Now Reading: NGT halts Kerwa survey, orders stop to water wastage in 15 days
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NGT halts Kerwa survey, orders stop to water wastage in 15 days
The National Green Tribunal (NGT), Central Zonal Bench, Bhopal, has directed the Water Resources Department to stop the continuous outflow of water from Kerwa Reservoir within 15 days. The order came after…
The National Green Tribunal (NGT), Central Zonal Bench, Bhopal, has directed the Water Resources Department to stop the continuous outflow of water from Kerwa Reservoir within 15 days. The order came after a ground verification survey at the reservoir was halted on September 9 because some officials claimed Kerwa had not reached its Full Tank Level (FTL).
NGT applicant Dr Subhash C Pandey alleged in a submission that water was flowing out through an artificial canal and that the outflow could be stopped with stone pitching or a temporary stop-dam. He also claimed that over 90% of FTL boundary pillars installed in 2023 had disappeared and questioned the WRD's inaction. The committee at the site was divided, with state counsel and WRD officials seeking to stop the survey while other members pressed to continue. The next hearing is set for September 30.
On Wednesday, in related proceedings on Bhoj Wetland encroachments, the NGT described encroachment on government land as a crime worse than robbery and dacoity, and pulled officials for inaction. The tribunal cited 5.46 lakh hectares of forest land under encroachment as of March 2025 and called for time-bound removal of illegal occupation. The next hearing in that matter is October 6.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The two articles from the same outlet, freepressjournal.in, frame the NGT's actions differently. The first story leads with the NGT's 15-day directive to plug water wastage, foregrounding the technical dispute over FTL and the divided committee. The second leads with the NGT's sharp rebuke of officials, using the tribunal's own language calling encroachment 'worse than robbery' to emphasise official failure. The first story gives more space to the applicant's specific allegations and the committee's internal split, while the second focuses on the tribunal's broader criticism of systemic inaction. Together they show the NGT applying both operational deadlines and moral pressure. The key test is whether the WRD stops the outflow by the deadline and whether the detailed report on encroachments arrives by October 6.
Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral
Sources (2): freepressjournal.in (neutral report), freepressjournal.in (2) (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
