In Punjab, a religious group’s plan to build 4-lane road hits govt speedbump

Areligious volunteer organisation's decision to build a road in Punjab’s Ropar district has ruffled feathers in two government departments, with officials issuing notices to the group, saying that rules have been violated.Last year, the Kar Seva Jatha Kila Anandgarh Sahib took up the task of constructing a vital 8 km stretch of road near Kanpur Khui to Singhpur area on Pojewal to Anandpur Sahib Road in Ropar district, without any government funding, entirely through public donations and voluntary labour.

- GNS News Agency

The project, which began on February 16, 2024, aims to replace a narrow, pothole-ridden stretch with a four-lane, 60-foot-wide modern road — a dire necessity that, locals say, had long been neglected by the authorities. However, the initiative has drawn the objections of the forest and public works departments (PWD), who have issued notices to the Kar Seva group. While the forest department claims that a portion of the road passes through protected land, the PWD has questioned the legality of a non-governmental body undertaking such a large-scale infrastructure project.Around two weeks ago, the forest department registered a ‘damage report’, a document listing the damage to forest health and resources, including deforestation, forest degradation, illegal logging, encroachment, etc.When contacted, District Forest Officer of Garhshankar, Harbhajan Singh, confirmed that notices have been issued apart from registering a damage report. “The forest department's land is being used without our permission, which is a violation of the rules,” he said. “We had granted certain permissions earlier to the PWD, but no such clearance was given to any religious organisation,” he added.