I was quite shocked when I went up Gasing Hill the other day in Petaling Jaya. I saw parcels of land up for sale, starting from the bottom of the hill right up to the top, on both sides of the road leading to its peak.

This saddened me because Gasing Hill, for years, has been a green lung for residents of Petaling Jaya. Not only that, being the highest point in Petaling Jaya, it used to be a place to ‘get fresh air’ and look down upon Petaling Jaya to enjoy the scenery.

NONE Many people use it as a jogging path, faithfully jogging every morning, enjoying the fresh air and the natural surroundings of a beautiful ‘woodlands’/jungle.

Many parents often bring their children up Gasing Hill to feed the monkeys. In fact, this has been a weekly event for me as my three-year old daughter is fond of feeding the monkeys.

The plots of land for sale go right to the top (peak). Each parcel ranges from 20,000sq ft to 30,000 sq ft and there are about 60 parcels in total.

I called the number on the board and they confirmed, the parcels were for sale for people to build their houses. Coincidently, at a per sq ft cost RM150, it is indeed for the rich and wealthy.

But the main question is this, how can Gasing Hill land be sold? Who originally sold the parcels of land to the current seller?

NONE Should not it be categorised as a green lung and belong to the state government and ultimately to the the residents of Petaling Jaya in general?

Once houses are built, Petaling Jaya would be left with just one or two large green lungs only, namely Taman Aman, the Kelana Jaya Park and Taman Jaya.

I was under the impression that the government promoted a healthy nation and wanted people to exercise and be healthy.

With such green lungs being ‘raped’, it is no wonder why we have more cases of baby dumping. People, especially the youth, instead of indulging in healthy outdoor physical activities, are now indulging in indoor unhealthy activities, due to the lack of natural facilities available to physically exercise.

Mind you, not everyone can afford the exorbitant fees of a gym.