Coming down heavily on the district administration, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has summoned the Sangrur deputy commissioner to personally appear before it on November 18 amid escalating concerns over systemic waste-management failures, an unpaid ₹ 84-lakh environmental fine, and the illegal operation of a local dumpsite.
However, in a subsequent affidavit filed on August 25, the council sought an extension of another five to six months, citing the monsoon as the reason for the delay.
The pollution control board further informed the NGT that it had imposed environmental compensation of ₹ 84 lakh on the council for violations committed between July 2020 and March 2024. The civic body had deposited nothing despite quarterly penalties continuing to accrue through 2025. The bench rejected the justification, observing that the monsoon is an annual and predictable phenomenon and should have been factored into the original remediation plan. The tribunal also observed that the executive officer had failed to act with the promptness and diligence expected in the discharge of his statutory responsibilities. The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) informed the tribunal that the Sangrur dumpsite did not have valid consent to establish (CTE) or consent to operate (CTO), which are mandatory environmental permissions under the applicable regulatory framework. The PPCB stated that the council had not even applied for the required permissions.
The amount, according to the proceedings, had remained unpaid.
