DW BUREAU / CHANDIGARH / New Delhi

Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Saturday said the proposed zoo safari project in the Aravallis in Haryana will face no obstacles, citing strong support from both the Centre and the state government.

The Centre and the Haryana government are jointly developing what is touted to be the world's largest jungle safari park, spread over 10,000 acres in the Aravalli range of Gurugram and Nuh districts near Delhi. Currently, the largest curated safari park outside Africa is located in Sharjah and spans 2,000 acres.

"We are fortunate that former Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar is the power minister at the Centre. I am the Union forest minister. Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini and state forest minister Rao Narbir Singh are in Haryana. The project work will not stop anywhere. It will go on without any hurdle," Yadav said.

Earlier, a group of former forest officers and environmentalists had written to Yadav expressing concerns that the project would fragment natural habitats, increase waste generation and damage the fragile ecosystem of the region.

Yadav was speaking after inaugurating a 'Maitri Van' in Gurugram. "We have established big cities like Gurugram and are indiscriminately consuming energy and water," he said.

He added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) focuses on the mindful use of resources.

"We are building a millennium city in Gurugram but it should also be as clean as Indore, the greenest city, and a model city for Mission LiFE," the minister said.

Pointing to rising pollution levels, Yadav said people often ignore natural ecosystems, which has contributed to increasing particulate matter concentration in cities. He urged citizens to plant trees in the name of their mothers to help clean the air.

(editor@dailyworld.in)