Gurgaon: In a telltale sign of earth-cutting and levelling in the Aravalis, a hill slope, along a newly cut stretch, has loose rock and excavated soil dumped around the area.In fact, the fresh road, nearly 30 metres wide, was carved into the protected Raisina hills, with more than 100 trees felled to clear the stretch, a TOI visit found on Wednesday.The Raisina hills fall under the Aravali Notification of 1992, which restricts construction of buildings, boundary walls, and roads, and prohibits tree felling without permission in protected areas. Non-forest activities are not permitted on land categorised as gair mumkin pahad (uncultivable hill), where construction and electrification are barred without statutory approvals.The newly cut road appears to connect with an existing road below the forest belt, opening access deeper into the ridge and raising fresh concerns over continued encroachment despite repeated demolition drives in the area.Large patches appeared freshly cleared, with vegetation stripped off the ridge. Cut branches, stumps and exposed roots were visible at multiple points across the cleared zone.TOI also found fresh boundary walls and gates at several sites, with construction activity continuing in pockets. Along the stretch near farmhouse plots, a building structure supported by shuttering was under construction at one site, while construction material and debris were stacked nearby. Several boundary walls appeared to come up soon after vegetation was cleared.Environmentalist Col (retd) SS Oberoi told TOI, “Even after repeated demolition drives, encroachment continues and new construction returns quickly. The road cutting and large-scale tree felling are especially worrying because it permanently alters the ridge.” Forest officials said the developments would be verified. “We are carrying out action in the area and will check if any fresh construction or illegal activity is taking place,” an official said. In several places where new walls were built, cut stems and exposed roots were visible along the edges, indicating that trees were removed to make way for enclosures.At other sites, boundary walls were constructed around standing trees, effectively “capturing” them within plots — a pattern that often precedes full land clearing for construction.At one hilltop, around five houses were found to come up, while more than three two-storey buildings were under construction after the slope was flattened.In 2024, NGT took suo motu cognisance of a TOI report on illegal construction at Ansal’s Aravali Retreat in Raisina. The tribunal issued notices to the authorities and stated that rebuilding of razed structures was a “flagrant violation” of its previous orders.In Dec 2022, National Green Tribunal (NGT) directed the Haryana and Rajasthan govts to set up a monitoring committee and conduct periodic — preferably quarterly — reviews until all encroachments are cleared from Aravali land in Gurgaon, Faridabad, Nuh and Alwar. The tribunal also directed the chief secretaries of both states to ensure compliance.A forest department survey earlier flagged hundreds of illegal farmhouses on Aravali land in Gurgaon district, concentrated in pockets such as Gwalpahari, Abheypur, Gairatpur Bas, Sohna, Raisina and Manesar. A detailed list of illegal structures and locations was also submitted to NGT in the Sonya Ghosh matter. Demolition drives were carried out in Raisina, but environmentalists said the fresh road cutting and vegetation clearance showed enforcement remained weak.
