Gurgaon: National Green Tribunal has sought a response from the Haryana govt after residents alleged that illegal land filling and tree felling are continuing in South City-1, Sector 41 and that a court-appointed inspection panel failed to examine several affected sites.The matter relates to a petition filed by Brigadier Paramjit Singh and others, who alleged large-scale filling with debris and earth in parts of South City-1, and tree felling without proper permission. During the latest hearing, petitioners told the tribunal that illegal filling was still ongoing and that the joint committee constituted by NGT had inspected only specific spots shown in photographs, leaving much of South City-1 uncovered.The NGT bench — comprising chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava, judicial member Justice A Senthil Vel and expert member Dr Afroz Ahmad — directed the Haryana govt to examine the grievance and file its response within four weeks. The matter is next listed for hearing on July 28.The case dates to Sept 2024, when NGT first took cognisance of the allegations, noting the petitioners’ grievance about illegal tree felling. The petitioners had relied on photographs submitted before the tribunal and also alleged that an RTI query to the Haryana forest department yielded a vague reply, with inspection of records revealing no detailed information on whether permission had been granted or rejected.They further argued that the area fell under protected land where tree felling was prohibited for 15 years, citing a notification under Section 4 of the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA), 1900. Petitioners also invoked the Supreme Court’s 2022 judgment in Narender Singh & Ors vs Divesh Bhutani & Ors, contending that provisions of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 continued to apply in the area.Despite multiple complaints to various authorities, they said, no action had been taken.Finding that the application raised substantial issues relating to compliance with scheduled enactments, the tribunal had issued notices to respondents and constituted a joint committee comprising representatives of Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB), the deputy commissioner and district magistrate of Gurgaon. The committee was directed to visit the site, verify the allegations of illegal tree felling, and identify those responsible if the allegations were found to be true.At the latest hearing, however, petitioners alleged the committee’s inspection remained limited to a handful of spots shown in photographs and did not cover all locations where illegal filling was purportedly taking place — the grievance that has now prompted the tribunal to seek a fresh response from the state govt.
