PAC issues legal notice to authorities over illegal constructions on green areas in Ludhiana
Ludhiana: A group of environmental activists has issued a legal notice to senior city authorities, accusing them of violating court orders systematically by encroaching upon greenbelts and parks in one of the country's most polluted cities.
The Public Action Committee (PAC) on Thursday served the notice to the principal secretary of the local bodies department, the municipal corporation of Ludhiana, and the Improvement Trust (LIT), warning of legal action in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) if construction on protected green spaces is not halted and reversed within three weeks. Activists Kuldeep Singh Khaira and Dr Amandeep Singh Bains said the city faced an "acute shortage" of green areas, in the densely populated old city particularly and unauthorised new colonies.
"Instead of addressing the crisis, authorities are worsening it — building over parks and greenbelts in blatant violation of Supreme Court and NGT rulings," they alleged.
They further claimed these encroachments are happening in "active connivance" with agencies such as MCL and the Greater Ludhiana Area Development Authority (GLADA). Other PAC members, including Kapil Arora and Gurpreet Singh Plaha, said that despite previous demolition orders, including one for the MC's Zone-D extension building and another for a library built in a park on Old GT Road, similar projects continued unchecked.
"The pattern is clear: habitual defiance of legal orders," said Arora. "It appears officials are more interested in appeasing politicians than upholding the law."
Citing current violations, the activists named fresh constructions underway at Old GT Road, Barewal Awana, BRS Nagar's Dog Park, and Janta Nagar's library park — all allegedly funded with public money. Activist Jaskirat Singh said multiple complaints filed through the Punjab govt's m-Sewa platform have gone unanswered. "These departments are a threat to sustainable urban development. They're not managing a single environmental project properly and are wasting taxpayer funds," he said, demanding that the cost of illegal constructions be recovered from the officials who authorised them.
The PAC has demanded restitution of greenbelts and parks, warning it will escalate the matter to the NGT if no corrective action is taken within 21 days.
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