Forest dept restrains DJB from work on deemed forest stretch in west Delhi

Deputy conservator forests (west division) Navneet Srivastava issued the order, directing the water utility to “immediately stop work” on road number 26 (Outer Ring Road).

The Delhi forest department has issued an order restraining the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) from undertaking digging work on the Outer Ring Road between Vikaspuri and Peeragarhi Chowk, which is a deemed forest land.

The Supreme Court. (File photo)

Deputy conservator forests (west division) Navneet Srivastava issued the order, directing the water utility to “immediately stop work” on road number 26 (Outer Ring Road). The order said that digging work on the stretch, which is a deemed forest as per forest department records, is a violation of the Forest Conservation Act (1980), and a violation of the 1995 Supreme Court order which prohibited all non-forest activities on forest land.

“The site was inspected by the officials of this division and it was reported that the work on laying new pipelines was being carried out within the barricades laid by the DMRC (Delhi Metro Rail Corporation) and in the adjacent area extended by using new barricades. JCB machines (earth movers) were working on excavation and trenching activity on road number-26 was found,” the order read.

The order added that 5.34kms of the said road was a part of the original list of deemed forest land submitted by the forest department before the Supreme Court.

“Therefore, you are hereby restrained from all kinds work on this stretch of road number-26 from Vikaspuri to Peeragarhi Chowk with immediate effect and seek permission from the competent authority for the same,” the order added.

Shalabh Kumar, member (water), said the DJB has stopped the work on the stretch. “We had to change the pipeline on the entire stretch but we have now left the portion pointed out by the forest department. We are trying to resolve the matter so work does not suffer much,” Kumar said.

In Delhi’s context, “an area above 2.5 acres having a density of 100 trees per acre as well as green stretches along roads and drains having a length of one kilometre” are considered deemed forests. To undertake any “non-forest related activity” in such area, permission has to be sought from the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change.

Last year, the forest department also issued a similar notice to the DMRC for undertaking construction of Janakpuri-RK Ashram corridor on the same road between Krishna Park and Mukarba Chowk. The forest department had pointed out that the Metro was carrying out digging and construction work without the required permissions and had also found that some trees were damaged during the work.