Gurgaon: Nod to draft zonal master plan of Sultanpur National Park

A DETAILED draft ‘zonal master plan’ for the Sultanpur National Park (SNP) in Gurgaon has been approved, allowing construction of hotels/resorts/amusement parks/dhabas/restaurants, grain godowns and fuel filling stations in conformity with a ‘tourism master plan’, beyond 3 km up to the eco-sensitive zone, in the agriculture zone of the national park. A No-Objection Certificate (NOC) will be required from the chief wildlife warden, Haryana.

The approved master plan bans any kind of construction within 300 metres, establishment of new wood-based industries within 1 km of the park, new commercial construction of any kind within 3 km from the boundary of park, use of air pressure horn, and erection of new mobile towers within 3 km distance from the boundary.

The plan allows local people residing within 3 km of park boundary to undertake construction on their land for residential use. The draft plan was approved at a meeting of the State Wildlife Board, chaired by Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar, at the Haryana Secretariat in Chandigarh.

“As numerous housing projects are coming up in Gurgaon, there was a dire need for a zonal master plan for Sultanpur National Park. The master plan contains lists of prohibited, regulated and promoted activities,” said sources.
The Sultanpur National Park was declared a national park in 1991. To offset anthropic pressure on the park, a buffer of 5 km around the park was declared as an eco-sensitive zone in January 2010.