NGT Orders Action on Bhopal Lake Pollution

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a directive for compliance reports concerning the Lower Lake in Bhopal, a designated Ramsar site. The Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) have been given four weeks to detail their progress in preventing untreated sewage from entering the lake and to report on drain diversion efforts. The BMC acknowledged that approximately 8-10 million liters per day (MLD) of untreated sewage continue to flow into the lake, despite ongoing interception projects under the AMRUT 2.0 scheme. The NGT is also examining the issue of alleged tree poisoning and encroachments around the lake, ordering the forest department and the BMC's Tree Officer to submit action-taken reports within the same four-week period. Unauthorized construction within 50 meters of the lake's full tank level is strictly prohibited under the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017, with any violations being at the owner's risk. The PHED has been further instructed to provide updates on sewage treatment plants and measures to prevent wastewater discharge.