Huda gets nod to excavate natural drain alongside chakkarpur bundh

The forest department on Wednesday permitted the Haryana Urban Development Authority (Huda) to excavate the natural drain along the Wazirabad drain in Sector 53.

Last month, the department had asked Huda to stop work as the civic body was allegedly concreting the natural drain, which is contempt of orders of the National Green Tribunal (NGT).

The notice from the forest department came after Vinod Chopra, a resident of DLF Phase 4, raised the issue by filing an application with the NGT.

Many of Gurgaon’s natural stormdrains are ‘missing’, feared to have been filled up to construct shops, buildings and parking lots, the complaint said.

According to the NGT, “Drains in the city must be kept clean and obstruction-free. No rainwater drain should be covered or used to carry sewage.”

However, the civic authorities are busy destroying the natural drains and even though many environmentalists and activists have objected to it, the destruction is still in progress.

The letter by the forest department to Huda on Wednesday stated, “A box drain was being constructed by Huda on Wazirabad drain adjacent to Chakkarpur bundh, which is a notified forest area. As per the report of the forest range officer, Gurgaon, while executing the work of Chakkarpur-Wazirabad stormwater drain, Huda damaged the protected forest of Chakkarpur bundh resulting in felling of 284 trees.”

The move came after officials from Huda requested the forest department to allow them to clean the drain before monsoon.

“We have only given permission to clean the drain. We have not allowed any kind of construction on the natural drain,” said an official at the forest department.

Further the letter also said, “In view of the emergency situation that has arisen due to the lack of timely action by the concerned agencies and the need to reach a solution, it is recommended that as the area of the drain is not a protected forest, Huda may construct the nallah as per rules and within the direction of the NGT with a condition that prior permission is to be taken if any trees are to be felled. No area of the bundh is damaged as this would aggravate the problem of flooding. It must be remembered that this bundh was made as a flood control measure.”

It was also mentioned by the department that if any part of the bundh is used in the construction of the nallah, prior permission is to be applied for under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, in keeping with similar cases sanctioned by the government of India earlier. Also, the department demanded to initiate necessary action against the Huda official responsible for felling of 284 trees.