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The National Green Tribunal (NGT), November 19, 2024, directed the Municipal Corporation of Shivpuri and the Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board (MPPCB) to implement the recommendations of a joint committee for protecting Jadhav Sagar, Sakhya Sagar, and Madhav Sagar lakes without delay. The Wetland Authority was instructed to demarcate, identify and protect the wetlands in accordance with the Wetland (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017.
The respondents were ordered to submit their replies within a week.
The committee members, following a site visit, reported encroachments, the discharge of untreated water, and the dumping of garbage into Shivpuri’s waterbodies. They recommended strict enforcement of Section 4 of the Wetland Rules, 2017, to prevent further encroachments. Additionally, weeds in Jadhav Sagar, Sakhya Sagar, and Madhav Sagar lakes should be removed scientifically.
Other recommendations included bioremediation and restoring the lakebeds to improve their water-holding and carrying capacity. Preventive measures should also be taken by the Public Health Engineering Department and Nagar Palika, Shivpuri, to ensure no untreated or partially treated sewage enters the lakes.
The application raised concerns about non-compliance with the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and alleged violations due to the discharge of untreated water and municipal waste into Jadhav Sagar and Sakhya Sagar lakes.
Jadhav Sagar, one of the oldest waterbodies in Shivpuri district, is recognised as a wetland and forms a wetland complex along with Sakhya Sagar under Section 2(h) of the Wetland Rules, 2017. Despite their ecological importance, a Rs 1.35 crore tender issued by the Nagar Palika for the development of the lake included plans to concrete 500 metres of the surrounding nallahs (drainage channels).
This construction threatens the nesting of Mugger crocodiles and poses a significant risk to the region’s biodiversity, the applicant said.
Additionally, unregulated human activities, municipal waste, and untreated sewage have led to the deterioration of water quality in Jadhav Sagar and Sakhya Sagar. These activities violate the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, contributing to eutrophication and the proliferation of the invasive water hyacinth, severely impacting the ecosystem.
The MPPCB issued a directive to the Municipal Council of Shivpuri, the Mineral and Resource Department, and the Forest Department on March 15, 2023 to mitigate ecological degradation in the green zone surrounding Sakhya Sagar and Jadhav Sagar lakes. However, no corrective measures have been implemented, according to the complaint.
Strict monitoring of stacks in all paper and pulp industries in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, is essential to ensure their efficient operation and prevent the emission of ash into the air, Amicus Curiae Rahul Khurana told the NGT in a report on November 20, 2024.
The Amicus Curiae visited nine industrial units on November 15, 2024, and informed the court about severe air pollution caused by ash emissions from stacks. Smoke was observed from several stacks, with two industries emitting dense black smoke.
A suo motu case was registered by the NGT in response to a letter petition highlighting the extensive air pollution caused by the release of poisonous industrial gases and black smoke from various industrial units in Muzaffarnagar.