India, April 2 -- New Delhi

The Public Works Department (PWD) will soon initiate a survey of trees falling on the alignment of a planned five-kilometre-long bypass road, over forest land, in Sangam Vihar, senior officials said. The corridor is proposed from the Sangam Vihar T-point near the shooting range up to J Block.

While planners argue that the corridor will vastly improve accessibility for over a million residents of the colony, environmental activists raised concerns that it may set a bad precedent by allowing infrastructure projects through forests and ridges.

A senior PWD official, who did not wish to be named, said that an agency is being hired to undertake a 30-day survey to assess areas of impact. "The corridor will closely...