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Activist alleges dept involved in tree felling in DLF Phase 1 areas
The complaint, submitted on Wednesday, to the forest protection division of the ministry of environment, forests and climate change (MoEFCC) and the office of the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Haryana, calls for urgent disciplinary action against the officials involved and an immediate halt to all tree felling permissions in the city
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Gurugram: An environmentalist has alleged that forest department officials in Gurugram facilitated the illegal felling of multiple trees in DLF Phase 1 and surrounding areas, in clear violation of the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA), despite the matter being sub judice in the National Green Tribunal (NGT).
The complaint, submitted on Wednesday, to the forest protection division of the ministry of environment, forests and climate change (MoEFCC) and the office of the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Haryana, calls for urgent disciplinary action against the officials involved and an immediate halt to all tree felling permissions in the city.
According to the complainant, forest officials deliberately misrepresented tree locations and manipulated inspection reports to permit felling of trees located in designated green belts, outside the legal boundary of private plots, possibly for construction activity. At a plot in Block E, DLF Phase 1, two trees were shown as being inside the property, when in reality they were in the adjoining green belt. “Fraudulent inspections were conducted, and when confronted on site, the official had no answers,” Vaishali Rana, the environmental activist who filed the complaint said.
Rana pointed out another incident in Plot 12, Block F, where five trees were reportedly cut down despite permission being granted for only three. “Trees located in corners that could have been preserved were also felled to accommodate larger illegal building entrances and parking spaces, in violation of urban planning guidelines. Similarly, in Plot 17, Block C, a fully-grown Pilkhan tree was pruned under an incorrect classification meant for trunk removals, which the complainant described as “a massacre of a mature and healthy tree.”
Gurugram district forest officer, Raj Kumar, has said that he will check the complaints and will ensure action is taken against the violators. “A team will be sent for the inspection of such sites on Thursday and we will see that the issue is resolved,” he said.
Meanwhile, the environmentalist alleged that such incidents were not isolated ones, but part of a broader pattern of collusion and administrative negligence within the local forest department. The ongoing deforestation, the complaint added, poses a serious threat to Gurugram’s already fragile green cover, which stands at just 12%, far below the 20% target set under the Haryana Forest Policy.
“The forest department, instead of protecting trees, is enabling their destruction. And all this is happening while the matter of tree protection is being heard by the NGT,” the complainant said, adding that this undermines the judiciary and violates public trust.
In a recent report, Gurugram was mentioned as seventh among Indian cities with the worst air quality in March. The complaint also raised an alarm about public health implications of unchecked green cover loss. “Thanks to the forest department’s negligence, Gurugram is swiftly becoming a gas chamber,” said Rana.
The letter calls for the immediate suspension of the officials involved, an independent investigation, a full audit of tree cutting permissions in the city and a moratorium on all further felling until the NGT pronounces its order. It also recommends introducing GPS-based permission tracking, a joint tree census by authorities and citizens, and withholding Occupation Certificates (OC) from builders until tree preservation is verified on site.
