Dehradun, April 23 -- The Uttarakhand high court on Wednesday directed the state government to respond to an application flagging a serious threat to the fragile ecology of the foothills between Dehradun and Mussoorie due to unchecked illegal construction. The petition alleged rampant building activity in violation of regulations and flagged that despite building bylaws being amended in 2015 to regulate construction in fragile hill belts, its implementation was "virtually non-existent". This isn't the first time the court has intervened to regulate a problem that is now endangering the very survival of the Queen of the Hills. Three weeks ago, the high court halted the felling of trees in Mussoorie's Hussain Gunj forest till valid permission...