Faridabad | June 6, 2016: More than a hundred volunteers of an NGO and environmentalists of Gurugram and Faridabad started the Chipko movement in Pali area to save eco fragility of the Aravalli mountain range on Sunday.
The Aravalli mountain range is considered the oldest mountain range in the world but its existence is under severe threat due to rampant mining and encroachment in forest areas.
PROTECTING ARAVALLI
The volunteers and environmentalists were also supported by residents of the fifteen adjoining villages and district forest officials. By hugging the trees, volunteers gave the message to encroachers to refrain from chopping trees in Aravalli.
"Our demand is to protect the oldest mountain range in the world which has been destroyed beyond recognition.
The area falling under Haryana should be declared wild life sanctuary and all mining activities should be stopped, illegal encroachment should be removed from the vicinity," said Jitendar Bhadana, a member of NGO Save Aravalli.
LUNGS OF DELHI
Over the years, Aravallis, especially in Gurugram and Faridabad, is used as a waste dump yard leading to a threat to the forest ecosystem. The dense forest cover of Aravallis work as lungs of Delhi and other NCR cities. Besides, it has been the natural habitat for many wildlife species such as leopards, jackal, wild pig, hyena, rabbits and different varity of snakes.
Colonel (Retd) Sarva Daman Oberoi, an environmentalist and legal activist, lambasted the district administration and forest department for not making proper efforts to protect Aravallis.
"Aravalli should not be used to dump the waste. The state government should pass a new law as the existing section 4/5 of 1992 forest land Act has failed to secure the forest land from encroachers", he said.
(Source: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/)