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Delhi Finalizes Reserve-Forest Status for 4,080 Hectares of Southern Ridge

The notification, certified claim-free by the Forest Settlement Officer, empowers the forest department to act against encroachment.

FSO certified land as claim-free; activists say notification is “woefully late” with years lost to litigation, political tussles and real-estate pressure on fragile Ridge terrain. (HT Archive)
Mangar Bani, in Southern Ridge, serves as a template for how the Delhi Ridge could be restored. It is populated by the hardy 'dhau' trees.' | Akanksha Mishra | ThePrint

Overview

  • The Section 20 gazette was issued on October 24 and published on Monday, conferring full legal protection on the notified tracts.
  • This is Delhi’s largest single reserve-forest notification, eclipsing the 96.16 hectares finalized in 2022.
  • The notified area covers 13 villages, including major tracts in Bhatti (770.1 ha), Dera Mandi (651.7 ha) and Asola (542.3 ha), with boundaries now conclusively demarcated.
  • Roughly 2,024 hectares of Ridge land remain to be notified and about 307 hectares are recorded as encroached, according to a forest department affidavit to the NGT.
  • The step follows years of delays despite tribunal directions, with Chief Minister Rekha Gupta approving the file on October 13 before it went to the Lieutenant Governor.