Jammu and Kashmir: An applicant challenged pollution control board reports on Manasbal wetland, alleging inadequate assessment of untreated sewage, solid waste and water contamination.
Bikaner, Rajasthan: The NGT directed action against polluting industrial units in Khara, where 21 units received closure notices and 121 residents reported respiratory symptoms during a health survey.
Jaipur, Rajasthan: The NGT ordered an investigation into alleged illegal commercial groundwater extraction and distribution by Balaji Water Suppliers.
NGT directions: Authorities were asked to submit action-taken reports within three to four weeks in the Bikaner and Jaipur cases.
The reports submitted by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Jammu and Kashmir Pollution Control Committee (J&KPCC) on the water quality of Manasbal wetland and sources of pollution do not reflect the actual conditions, according to a response filed by applicant Raja Muzaffar Bhat on October 17, 2026.
Both reports, submitted to the National Green Tribunal (NGT), acknowledged that untreated domestic wastewater from households along the wetland's periphery was being discharged directly into it. They also recorded the dumping of mixed municipal solid waste along its banks, with the CPCB noting that some of the waste was partially submerged.
The CPCB found that none of its seven water samples met Class B water quality standards for outdoor bathing. The J&KPCC also reported that two of its four monitoring locations failed to meet Class B standards for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD).
However, the applicant argued that the CPCB report did not adequately examine the discharge of untreated sewage from 14 villages into Manasbal wetland through the Lar canal. Instead, it focused on water quality assessment, municipal solid waste and greywater.
According to the applicant, the CPCB neither conducted a comprehensive inspection of sewage discharge into Manasbal Lake and the Lar canal nor analysed microbiological data to identify faecal contamination from the canal and surrounding settlements.
The report also lacked details on measures to treat greywater and the capacity of the sewage treatment plant (STP) proposed for the 14 villages.
Despite both pollution control bodies recording untreated wastewater discharge and solid waste dumping, neither report documented any assessment or recovery of environmental compensation from the authorities concerned, the applicant said.
The applicant also challenged the J&KPCC's findings on water quality, alleging unreliable microbiological results due to inadequate sampling.
The committee collected samples only from open-water locations, excluding surface drains at Kondabal, Chesma Manasbal, Gratbal and Jarokbal Bagh, which it had identified as discharge points. It also failed to sample the Lar canal and feeder springs.
The applicant argued that samples collected from open water could be diluted and therefore fail to reflect pollution levels at discharge points.
The J&KPCC report acknowledged that untreated domestic sewage entered the lake through open drains, described solid waste management as "highly unsatisfactory" and classified the lake as being under "moderate ecological stress".
However, it concluded that the lake met microbiological standards based on faecal coliform levels alone.
The applicant pointed out that the committee's own total coliform readings ranged from 640 to 1,000 colony-forming units (CFU) per 100ml across all four monitoring locations, exceeding the Class B limit of 500 CFU per 100ml. The report did not address this discrepancy, the applicant said.
The National Green Tribunal's central bench directed the Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board (RSPCB) on October 26, 2026, to take necessary action against industrial units violating environmental norms in the Khara Industrial Area of Bikaner district.
The board was directed to submit a further action-taken report within three weeks.
The tribunal also instructed the board to ensure adequate plantation and survival of trees in areas where industries had failed to comply with environmental conditions relating to green cover.
The case will next be heard on December 18, 2026.
The RSPCB informed the tribunal that it had inspected industrial units and issued closure notices to 21 of them.
Meanwhile, Bikaner's medical department conducted a door-to-door health survey covering 694 households in Khara village and adjoining industrial areas.
The survey identified 121 people with symptoms associated with respiratory ailments. They were referred for detailed medical examinations, while periodic medical camps were also organised.
The National Green Tribunal directed a three-member joint committee on October 26, 2026 to investigate allegations of unauthorised commercial groundwater extraction and distribution in Vasundhara Vihar, Sirsi, Jaipur.
The complaint alleged that a local water supply operation functioning under the name "Balaji Water Suppliers" was involved in large-scale groundwater extraction and unauthorised commercial distribution.
The committee was directed to inspect the site and submit an action-taken report within four weeks.
The tribunal also ordered notices to be issued to the Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board, the Rajasthan Ground Water Department and the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA), among others.
According to the applicant, those involved had constructed an underground reservoir measuring approximately 25ft by 25ft by 25ft and were extracting thousands of litres of groundwater daily using high-powered industrial pumps connected to a public electricity pole.
The applicant alleged that the operation used an unauthorised commercial electricity connection and was depleting the local water table, drying up domestic wells in the neighbourhood and threatening a nearby micro-forest of Melia dubia (Malabar neem).
The allegations are subject to investigation by the joint committee.
