
“It was seen in the audit that the Haryana forest department had issued a notification under Section 4 of the PLPA on August 18, 1992. The notification stipulated deemed necessary prohibitions in the revenue estate of Lakkarpur village of Ballabhgarh tehsil in Faridabad district for 30 years to save the soil from erosion. The MCF land (3.93 acres) allotted to the developer, on which the Pinnacle Business Tower had been constructed, was part of this PLPA-notified area (preserved and protected with prohibitions of non-forestry activities). Despite being a part of the notified PLPA area, the MCF records do not refer to any consultation or NOC from the forest department before making the allotment,” said the CAG report tabled in the assembly in August 2022.
The CAG had asked the state government to consider initiating action against the developer and public servants for violating the PLPA notification and other legal and internal provisions and procedures.
‘Review relaxation of forest guidelines’
The committee on public accounts of the assembly in its 88th report on the CAG’s compliance audit that was tabled in the House on Tuesday, recommended that the forest department should review its decision recommending relaxation of guidelines for consideration of approvals under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, in favour of Godavari Shilpkala in respect of areas affected after the July 21, 2022, Supreme Court judgment under intimation to the committee.
The apex court had in July 2022 ruled that land protected under Section 4 of the PLPA have all the trappings of forest lands within the meaning of Section 2 of the Forest Conservation Act and the state government cannot permit its use for non-forest activities without the approval of the central government.
The assembly committee headed by Congress MLA Varun Chaudhary also asked the revenue department to inquire as to whether the Pinnacle Business Tower, the office space allegedly sold by the developer in its premises, was registered under the Apartments Act, 1983. The committee has also sought an action taken report at the earliest.
