India News | Environment Group Urges Himachal Govt to Withdraw Shimla Development Plan-2041

Shimla, Sep 29 (PTI) The Himalaya Niti Abhiyan on Friday urged the Himachal government to immediately withdraw Shimla Development Plan-2041 and also a petition filed in Supreme Court against the orders of the National Green Tribunal that banned construction in green and core areas of Shimla city.

The Shimla Development plan, approved by the previous government in February 2022, was stayed by the NGT through an order, which termed the plan illegal and in conflict with earlier orders passed in 2017 to regulate haphazard constructions in Shimla.

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The plan 'Vision 2041' when implemented would pave the way for constructions in 17 green belts with certain restrictions and also in the core area where construction activity has been banned by the NGT.

A delegation of HNA, a collective of Himachal-based environmental activists, people's movements, and civil societies called on Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla and briefed him about the colossal loss of human lives and property during monsoon and their cause.

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HNA Convener Ghuman Singh, through media, urged the government to declare the disaster a national calamity as the loss was too huge to be borne by the state government.

Singh attributed the "man made disaster" to massive deforestation done for the construction of four-lane projects, hydropower projects, and unsafe and unregulated constructions in both rural and urban areas.

The delegation also stressed the need to create awareness about conservation of ecology and environment and involvement of all stakeholders in formulation of policies.

It pointed out that haphazard construction projects have mushroomed in urban areas without any stability and strength survey of soil in spite of the fact that the state fell under seismic zone IV and V.

The HNA members said they would meet Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and give him the report on data collected by organisations that made spot visits to disaster-hit areas.

As many as 293 persons have died in rain-related incidents since the onset of monsoon on June 24 till September 28 as per the state emergency operation centre.

The CM had earlier pegged the state loss due to the disaster at Rs 12,000 crore.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)