Following a plea moved by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) seeking the declaration of Najafgarh lake as a waterbody or wetland, the National Green Tribunal has directed the Gurugram Deputy Commissioner to furnish a status report by December 20.
The NGT passed the directions following a doubt on whether the area concerned is a private land or wetland.
Following a status and action-taken report furnished by the Delhi and Haryana governments, the green panel observed, “The report says there is doubt that it is a private land and not a wetland. This assertion is based on revenue record of 2005. As against the said record, there is a 1983 gazette notification showing the area as a lake.”
Directing officials to furnish a further action-taken report, the NGT said, “It will be appropriate that the earlier revenue records, particularly before the settlement, are checked up. Let the Deputy Commissioner [Gurugram] depute an expert of the department to look into the revenue record.”
The directions came when INTACH moved the green panel alleging that large-scale construction work done in the floodplain of the Najafgarh lake had drained the area.
