The National Green Tribunal has flagged serious pollution in Delhi’s Kitchener Lake after a DPCC report found faecal coliform, BOD and COD levels above prescribed norms, despite substantial funds sanctioned for cleaning.
The tribunal has directed the Delhi Development Authority to explain the ineffective utilisation of contracts and to account for the continued poor water quality in the lake.
The analysis of water samples collected from Kitchener Lake in Delhi showed that requisite parameters such as faecal coliform, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) are not meeting prescribed norms.
This was stated in the report filed by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) in its report on August 17, 2026, and taken up by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on September 1, 2026.
The applicant referred to the Delhi Development Authority’s (DDA) affidavit from February 16, 2026, and submitted that the DDA awarded a contract for cleaning Kitchener Lake, spending about Rs 22,58,000. The applicant stated that the money does not seem to have been utilised for cleaning the lake.
The NGT directed the DDA to file a response on the Kitchener Lake pollution and explain why the lake’s water quality is not meeting norms despite awarding the cleaning work.
In this regard, the applicant referred to the tender acceptance document dated February 11, 2025, for Rs 14,08,670 for cleaning Kitchener Lake in 2025. They also cited the tender acceptance document dated July 30, 2026, allotting work for Rs 22,58,372 for 365 days in 2026.
On September 1, 2026, the NGT directed the Irrigation and Water Resources Department, Uttar Pradesh, and the Flood Works Division, Prayagraj, to file their further progress report before December 11, 2026, on the status of the flood plain zone demarcation for the Yamuna river in Prayagraj district.
The Counsel for the Irrigation and Water Resources Department and Flood Works Division, Prayagraj, submitted that the delineation exercise for demarcation of the flood plain at Prayagraj is over and the work of fixing the pillars is in progress and is also scheduled to be completed by November 30, 2026.
The report stated that during the active monsoon season in July and August 2026, heavy rainfall across the Yamuna catchment led to heightened river discharge and waterlogging along the low-lying bank stretches in Prayagraj, temporarily impeding field access for pillar placement. However, casting operations are proceeding quickly, and field placement is scheduled for full completion by November 30, 2026.
The NGT took up the matter of a waterbody encroachment in Phulehara village, in Uttar Pradesh’s Deoria district on September 1, 2026.
The response filed by the authorities—including the District Magistrate of Deoria, Chief Development Officer of Deoria, and Tehsildar Sadar Deoria—confirmed that the 0.401-hectare area in Phulehara is recorded in the revenue records as a pond (Pokhari).
The reply disclosed the extent of the illegal encroachment on the pond area and the action taken to remove it. The concerned authorities requested more time to submit a further progress report. The case would be next listed for hearing on November 26, 2026.