The report, which named Malaysia Botanical Gardens Resort (MBGR) Sdn Bhd as the registered owner of the 81.71ha-land, stated that planning permission was granted by the Hulu Selangor district council in December 2019 for the proposed development.

MBGR, through a company named PIR Planner, had applied for planning permission from the district council after approval from the Selangor technical committee on development of environmentally sensitive areas (JTPKSAS) in July 2019.

The report, released by the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) on its website today, also revealed that several rounds of applications for the development were rejected previously.

As early as February 2006, the Selangor State Agricultural Development Corporation (PKPS) applied to the Hulu Selangor district council to develop a “Malaysia Botanical Gardens Resort” on the land.

However, the application was rejected as the proposed site fell outside the jurisdiction of the district council. The application was then referred to the Selangor rural development planning department as the local planning authority.

In September 2012, the district council referred the application to JTPKSAS and in February 2016, the matter was suspended and referred to the state authorities due to a prohibition on any development work on high ground exceeding 1,000m above sea level.

In October 2016, the Selangor government approved a policy to allow development on high ground exceeding 1,000m above sea level, with the condition that the specified land use is complied with and approval from JTPKSAS is obtained.

“However, the JTPKSAS committee meeting had upheld the decision to reject the application due to the land use condition stating only agricultural activities allowed,” the report said.

In May 2017, the application for planning permission was resubmitted to the district council for “surrender and realienation” under the National Land Code.

This time, the application was requested to be withdrawn for a number of reasons, including that the land could only be used for agricultural and animal husbandry and that the requisite impact assessment procedures needed to be complied with.

Last year, local government development minister Nga Kor Ming revealed that the three campsites affected by the landslide did not have the relevant licence to operate.

He also confirmed that the operator was only permitted to run an organic farm at the site but had not put in any application to set up campsites.