DDA removes concrete from Smriti Van in Delhi

NGT issued a notice to DDA after a Vasant Kunj resident filed a petition and alleged that large parts of the forest had been concretised

Updated on: Oct 7, 2023, 06:14:16 IST

By Jasjeev Gandhiok

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

The Delhi Development Authority has informed the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that it has removed all interlocking tiles from Smriti Van in Vasant Kunj along with the concrete base of the pond to allow the flow of groundwater naturally. DDA added it has also begun compensatory plantation for various other projects at Smriti Van, which will make the forest greener.

The Smriti Van at Vasant Kunj. A Vasant Kunj resident had filed a petition in NGT that DDA had laid tiles and concrete in parts of the forest (HT Photo)

DDA response came after NGT issued a notice to the land-owning agency after a resident of the area filed a petition last September and alleged that large parts of the forest had been concretised, in violation of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980.

The other allegations included lack of maintenance, which had left the area “with very few trees.”

DDA, in its submission dated October 4, said it acted on all forms of concretisation in the area.

“The work of compensatory plantation, including plantation of 1,500 saplings for a National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) Project and 250 saplings for the Rajya Sabha Secretariat Project, had gotten stuck earlier, due to the non-receipt of necessary approvals from the forest department. However, this work has been completed in the first week of August,” DDA told NGT.

Smriti Van—part of the south-central Ridge, is spread over an area of 34.51 acres. The forest is situated between Sector A-Pocket B and C in Vasant Kunj and falls under DDA’s jurisdiction, similar to Sanjay Van. Any commercial activity or any concrete or permanent structure cannot be carried out within a forest, as per the Forest Act.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jasjeev Gandhiok
Jasjeev Gandhiok is an Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times, where he covers environment, climate change, the clean energy transition and wildlife at the National Bureau. Gandhiok has over a decade of experience in journalism and is based in Delhi. He has reported extensively on Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR). This includes the region's air pollution woes, a polluted Yamuna and on urban wildlife still thriving in the region. He joined HT in October 2021. Prior to that, he had five-year stint at The Times of India in Delhi, where he also covered Delhi, with a focus on environment and wildlife. Gandhiok has covered some recent events around the Capital too, ranging from the farmers' protests, the northeast Delhi riots and the CAA-NRC protests, reporting from the ground on all of these. He also travels across the country to report on how environment and climate change impact everyday life, while also writing on endangered species. His reports in 2019 on toxic leachate from Delhi's landfills led to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) taking suo motu cognisance and ultimately asking the state government to start bio-mining to flatten and remove all three landfills in the capital. He also closely tracks the implementation of government policies on climate, renewable energy and environmental protection. His focus remains on impactful, public-interest journalism which explains how environmental decisions affect people's everyday lives.Read More