Environmentalists and several residents’ welfare associations have termed the 340 hectare groundwater recharge zone in the Sohna Final Development Plan- 2031 “grossly inadequate” and “unsustainable” and also demanded setting up of an experts’ committee to assess the ecological significance of the area and develop a detailed conservation plan. Though the proposal for the water recharge zone in the Sohna development plan has been hailed, the allocation of merely 340 hectare land for the purpose has been found to be inadequate. “The Sohna development plan for 1,700 hectares of residential and several thousands hectares more for industry and commercial use, with no external source of water, will require over 10,000 hectare for groundwater recharge zone. But the plan earmarks just 340 hectares for the purpose. It is unsustainable,” said Gurgaon Progressive Forum president Raman Sharma. Sohna, which is situated at the foothills of the Aravallis, is a tourist attraction and over 50 km from Delhi. The concerned citizens have also demanded that the Aravallis -- whether forest or natural conservation area -- should be excluded from agricultural zone and included in a separate permanent forest zone or permanent open space zone and no construction should be allowed there as per the Regional Plan 2021 of the NCR Planning Board. It has been further demanded that the catchment area of Damdama Lake, which is the last surviving perennial lake in Gurgaon district, be delineated on the lines of the Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh and zoned as a no-construction zone. “Even the Regional Plan 2021 suggests that areas under the water bodies and their surrounding areas as shown in the Ground Water Rechargeable Areas be kept free from any encroachment or development to allow free flow of water,” said Mr. Sharma. “In fact all seasonal and perennial water bodies, including submersible and other low-lying areas, should be identified and no construction be allowed there,” said environmentalist Chetan Agarwal. The citizens have also demanded setting up of an expert committee, including town planners, foresters, groundwater experts, ecologists, naturalists and wildlife scientists to assess the ecological significance of the area given its eco-sensitive nature and strategic location between Delhi, Gurgaon and Faridabad and develop a detailed conservation plan. Mr. Sharma demanded that the development plan should be put on hold till forests and wildlife corridors, monuments and water bodies are identified, and a conservation plan for the natural conservation zone and the forest zone prepared so that no fait accompli situation was created.