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The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on January 10, 2025 directed the director general of the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) to appear on the next date of hearing, February 14, 2025, to clarify the meaning of the phrase “active floodplain area” of River Ganga or its tributaries, as mentioned in Paragraph 6(3) of the River Ganga Order, 2016.
The district magistrate of Haridwar was instructed to submit a copy of the demarcation of the “floodplain” in the area under consideration.
An application was registered following a letter petition alleging that residential apartments had been constructed in violation of environmental norms and that polluting materials were being discharged directly into the River Ganga.
The NGT observed that various orders had been issued over time, including instructions to relevant authorities for demarcating floodplain areas and zones to determine whether construction had been carried out in prohibited areas. The district magistrate of Haridwar submitted a reply stating that the floodplain area had been demarcated and that the construction in question was beyond the designated floodplain. However, no copy of the demarcation order was provided.
The tribunal noted that the River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Authorities Order, 2016 does not define the term “active floodplain area”. Instead, it defines “floodplain” as “such area of River Ganga or its tributaries that comes under water on either side of it due to floods corresponding to its greatest flow or with a flood of frequency once in hundred years.”
Counsel for the NMCG acknowledged that “active floodplain” is not explicitly defined but was unable to explain the scope, extent, or implications of the prohibition under Paragraph 6(3) of the River Ganga Order, 2016, or what constitutes an “active floodplain area” of River Ganga or its tributaries.
The eastern bench of the NGT on January 9, 2025 directed authorities to address allegations of unscientific handling and disposal of solid waste by local bodies in Nagar Parishad, Jehanabad, Bihar.
The court instructed the district magistrate of Jehanabad, the Bihar State Pollution Control Board and Nagar Parishad, Jehanabad, to file their counter-affidavits within three weeks. The tribunal also directed the district magistrate to submit a joint inspection report, sworn on affidavit, within the same timeframe.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for February 28, 2025.
The complaint alleged that Ward No. 1, near National Highway-110 and on the northern side of the city, has a massive solid waste dump that has been on fire for the past three months, causing air pollution, endangering public health and making life difficult for residents.
It was also alleged that waste was being dumped illegally into the River Dardha, leading to river contamination and encroachment on public land.
The NGT, January 10, 2025 directed the formation of a joint committee comprising the district magistrate of Ghaziabad and the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) to investigate allegations of encroachment on land designated as a green area in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh.
The committee was instructed to visit the site, gather relevant information and submit a detailed factual report before the next hearing on February 21, 2025.
An application filed before the NGT claimed that land earmarked as a park in Industrial Area Site IV, Sahibabad, encompassing the villages of Maharajpur, Karkarmodel and Jhandapur, was being encroached upon. It was also alleged that Nagar Nigam, Ghaziabad, was altering the land’s status by constructing illegal and unauthorised structures.
A letter dated January 11, 2023 had also been sent to the deputy general manager (Civil) of the Uttar Pradesh State Industrial Development Authority regarding the matter.