Mohali, Nov. 24 -- In a fresh ray of hope for over 700 plot allottees in Mohali's Sector 90 who have been awaiting possession for over a decade, the Punjab forest department has approved the long-pending proposal to swap 23 acres of forest land here with land in Mattewara village, Ludhiana, to pave way for the development of the sector. This comes after the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) received clearance from the Greater Ludhiana Area Development Authority (GLADA) in September to exchange the forestland. The proposal was subsequently forwarded to the forest department for approval, which has now been granted. GMADA chief administrator Sakshi Sawhney confirmed the development, stating, "The forest department has given its approval and sent the file to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) for final clearance. We are hopeful of receiving approval soon as the matter will be decided by the ministry's regional office, which is in Chandigarh. Once cleared, we will immediately begin development works." GMADA had acquired 229 acres near Lakhnaur village in 2015 under the land pooling scheme to establish Sector 90. Under the scheme, farmers were offered residential and commercial plots in return for their land. However, the project hit a roadblock after the authority failed to secure a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the forest department. Six years later, it emerged that nearly 23 acres of the acquired land fell under the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA), 1900, rendering it ineligible for development without environmental clearance. The forest department had been unaware of this at the time of acquisition. The PLPA, enacted in 1900, aims to conserve subsoil water and prevent erosion in ecologically sensitive areas. In May this year, the Punjab government approved the plan to swap the forested land to resolve the deadlock. The layout plans for the sector have already been prepared and will soon be submitted to the planning and development department for final approval. According to GMADA's development plan, 144 acres will be developed in the firstphase. Of this, 29 acres are earmarked for residential plots ranging from 100 to 500 square yards, 14 acres for commercial sites, and 11 acres for institutional purposes. Parks will be developed across eight acres, two acres have been set aside for waterworks, and 28 acres will be utilised for roads. Jasbir Singh, an allottee, expressed relief but urged faster action. "It has been over 10 years and we are still waiting for possession. We request the authorities to expedite the process so that development work can finally begin," he said....