Supreme Court Flags Massive Encroachment Around IAF Ammunition Depot in Gurugram

The Supreme Court has expressed serious concern over the spread of large-scale unauthorised construction around the Indian Air Force ammunition depot in Gurugram, asking how thousands of buildings and several illegal colonies were permitted to come up inside the restricted security zone around the sensitive defence facility.

The court’s remarks focus on the 900-metre belt surrounding the IAF depot in old Gurugram, an area that has long been subject to construction controls because of its proximity to the strategic installation. Despite those restrictions, the zone has seen steady civilian expansion over the years, with residential buildings, shops and other establishments reportedly spreading deep into the protected area.

During hearings this week, the Supreme Court questioned the role of local authorities and raised the possibility of collusion between officials and those responsible for unauthorised development. The comments came against a backdrop of the restricted area becoming densely built-up even as legal disputes over construction near the depot have continued for years.

According to reports cited in the matter, around 15 unauthorised colonies have emerged within the restricted belt. In several places, multi-storey houses and commercial buildings stand extremely close to the depot’s boundary wall, leaving only a narrow gap between civilian structures and the defence installation.

The pace of construction appears to have accelerated in recent years. An internal report of the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram, cited earlier this year, found that more than 5,000 illegal structures had come up within the 900-metre buffer zone over the previous five years alone. Those structures reportedly include paying-guest accommodations, commercial establishments, offices, cloud kitchens and other unauthorised facilities.

The controversy is rooted in the history of the depot itself. The ammunition facility dates back to 1947, when the surrounding area was largely undeveloped. As Gurugram expanded rapidly over subsequent decades, residential and commercial development moved progressively closer to the installation, creating repeated disputes over the treatment of existing structures and the precise extent of the restricted area.

The Punjab and Haryana High Court had earlier addressed the issue in a 2010 judgment concerning land around the depot. In that ruling, the court described the ammunition depot as a strategic defence installation and said defence and national-security considerations could not be compromised. It also criticised statutory and executive authorities for allowing illegal construction to proliferate inside the restricted area.

The matter has also remained before the Supreme Court for years. In a December 2024 judgment, the apex court separated certain appeals related to new construction within the 900-metre limit and to the demolition of allegedly illegal buildings, so that those issues could be examined independently.

The latest observations have once again drawn attention to the extent of unauthorised urbanisation around one of Gurugram’s most sensitive defence facilities, and to the responsibility of civic and state authorities in enforcing the safety and security buffer intended to protect the ammunition depot.