Stuck in red-tape and environmental hurdles for nearly 10 years, development of Mohali’s Sector 90 is finally on the road to progress.
In a pivotal clearance, the Punjab government has agreed to swap 23 acres of protected forest land falling under Sector 90 with land in Ludhiana’s Mattewara village, giving renewed hope to around 700 allottees awaiting land possession for a decade.
The land swap will allow the use of the protected forest land in Sector 90 for non-forest purpose. In exchange, the land in Mattewara village will be developed as a forest.
To develop Sector 90, the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) had acquired 229 acres in 2015 near Lakhnaur village under Punjab government’s land pooling scheme.
However, the authority did not seek a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the forest department for six years. It later learnt that around 23 acres of the acquired land came under the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA), 1900, making it ineligible for development without clearance.
Waking up nine years after land acquisition, GMADA in July 2024 approached the Punjab forest department for diversion of land falling under the PLPA to proceed with the project.
A senior GMADA official said, “We have now received communication from the Punjab government regarding swapping of 23 acres of forest land with land in Mattewara village, Ludhiana. We will inform the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change next. Once we receive clearance from the ministry, the development of Sector 90 will begin. We are hopeful the work will start within two months.”
{{/usCountry}}A senior GMADA official said, “We have now received communication from the Punjab government regarding swapping of 23 acres of forest land with land in Mattewara village, Ludhiana. We will inform the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change next. Once we receive clearance from the ministry, the development of Sector 90 will begin. We are hopeful the work will start within two months.”
{{/usCountry}}He added that layout plans had already been prepared and would be sent to the planning and development department for final approval.
As per the plan, Sector 90 is spread across 144 acres. Residential plots ranging from 100 to 500 square yards will come up over 29 acres, commercial sites are planned on 14 acres, and 11 acres are earmarked for institutions.
Parks have been planned on eight acres, while two acres will be allocated for waterworks and 28 acres for roads.