Gurugram: All it took was the presence of a few wild animals, including Nilgais, inside the Hisar airport premises to blow the lid-off a botched wildlife clearance, with just a week left for its inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 14 April.
Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini reviewed preparations on Tuesday morning after the unexpected sightings of wild animals have not only raised doubts about the airport’s readiness for flight operations, but also triggered a political and administrative storm.
The controversy intensified after Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Subhash Yadav, transferred from Gurugram to Panchkula, had flagged the presence of wildlife in a report to his higher ups in the Haryana wildlife department.
Putting the spotlight on alleged lapses in wildlife clearance protocols, Yadav, who served as Deputy Conservator of Forests, had recommended a relook at the decision to launch flight services due to the persisting wildlife threat.
A source within the Haryana forest and wildlife department told The Print that Yadav’s report was leaked by local officials in Hisar, escalating tensions and prompting the government to act swiftly to salvage the high-profile inauguration.
The issue came to light after a Nilgai was spotted within the airport complex ahead of the trial landing on 28 March—raising questions about the wildlife clearance certificate issued by the department.
Since then, the forest and wildlife personnel are scrambling to address the situation. On 3 April, three Nigais and a stray dog were captured, followed by two Nilgais and a wild boar the next day. After a two-day lull, the department resumed its efforts Monday, rounding up six more wild animals.
Hisar’s Deputy Commissioner Anish Yadav then issued a stern three-day ultimatum to clear the premises entirely of wildlife, underscoring the urgency ahead of the PM’s visit for the inauguration ceremony.
A source in the forest department revealed that the wildlife wing had earlier cited a lack of budget, resources, and expertise to undertake the task. But, it was only after the IFS officer’s report that the Haryana government cracked the whip, with senior officials working on a war footing to mitigate the crisis.
Attempts to reach Subhash Yadav via calls and messages for comment were unsuccessful. This report will be updated as and when a response is received.
However, the source quoted earlier, told The Print that on 9 March, Hisar Divisional Forest Officer (Wildlife) Virender Godara had certified the airport area as free of wildlife.
“Since the DC in Hisar labelled the DFO’s report as incorrect. Yadav issued a show-cause notice to the DFO as well as urged the launch be delayed by three months,” the source said. “But the leak of his report by Hisar officials sealed his fate.”
Official correspondence accessed by The Print sheds light on the escalating tensions. On 27 March, Hisar Deputy Commissioner (DC) Anish Yadav issued a strongly worded memo to Godara, flagging the “contradictory claims” made by his department. The memo referenced an earlier letter from the DFO’s office dated 9 March, which had claimed no wild animals were present in the airport premises.
However, the DC noted that “numerous wild animals, including Nilgai,” had since been observed, directly contradicting the DFO’s assertion.
The memo emphasized that all entrances to the airport were manned, preventing further ingress, and held the DFO solely responsible for the immediate relocation of the animals ahead of a trial landing scheduled 28 March.
“If any lapse is found during the trial landing due to the presence of these wild animals, your office will be held accountable,” the DC warned, demanding a compliance report by 28 March. Copies of the memo were forwarded to senior officials, including the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and the Director-cum-Advisor of Civil Aviation, Haryana.
Subhash Yadav’s report, according to the source, argued that the presence of vegetation, including thick shrubs, within the airport posed a long-term risk.
The IFS officer warned that upcoming rains could exacerbate the situation, causing the shrubs to grow denser and the clayey soil to become slippery, complicating wildlife removal efforts. “Nowhere in the world do flights operate from airports with such conditions,” the source quoted Yadav as saying.
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Govt goes on damage control mode
Keen to ensure the PM’s visit proceeds without a hitch, Chief Minister Saini reached Hisar’s Maharaja Agrasen International Airport for a detailed inspection. Haryana Civil Aviation Minister Vipul Goel is slated to assess the situation two days later.
Goel conceded the presence of “a few wild animals” within the airport’s premises but downplayed the threat. “The wildlife department is on the job, and there will be no problem for the PM’s programme. The CM is reviewing the situation, and I’ll be there on 10 April. By then, the airport will be cleared,” he told ThePrint.
Haryana forests minister Rao Narbir Singh told ThePrint that the department was working relentlessly to resolve the issue by 10 April. He confirmed that Yadav’s transfer was due to the “misleading” nature of his report.
The episode, however, has exposed glaring gaps in the airport’s security clearance process.
According to the source quoted earlier, the initial wildlife clearance was either rushed or deliberately overlooked to meet the 14 April deadline—a date chosen to coincide with Bhimrao Ambedkar’s birth anniversary.
A senior officer of the wildlife department told The Print that the Hisar airport is located on the outskirts of the city, near areas that have wild vegetation, open fields, and scrublands that are natural habitat for animals like Nilgais, wild boars, jackals, and birds of prey.
Asked how the wild animals remained within the airport land despite the presence of the boundary wall, the officer explained that it was not a small area, and added that it would have not been humanly possible for the labourers to drive out wild animals before the wall came up.
“The airport was initially on just 200 acres of land. For the first phase, 4,000 acres of additional land was acquired, making it 4,200 acres. Later, more land was acquired for the second phase to make it 7,200 acres. Converted to square kilometers, it becomes 29.14 sq km, which means it will require 22 km of boundary wall to cover this land. However, the land that has been covered under the boundary wall during the first phase also required more than 12 km of boundary wall,” the officer said.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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