A construction that encroaches on forest land on Dõng Chum Hill is dismantled. — Photo vietnamnet.vn

HÀ NỘI — Compulsory demolition of unlawful structures in the Sóc Sơn preservation forest was crucial, but an even more vital task was to stop further intrusions into the forest territory, according to members of the National Assembly (NA).

Nguyễn Văn Thu, leader of the Urban Construction Management Team of the Sóc Sơn District in Hà Nội, informed the Vietnamnet e-newspaper that the district had taken down six structures that breached construction rules on the Dõng Chum Hill, Ban Tiện Village, Minh Phú Commune.

The district People's Committee stated that these six structures were illicitly erected on forest territory.

At the base of the hill, four or five villas and homestays constructed since 2020 still stand.

Thu mentioned that the Sóc Sơn District is persistently examining all projects on Dõng Chum Hill to enact suitable corrective actions based on legal provisions.

The remaining structures on the hill were intermittently built on forest and residential lands. Hence, the district officials need to meticulously scrutinise the documents and cannot instantly demolish them, he underlined.

NA representative Trương Xuân Cừ advocated for stringent penalties for projects infringing on the forest land of Sóc Sơn District.

If unlawful edifices were not torn down, many individuals would ignore the regulations and persist in constructing houses illicitly on forest territory, he noted.

Cừ recommended that Sóc Sơn District and Hà Nội City accurately ascertain the reasons behind the numerous projects encroaching on conservation forest land, and then devise fitting solutions to address the issue.

In 2019, the Hà Nội Inspectorate reported that almost 3,000 unauthorised construction works had been established in the Sóc Sơn District, with the majority situated on forest lands.

In the Minh Phú and Minh Trí communes, and around seven sizable lakes in the forest, there exist 797 unlawful structures.

Following the inspection's conclusion, the Sóc Sơn District initiated various campaigns to manage hundreds of projects infringing on forest territory.

Nonetheless, from 2019 until the present, numerous constructions have still been erected in the forest and beside the lakes in the Sóc Sơn District.

Some were demolished, and several officials associated with the cases were penalised.

Bùi Thị An, a member of the 13th NA, asserted that the officials of Sóc Sơn District must exhibit strong resolve to address illegal projects on forest land.

“Many large construction projects have been built in the forest land for decades and have not been treated. If the district officials have such determination, we will support it," said An.

She said that along with strictly handling illegal constructions, the district must take measures to prevent protection forest land from being invaded by villas and homestays. — VNS