Himachal: Controversy over allotment of forest land for petrol station

Himachal Pradesh: The government’s move to allot forest land for setting up a private petrol pump has triggered a political storm in Dharamshala. Dharamshala BJP MLA Sudhir Sharma accused the government of speeding up the allotment of forest land to a politically connected person. He criticised the speedy movement of the file, saying district officials were proactively pursuing the matter. Sharma expressed his concern over the proposed use of forest land for commercial purposes, highlighting the contradiction in the government’s actions. While poor people were being evicted from forest land across the state, the government was allegedly pushing the case of a petrol station to a politically influential person in Dharamshala. He vowed that the BJP would expose the government on the issue.

According to sources, the additional chief secretary of the forest department had recently written to the chief conservator of forests in Kangra requesting approval for the transfer of 0.25 hectares of forest land to Pradeep Kumar of Palampur to set up a petrol pump, which would serve as a retail outlet for HPCL. The forest department has already initiated the process under the Forest Conservation Act. Chief Conservator of Forests Pavanesh Sharma said forest land can be transferred only with the approval of the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. He denied knowledge of the matter, but promised to look into the matter. Meanwhile, Dharamshala DFO Dinesh Sharma confirmed that orders have been received to prepare a case for approval from the ministry for the transfer of land for the petrol station. The issue has sparked a heated political debate, with Sharma accusing the government of prioritising the interests of influential individuals over environmental and public welfare concerns.