GURUGRAM: Starting from the first week of July, illegal structures—including farmhouses, walls, banquet halls, shops, and cafes built in the city’s protected Aravalis—will be demolished. Forest department officials confirmed that a survey conducted earlier this year identified fifty such illegally constructed farmhouses.
Show-cause notices have been issued for new constructions on protected Aravali land in the Behrampur, Ghata, Gwalpahari, and Sakatpur areas. Property owners have 15 days to dismantle these structures voluntarily; failure to comply will lead to departmental demolition.
A forest officer stated, “We began issuing notices on June 3, and by June 26, around 50 notices have been sent.” Following the demolition of illegal structures, the forest department will implement monthly drone surveys to monitor the protected land for further encroachment.
The Aravalis in these regions are safeguarded under sections 4 and 5 of the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA) and the Aravali Plantation project. Chief Conservator of Forest (South Circle) Subhas Yadav informed TOI, “Notices have been dispatched to the farmhouses, and they have 15 days to respond. We aim to clear encroachments in accordance with sections 4 and 5 of the PLPA.” He added that demolition efforts in Gurgaon would commence shortly after ongoing operations in the Faridabad Aravalis are completed.
Forest officials will also issue show-cause notices to owners of any new structures built after this year’s survey. The areas indicated under these regulations are deemed ‘forests’ and fall under the Forest (Conservation) Act.
The FCA prohibits any tree felling, construction, or other non-forest activities without clear permission. On September 8, 2016, the forest department proposed establishing 52 security outposts to safeguard nearly 100,000 hectares of Aravalis in South Haryana and suggested forming an “Aravali protection force” for constant vigilance; however, this has yet to be implemented.
Despite multiple court orders, illegal construction remains prevalent. Activists criticized the government’s inaction over timely demolitions, stating that failure to act on the Supreme Court’s directives is facilitating ongoing encroachments. Experts emphasize the need for continuous monitoring of the Aravalis, given the complex land ownership patterns that categorize it among both panchayats and private owners despite the FCA’s presence.
“It is unclear why the government has not carried out any demolitions even a year after the Supreme Court order. It appears that even more illegal structures are emerging in the protected Aravalis with no action taken,” remarked environmentalist Vaishali Rana from Gurgaon.
In 2023, TOI reported the clearance of approximately 35 acres of Aravali forest land for farmhouse construction in Behrampur village, located just a kilometer from Gurgaon’s Golf Course Extension Road. Additionally, a December 2018 report by TOI revealed that a hillock in Raisina village was leveled for farmhouse development.
