Foresters stop work on road through oak forest

Mussoorie: After TOI prominently highlighted a day ago that an illegal road was being constructed through an oak forest in a private estate, the work on construction of the road was on Friday halted by the state forest department. Kahkashan Naseem, conservator of forests (Yamuna circle) conducted an inspection at Cliff Cottage, where the road construction was allegedly being done.

“After the news report by TOI, the principal secretary of the forest department, R K Sudhanshu, ordered an immediate enquiry into the project,” Naseem said. “This estate falls under the ‘deemed forest’ category. While an NOC was issued for reconstructing a pre-existing road, it appears that a much wider road is being laid, causing excessive damage to the trees,” she added.

The forest department now plans to cancel the NOC and warned of FIRs against violators. Additionally, they will impose penalties and request action from the Nagar Palika and the Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA). Officials from the forest department, MDDA, and Mussoorie Municipal Council were present during the inspection.

Mussoorie-based environmentalists Vipin Gupta and Lalit Mohan Kala welcomed the action, terming it as a crucial step towards preserving the hill town’s environment. Gupta said, “The builders who are eyeing on making money through illegal development in the town will now think twice before plundering our forests.” In a similar vein, Kala said that the action by the forest department gave hope for the remaining trees at Cliff Cottage.

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