PAHALGAM — Construction activity at Mamal in Pahalgam has come under scrutiny after the Forest Department directed that the work be stopped and sought a detailed report on how the construction was allowed to begin in the environmentally fragile area.
Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Sajad Ahmad said the department had sought details of the construction and directed that the work be stopped pending examination of the matter.
“We have directed to stop the work and I have sought details how come this construction in the fragile zone started,” Ahmad told news agency KNT.
The development has brought renewed attention to construction activity in and around Mamal, an area with a documented history of disputes over encroachments and unauthorised structures in forest and wildlife areas.
Court proceedings concerning Pahalgam have previously recorded restrictions on fresh construction in prohibited forest, wildlife and buffer zones. Authorities had also identified structures in such areas and undertaken measures for their documentation and regulation.
Mamal has previously witnessed demolition drives against structures described by authorities as illegal. In November 2020, a joint operation involving the Pahalgam Development Authority (PDA), Wildlife, Forest, Revenue and other departments reportedly retrieved around 110 kanals of forest land at Mamal, with illegal huts, dokas and fencing removed from the land.
The present construction has therefore brought the issue back into focus, particularly over whether the structures now coming up constitute permissible renovation of existing structures or amount to fresh construction or expansion.
The distinction is significant given the restrictions governing construction in protected and environmentally sensitive areas, where repair or renovation activity may also require examination and approval by competent authorities.
The Forest Department’s decision to halt the work and seek details is expected to establish the nature of the structures, the status of the land on which they are being raised and whether the requisite permissions were obtained.
