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Ludhiana mayor, MC chief for strict action against forest department for ‘damaging’ waterfront project
Forest dept says action taken to comply with NGT directions; mayor Balkar Sandhu and MC commissioner Pardeep Sabharwal inspected the site
The Ludhiana municipal corporation (MC) and the district forest department have come to loggerheads after the latter demolished the seating area, walking and cycle tracks built within one-metre radius of trees at the Sidhwan Canal waterfront project (phase 1) in Sarabha Nagar on Wednesday.
Mayor Balkar Sandhu and MC commissioner Pardeep Sabharwal inspected the site on Thursday and directed officials to take strict legal action against the forest department for causing damage to the property worth ₹25-30 lakh.
MC officials said that no notice was issued by the forest department regarding the demolition drive and department officials also allegedly trespassed into the waterfront by breaking the lock on the entry gate.
It is, however, surprising that MC officials did not notice the action taken by the forest department even as the waterfront is situated at a distance of just about 100 metres from the civic body’s Zone D office in Sarabha Nagar.
MC commissioner Sabharwal said the civic body is not questioning the compliance with NGT orders, but the forest department damaged the tracks and seating areas even beyond one-metre radius. “The walking and cycle tracks have been damaged at multiple points and this has resulted in loss to the public property,” he added.
“Even if they had to remove the concrete structures around the trees, the forest department officials should have taken the MC men along. The exercise should have been done manually instead of employing machines in order to minimise the loss. We will take strict legal action against the forest department and also write to the state government, seeking action against the officials concerned,” said Sabharwal.
Mayor Sandhu said if the forest department had to demolish the structures, then why NOC was given to the civic body. “It looks like a targeted action which has caused loss to public property. The waterfront project was built at the cost of ₹4.74 crore under the smart city mission. Many people visit the area for jogging, cycling and spending leisure time with their families. The forest department has even damaged the underground electrical wiring. I have recommended strict action against the forest department,” he added.
The forest department officials, meanwhile, said the action was taken to comply with the directions of the NGT and civil court wherein different departments have been instructed to remove concrete and interlocking tiles laid within one-metre radius of trees.
District forest officer (DFO) Harbhajan Singh said that a petitioner, Kapil Arora, had filed a petition in the NGT, which ordered the department to remove concrete poured around trees. An execution petition was filed in a local court, which directed the forest department to comply with the orders, he added. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for April 12.
“It is a forest area. Even if the MC has got an NOC from the department, it cannot move against the directions of the NGT, which are clear. The civic body should have acted earlier and removed the concrete structures to avoid action, but it failed to do so,” the DFO said. He said that other departments, including the National Highway Authority of India, have also been asked to remove the tiles installed around trees and they have started to implement the same.
It happened due to MC’s non-seriousness: Petitioner
Petitioner Arora said the NGT had ordered removal of concrete around trees on March 10 last year. Despite repeated reminders and even after the orders issued by the civil court for execution of the NGT orders, the civic body failed to act, he said, adding that the damage is the result of MC’s non-seriousness.
The MC was expected to present this project in the annual award ceremony under smart city mission, but it has now been damaged. The ceremony is scheduled to be held in Surat (Gujarat) from April 18 to 20.
