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This week, demolition operations in Gurgaon and Faridabad will begin to dismantle buildings constructed illegally within the environmentally sensitive Aravalis. In Anangpur, Ankhir, Mewla Maharajpur, Berhampur, Raisina, Damdama, and other Aravali villages, about 800 unauthorised farmhouses, banquet halls, boundary walls, and other buildings have been found. Because the land in these villages is protected under Section 4 (special orders) of the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA), ground truthing?an effort to verify data gathered by aerial photography or satellite radar with ground visits of unlawful structures?was carried out in these villages. On July 21, 2022, the Supreme Court decided that territory covered by PLPA Section 4 notification shall be considered a forest, subject to the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980's regulations. Certain areas in Anangpur, Faridabad?s Anangpur, Ankhir, Lakkarpur, and Mewla Maharajpur villages have land notified under this section. DC Gurgaon Nishant Kumar Yadav confirmed the upcoming demolition drive, stating that the Sohna sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) had been instructed to deploy a team from the municipal council and oversee the exercise, which was scheduled to commence the following week. Regarding the preparation for the demolition, a forest official mentioned that the Gurgaon and Faridabad district administrations, along with the Haryana forest department, had previously identified areas where illegal structures were constructed. They had developed a demolition plan, which was slated to be executed in the coming week. As per a ground-truth exercise conducted by the state government in December last year, it was found that 6,793 unauthorised structures had been built on protected land in four Faridabad villages. Anangpur village alone accounted for 5,948 of these structures, with another 339 in Ankhir, 313 in Lakkarpur, and 193 in Mewla Maharajpur. Most of these structures were identified as farmhouses and banquet halls. The 2022 Supreme Court judgement in the Narinder Singh vs. Divesh Bhutani case stemmed from appeals filed by property owners against a 2013 order of the National Green Tribunal (NGT). The NGT order had prohibited non-forest activities on PLPA-notified land in Anangpur village. The judgement also addressed a petition against notices to remove illegal farmhouses and banquet halls on forest lands in Anangpur, Ankhir, and Mewla Maharajpur. The PLPA, enacted in 1990 to preserve forest land, is currently applicable in 10 districts of Haryana: Panchkula, Ambala, Yamunanagar, Nuh, Gurgaon, Palwal, Faridabad, Mahendergarh, Rewari, and Bhiwani. After the SC order, the then Haryana additional chief secretary (forest and wildlife) Vineet Garg had directed the Faridabad divisional forest officer to compile a list of structures using satellite imagery, drone mapping, and ground reports to ensure no unauthorised structures were overlooked. Garg had also stipulated that owners of properties built before October 24, 1980?wwhen the Forest (Conservation) Act came into effect?nneeded to provide evidence of construction to be exempt from demolition. Notices had subsequently been issued in October, allowing owners 15 days to dismantle their structures.