RTI for Haryana Forest Department — Sultanpur NP, Kalesar NP, Aravalli Encroachment and Wildlife Records

Haryana occupies an unusual position in India's environmental landscape: one of its most urbanised and industrialised states, yet home to two Ramsar wetlands, a significant Shivalik foothill national park, and a slice of the ancient Aravalli range that serves as a crucial green lung for the National Capital Region. The Haryana Forest Department administers approximately 3.6% of the state's geographic area as recorded forest, manages several protected areas of national and international significance, and is the primary enforcement body for the Punjab Land Preservation Act, 1900 — the statute that, together with Supreme Court orders and NGT directions, is meant to protect the Aravallis from the relentless encroachment pressure of Delhi's expanding metropolitan sprawl.

Every function that the Haryana Forest Department performs — from bird census surveys at Sultanpur to leopard monitoring at Kalesar, from Aravalli encroachment enforcement to CAMPA fund expenditure — generates official records that citizens are entitled to access under the Right to Information Act, 2005.

This guide explains what information can be obtained from the Haryana Forest Department, how to identify the correct CPIO, how to draft and file an RTI application, and how to pursue appeals — including through the Haryana State Information Commission (HSIC) at the second appeal stage.

Haryana Forest Department: Governance and Structure

The Haryana Forest Department operates under a vertical hierarchy headquartered at Van Bhawan, Sector 4, Panchkula – 134109. The apex officer is the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) and Head of Forest Force (HoFF). Below the PCCF sit Additional PCCFs handling specific wings (Wildlife, CAMPA, Social Forestry, Administration), Chief Conservators of Forests (CCFs) for regional circles, and Conservators of Forests (CFs) supervising clusters of divisions. At the field level, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) is the primary operational officer for each forest division, assisted by Range Forest Officers (RFOs), Foresters, and Forest Guards.

For protected areas, the Chief Wildlife Warden (CWW) — typically a senior IFS officer stationed at Panchkula — has statutory authority under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, over all national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, and eco-sensitive zones in Haryana. Day-to-day management of each protected area is handled by a Wildlife Division or the DFO of the relevant territorial division.

For RTI purposes, the DFO of the relevant forest division is typically the correct first point of contact for field-level records on encroachment, wildlife incidents, CAMPA works, and protected area administration. For state-level aggregated data, CAMPA policy-level information, or wildlife headquarters records, file with the CPIO at the PCCF's office, Van Bhawan, Panchkula.

Sultanpur National Park: Ramsar Wetland, Migratory Birds, and Conservation Pressures

Sultanpur National Park, located approximately 15 kilometres west of Gurugram city in Gurugram district, is one of the closest significant bird habitats to Delhi — and one of the most visited birdwatching destinations in northern India. The park and the surrounding Sultanpur Wildlife Sanctuary cover an area of 142 hectares at the national park level, centred on a shallow seasonal lake (jheel) that attracts large concentrations of migratory waterbirds from October to March each year.

Sultanpur was designated a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance in October 2021, bringing it under international conservation obligations alongside India's Ramsar commitments. Over 250 bird species have been recorded at Sultanpur across seasons, including large wintering flocks of bar-headed geese, common teal, northern pintail, greater flamingo, Eurasian spoonbill, painted stork, black-necked stork, sarus crane, demoiselle crane, and many wader species. The park lies on the Central Asian Flyway and serves as a critical stopover and wintering ground for species that breed in Siberia, Central Asia, and the Himalayas.

Despite its national park and Ramsar status, Sultanpur faces continuous pressures: encroachment on its buffer zone from Gurugram's rapidly expanding real estate sector, inflow of industrial and domestic effluents that affect water quality and aquatic food chains, and the challenge of managing visitor footfalls adequately to prevent disturbance to nesting and wintering birds.

RTI to the DFO, Gurugram Forest Division (or the Wildlife Division managing Sultanpur NP), can obtain: the annual bird census data including species counts and migration records; encroachment cases detected and action taken in and around the park boundary; the management plan status (whether a plan has been approved by the Chief Wildlife Warden and by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change as required); and records of any water quality monitoring or effluent compliance action.

Kalesar National Park and Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary: Shivalik Leopards and the Elephant Corridor

Kalesar National Park (100 sq km) and the adjoining Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary (93 sq km) in Yamunanagar district represent Haryana's most significant terrestrial wildlife habitat. Located in the Shivalik foothills — the outermost range of the Himalayas — the Kalesar landscape is characterised by dense sal and mixed deciduous forest, seasonal streams, and rugged terrain that supports a diverse range of wildlife.

Leopard is the apex predator of the Kalesar ecosystem and is regularly sighted within the national park and sanctuary. Sambar, nilgai (blue bull), barking deer (muntjac), jungle cat, monitor lizard, and a wide variety of bird species including red junglefowl, crested serpent eagle, and several raptor species are regularly recorded. The Kalesar landscape supports over 100 bird species across seasons.

Kalesar is also at the heart of one of India's most important and least-discussed wildlife connectivity corridors: the Rajaji-Siwali-Kalesar corridor, which links Rajaji National Park in Uttarakhand (Project Tiger reserve and Project Elephant landscape) through the Siwali forests to Kalesar, with a possible extension further into Himachal Pradesh (Simbalbara NP adjoins the Kalesar complex). This corridor is important not only for leopard and sambar movement but also for potential tiger dispersal — occasional unconfirmed tiger sightings have been reported from the Kalesar area, and the corridor is one of the landscapes where tiger recolonisation is considered ecologically plausible.

Elephant straying from Uttar Pradesh is an occasional occurrence. Elephants from the Shivalik Elephant Reserve in the Saharanpur and Haridwar districts of Uttar Pradesh sometimes cross the Yamuna near Yamunanagar and move into Haryana's forest areas. The Haryana Forest Department maintains records of such incidents, including the number of incursions, locations, duration of stay, crop damage caused, and action taken. RTI to the DFO, Yamunanagar, or the Chief Wildlife Warden's office will surface these records.

Wildlife crime — poaching, snare laying, and illegal timber felling — is a persistent challenge in Kalesar. RTI can be used to obtain the complete record of FIRs filed under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, and the Indian Forest Act over any given period, along with the stage of prosecution in each case.

Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary: Haryana's Second Ramsar Wetland

Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary in Jhajjar district (approximately 70 km from Delhi via NH-48) is a constructed reservoir of approximately 1,074 hectares that was converted to a wildlife sanctuary in 1986. Like Sultanpur, Bhindawas was designated a Ramsar Wetland in 2021 — making Haryana one of the few states to have two Ramsar sites declared in the same year.

Bhindawas supports over 250 bird species across seasons, including large flocks of migratory waterbirds: cormorants, herons, egrets, ibises, spoonbills, ducks, geese, and waders congregate on the reservoir's shallow margins from October to March. The sanctuary also supports a resident population of wild boar, nilgai, jungle cat, and small mammals.

RTI to the Wildlife Division or DFO managing Bhindawas can obtain annual bird census data, encroachment cases near the sanctuary boundary, water quality records for the reservoir, and any management plan or Ramsar information sheet updates submitted by the Forest Department.

Morni Hills: Haryana's Green Highlands

Morni Hills in Panchkula district constitute the only hill terrain in Haryana — a spur of the Shivalik range reaching a maximum elevation of approximately 1,220 metres at Karoh Peak, which is the highest point in the state. The Morni landscape hosts a relatively intact patch of mixed forest dominated by sal, teak, khair, and sheesham, supporting leopard, porcupine, common mongoose, jackal, barking deer, and a variety of birds. Two small lakes — Tikkar Taal — are popular nature tourism destinations.

Morni falls within the Panchkula Forest Division. RTI with the DFO, Panchkula, can surface encroachment records, forest crime cases, wildlife monitoring data, and records of eco-tourism activities and their regulatory compliance under any applicable eco-tourism guidelines.

The Aravalli Range: India's Oldest Mountains and a Major Conservation Battleground

The Aravalli hills in Haryana's Gurugram, Faridabad, and Nuh districts represent one of India's most consequential and most contested conservation battlegrounds. The Aravallis are the world's oldest fold mountains — over 1.5 billion years old — and while their maximum elevations in Haryana are modest (rarely exceeding 300 metres), they function as a critical green lung and groundwater recharge zone for the entire National Capital Region. Without the Aravalli ridge, Delhi and Gurugram would face accelerated desertification from the Rajasthan sand belt to the west.

Legal Protection Framework

The Punjab Land Preservation Act, 1900 (PLPA), inherited by Haryana at the 1966 Punjab reorganisation, prohibits non-agricultural use of PLPA-notified Aravalli land without government permission, and specifically prohibits activities that tend to cause erosion or destabilise slopes. Large areas of the Aravallis in Gurugram, Faridabad, and Nuh are notified under PLPA sections 4 and 5.

Additionally, significant portions of the Aravalli region qualify as forest under the landmark Supreme Court judgment in T.N. Godavarman v Union of India (1996), which defined "forest" broadly to include any area recorded as forest in government records, regardless of vegetation cover. Forest land so defined requires Central Government approval under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, before it can be diverted to non-forest use.

Supreme Court and NGT Orders on Aravalli Mining

The Supreme Court has repeatedly intervened to halt and restrict mining in the Aravallis. In 2018, in a batch of petitions including the Aravalli Conservation Society case, the Supreme Court banned all mining operations in the Aravalli hills of Haryana and Rajasthan within a specified zone and directed the demolition of illegal structures in protected areas. In M.C. Mehta v Union of India (continuing mandamus on Delhi environment), the Supreme Court has also issued directions on Aravalli deforestation and encroachment. The NGT has independently taken suo motu cognizance of Aravalli deforestation and encroachment on multiple occasions, directing the Haryana government to file compliance affidavits identifying encroached area, FIRs filed, and structures demolished.

Despite these orders, enforcement has been inconsistent. RTI is the most effective legal tool for a citizen or NGT petitioner to obtain documentary evidence of compliance or non-compliance: the list of FIRs registered; the eviction and demolition orders issued; the area actually restored; the compliance affidavit filed by the Forest Department before the court; and the latest encroachment survey data.

How RTI Exposes Aravalli Non-Compliance

An RTI application to the DFO of the relevant division (Gurugram, Faridabad, or Nuh) seeking: (a) the FIR register entries for all cases under the PLPA and Forest Conservation Act filed since 2018; (b) the status of each prosecution; (c) the number and area of encroachments detected by the Forest Department and the Revenue Department survey; and (d) a copy of the most recent compliance affidavit filed before the Supreme Court or NGT — will, in one application, reveal the gap between judicial direction and ground-level enforcement. This information has been used by environmental organisations, investigative journalists, and NGT petitioners to press for stronger enforcement.

CAMPA Fund Accountability in Haryana

The Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) collects funds from project proponents who divert forest land to non-forest use, and mandates that those funds be used for afforestation, wildlife management, and forest protection in the state where the forest was diverted. Haryana receives CAMPA funds annually, administered through the Haryana State CAMPA Authority.

CAMPA is a major accountability concern in Haryana for two reasons. First, given Haryana's low forest cover (approximately 3.6%), every hectare of compensatory afforestation matters — but plantation survival rates in Haryana's hot, dry plains are often poor, and survival audit findings have not always been made public. Second, as urban development in Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat, and other NCR districts continues, large amounts of forest land and PLPA land are being diverted for infrastructure and real estate projects, generating substantial CAMPA proceeds that must be accounted for.

RTI to the DFO (for division-level CAMPA works) or the PCCF's office (for state-level CAMPA utilisation) can obtain: the Annual Plan of Operations (APO) submitted to and approved by the National CAMPA Authority; the total CAMPA funds received and utilised in a given financial year; the plantation area and expenditure by division; survival audit findings; and the amount of CAMPA funds held unspent at year-end.

Forest Land Diversion Under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980

Every diversion of forest land in Haryana for roads, housing projects, power lines, industries, or other non-forest uses requires prior approval from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 (now the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 2023). The Haryana Forest Department processes these applications at the state level before forwarding them to MoEFCC. RTI to the PCCF's office can obtain the register of all forest diversion applications received, the area applied for, the category of project, and the status of approvals — a dataset that reveals the aggregate scale of forest loss and the compensatory afforestation obligation incurred.

How to Identify the Correct CPIO

The Haryana Forest Department has CPIOs designated at each office level:

• For encroachment ATRs, wildlife incident records, CAMPA division-level works, and protected area administration: file with the CPIO, DFO's office, for the relevant forest division — for example, DFO Gurugram (for Sultanpur NP and Aravalli encroachment in Gurugram district), DFO Yamunanagar (for Kalesar NP/WLS), DFO Jhajjar (for Bhindawas WLS), DFO Faridabad (for Aravalli encroachment in Faridabad), DFO Panchkula (for Morni Hills and proximity to PCCF headquarters).
• For state-level CAMPA data, forest diversion registers, wildlife headquarters records, or aggregated statewide data: file with the CPIO, PCCF's office, Van Bhawan, Sector 4, Panchkula – 134109.
• For wildlife-specific protected area records (wildlife census, wildlife crime, human–wildlife conflict ex-gratia): file with the CPIO, Chief Wildlife Warden's office (located at Panchkula, often co-located with PCCF's office), or the relevant DFO Wildlife.
• For Aravalli mining and PLPA encroachment compliance records filed before courts: file with the CPIO, PCCF's office, which is typically the nodal point for state-level court compliance filings.

If you are unsure of the correct division, you may file with the PCCF's office, which is required under Section 6(3) of the RTI Act to transfer your application to the appropriate CPIO within 5 days.

How to File RTI with the Haryana Forest Department

Step 1: Draft Your Application

Use the sample RTI above as a base. Be specific about the protected area or forest division, the district, the financial year range, and (for Aravalli encroachment queries) the survey numbers or specific locality if known. Separate each information request into a numbered point — vague or bundled requests are more easily deflected with broad exemption claims. For CAMPA queries, specify the financial year range explicitly. For Aravalli mining queries, cite the specific court orders (Supreme Court Aravalli mining order 2018, NGT proceedings) to signal that you are seeking compliance documentation.

Step 2: File Online or by Post

Haryana state public authorities, including all offices of the Haryana Forest Department, are accessible for online RTI filing through rtionline.gov.in (the central government portal, which was made available to Haryana state bodies) or through the Haryana government's own RTI portal at haryanarti.gov.in, where the ₹10 fee can be paid online. You may also submit a physical application by registered post addressed to the CPIO of the relevant DFO's or PCCF's office. BPL cardholders are exempt from the fee — attach a copy of your BPL card.

Step 3: Track the Timeline

Under Section 7(1) of the RTI Act, 2005, the CPIO must respond within 30 days of receipt. If the information concerns the life or liberty of a person, the response is due within 48 hours (Section 7(1) proviso). Keep your acknowledgement slip and online tracking number.

Step 4: First Appeal and Second Appeal

If the Forest Department does not respond within 30 days, or provides an incomplete or evasive response:

• First Appeal under Section 19(1): File with the First Appellate Authority (FAA) within the Haryana Forest Department — typically the Conservator of Forests (CF) of the relevant circle for a DFO-level RTI, or a senior officer designated by the PCCF for headquarters-level RTIs. File within 30 days of the date of decision or the expiry of the 30-day response period, whichever is applicable. No fee is required.
• Second Appeal under Section 19(3): If the FAA's response is absent or unsatisfactory, file with the Haryana State Information Commission (HSIC) within 90 days of the FAA's decision or the expiry of the FAA's response period. No fee is payable. The HSIC can order the department to furnish the information and impose a penalty of ₹250 per day (up to ₹25,000 maximum) on the CPIO personally under Section 20 of the RTI Act for delay or denial without reasonable cause.

Jurisdictional Note: HSIC — Not CIC

The Haryana Forest Department is entirely a state public authority under Section 2(h) of the RTI Act, 2005. This means:

• All First Appeals go to the FAA within the Haryana Forest Department.
• All Second Appeals go to the Haryana State Information Commission (HSIC) — constituted under Section 15 of the RTI Act as Haryana's State Information Commission.
• The Central Information Commission (CIC) has no jurisdiction over the Haryana Forest Department, Haryana CAMPA authority, Chief Wildlife Warden's office, or any DFO's office in Haryana.

A frequent mistake is to assume that because Sultanpur NP and Kalesar NP are "national parks" they are managed by the Central Government. They are not. Both are managed by the Haryana Forest Department under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 — a central statute, but administered by state governments for their own protected areas. Similarly, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) are Central Government bodies, but RTI filed with Haryana's Field Director or DFO Wildlife goes to a Haryana state authority with second appeal to HSIC, not CIC. Always confirm the institutional affiliation before filing an appeal.

Practical Tips for Journalists, Researchers, and NGT Petitioners

• For Aravalli encroachment RTIs, ask for two types of records simultaneously. First, the Forest Department's own FIR register and encroachment detection records. Second, the compliance affidavit or status report filed by the state before the Supreme Court or NGT in any pending matter. The gap between what the department says it has done in court filings and what its own FIR register shows is often the most revealing data point.
• For Sultanpur NP bird census queries, ask for the source document, not just a summary. Request the annual bird census report compiled by the Forest Department or jointly with the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) or Wetlands International — the underlying survey report contains far more data than any summary figure the CPIO might volunteer.
• For CAMPA plantation RTIs, always ask for survival audit percentages. Many CAMPA plantations in Haryana's plains have poor survival rates due to water stress. The RTI that asks not just for area planted and expenditure but also for the survival audit conducted by an independent agency (as required under CAMPA guidelines) will reveal whether compensatory afforestation is genuinely happening or is primarily a paper exercise.
• For Kalesar NP wildlife crime RTIs, specify the Wildlife Protection Act sections. Ask for the FIR register under Section 51 (general offences), Section 9 (hunting prohibition), Section 39 (trade in wildlife articles), and Section 50 (power of entry, search, arrest) — broken down by section — rather than asking for a general "wildlife crime" count. Specificity forces the CPIO to search the relevant register rather than providing a vague response.
• For forest diversion applications, ask both MoEFCC and the Haryana Forest Department. The MoEFCC (a Central Government body) maintains its own PARIVESH portal with forest diversion application data, but filing RTI with the Haryana Forest Department's PCCF office will obtain the state-level processing records and any conditions imposed, which are often not visible on the central portal.
• If you are a Gurugram or Faridabad resident concerned about a specific Aravalli plot, locate the survey number on the revenue map (khasra), confirm whether it is PLPA-notified (the Haryana Revenue Department will have this record), and then file RTI with both the DFO (for forest/PLPA status and any FIR) and the Deputy Commissioner (Revenue) for the encroachment detection or regularisation record, if any.