E-Paper
8 months on, Haryana additional assembly land project on back burner
Furthermore, with the imposition of the code of conduct in mid-March in the wake of the Lok Sabha elections, the project will be further delayed for nearly three months
Eight months on, the Haryana additional assembly land project in Chandigarh remains on the back burner as the Haryana government has yet to resolve the issue of the eco-sensitive zone as part of the land exchange for an additional Haryana assembly building in its capital. They have also failed to find any alternate chunk of land bordering Chandigarh.
Furthermore, with the imposition of the code of conduct in mid-March in the wake of the Lok Sabha elections, the project will be further delayed for nearly three months.
Chandigarh deputy commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh said there has been no further development as of now since the Eco-sensitive zone issue is pending with the government of Haryana.
The Haryana government had sent the proposal to the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) to de-notify 12 acres in Saketri, Panchkula, falling under the eco-sensitive zone (ESZ), which Haryana was earlier planning to exchange for land in Chandigarh. However, the Haryana government has not received any reply from the Union ministry.
In July 2023, the UT administration decided to allot 10 acres to Haryana for the additional Haryana assembly premises in Chandigarh near the railway light point near IT park in lieu of 12 acres adjacent to Rajiv Gandhi Chandigarh Technology Park (RGCTP), which falls in Haryana. However, the land falls under the eco-sensitive zone (ESZ), and the UT stated that they would not proceed with the land exchange unless environmental clearance is obtained for the land in Saketri village. In August last year, the Haryana government wrote to the Union ministry to obtain environmental clearance, but the ministry has yet to de-notify the land.
A senior officer of Haryana, dealing with the project, stated, “We have not received any reply from the ministry yet, and we are yet to find any other suitable site to exchange.”
As per Supreme Court directives, permanent structures cannot be constructed within an ESZ for any purpose. Moreover, no commercial construction is allowed within a 0.5 km radius outside the ESZ. In the range of 0.5 km to 1.25 km, construction of low-density and low-rise buildings up to 15 feet is permissible. Beyond 1.25 km, new building construction, including houses, is allowed.
The land exchange is taking place in response to Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s demand for the state’s rights within the existing Vidhan Sabha in Chandigarh, particularly in light of the projected increase in the number of assembly seats after the 2026 delimitation exercise. The announcement for the allocation of land to Haryana was made by Union home minister Amit Shah on July 9, 2022, during the 30th meeting of the Northern Zonal Council in Jaipur.
The decision to allot Chandigarh land to Haryana, which was carved out of Punjab in 1966, for the additional assembly complex carries huge political symbolism. Punjab has been opposing Haryana’s demand for additional land as Chandigarh is the joint capital of the two states. Any concession to Haryana in Chandigarh is perceived in Punjab as a weakening of the border state’s influence over the union territory.
