Gurgaon: Fresh construction activity has surfaced in Anangpur village’s protected forest belt, with a site visit revealing newly built structures, extensive boundary walls and signs of ongoing development in an area that falls under the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA) and has long been at the centre of legal battles over encroachments in the Aravalis.During a visit, TOI found a large multi-storey building in an advanced stage of construction, freshly plastered compound walls enclosing sizeable parcels of land and evidence of recent building activity, including masonry work and construction material. The land record of the location indicated that the structures fall within a PLPA-notified area.The fresh construction comes despite repeated Supreme Court interventions and findings by multiple agencies highlighting large-scale encroachments in the protected landscape.Following a 2022 court order, the Haryana govt surveyed and found 6,793 illegal structures — mostly banquet halls and residential settlements — on protected land across four Faridabad villages. A majority were in Anangpur (5,948), with the rest spread across Ankhir, Lakkarpur, and Mewla Maharajpur.The scale of the problem resurfaced last year when Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) reported at least 5,800 houses had come up over 168 acres of forest land in Anangpur alone. The committee had been directed to review compliance after the apex court noted that implementation of its directions had been “very slow”.The significance of the latest construction lies not in the buildings themselves but in the legal status of the land. The affected areas fall under sections 4 and 5 of PLPA, which prohibit non-forest activities. Courts have repeatedly treated land notified under these provisions as equivalent to “forest”, bringing it under a protective legal regime aimed at conserving ecologically fragile landscapes.Environmental experts say the fresh structures signal continuing pressure on the Aravali ecosystem despite decades of judicial oversight.“The issue is no longer just about isolated buildings. Every new boundary wall fragments the landscape further and signals the conversion of open ecological spaces into private real estate,” said ecologist Sunil Harsana.The Aravalis in Faridabad and Gurgaon have remained vulnerable to encroachment despite legal protections and a ban on stone quarrying. Court-appointed panels and environmental groups have repeatedly documented how illegal roads and access tracks are carved through forested areas, becoming conduits for mining, dumping of construction waste, and further land grab.Forest corridors in Anangpur, Mangar, Kot, and Mewla Maharajpur are considered particularly vulnerable, lying at the interface of rapidly expanding urban settlements and the remaining Aravali forests. Their proximity to highways, village roads, and residential developments has made them easy targets for unauthorised construction.Experts warn that the cumulative impact extends beyond loss of green cover. The Aravali ridge serves as a critical groundwater recharge zone for the NCR, a natural barrier against desertification, and a habitat corridor for wildlife moving between forest patches. Construction and land enclosure can disrupt drainage channels, block wildlife movement, and accelerate ecological degradation.Officials said they will look into the matter. “We will evaluate the situation and take action,” divisional forest officer (Faridabad) Jhalkar Uyake told TOI.
