‘Not 10 acres of land, new road will kill half of Aravali Biodiversity Park’

GURUGRAM: Green activists have rubbished NHAI’s claim that only 10 acre of land will be required to build the road from Vasant Kunj to Gurugram-Faridabad road, cutting across Aravali Biodiversity Park (BDP).

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Latika Thukral of iamGurugram, the NGO which developed the Aravali Biodiversity Park over the past few years, wrote, “This is to give you a rough idea of what will happen to Aravali BDP. Half of it will go away once the road is built, the rest with the machinery and material left lying on the ground. [For] people who are familiar with BDP, [the road] will come from the main entrance, passing all the way to the nursery at the back.

Eventually, many slip roads will be made to take away rest of the area. In fact, the [planned] roundabout (Teetar Chowk) is in the middle of the park. It’s for Gurugramites to decide whether we want roads or the BDP! How was this 10 acre land taken away? To believe more roads [will] ease traffic [flow] is a myth... We had thought [the] 16-lane Golf Course Road would reduce our traffic woes. Surprise! It didn’t happen.”

“As per the map, just the 16-lane road will occupy 22.5 acre. NHAI’s claim that the road will occupy only 10 acres is absolutely incorrect. Then, construction will occupy more space, and finally, there will be encroachments. The park will be destroyed,” said Vijay Dashmana, chief ecologist at iamGurugram. Others said while GMDA is planning to increase the city’s green cover, it’s destroying Gurugram’s only green lung, which is bound to destroy its entire ecosystem. GMDA officials, though, are determined to build this road. “We assure everyone that only the minimum land required will be used to build this road, which is crucial both for Delhi and Gurugram, as it will decongest several arterial roads,” said a GMDA official.