CUTTACK: The National Green Tribunal‘s (NGT) east zone bench in Kolkata has issued notices to several state authorities regarding alleged encroachment on 18 acres of Luna riverbed at Badapal, Kendrapada district.
Notices have also been sent to the member secretary of Odisha State Pollution Control Board and State Environment Impact Assessment Authority.
The notices come while hearing a petition filed by local activist Alaya Samantaray, highlighting unauthorized construction activities by a Jharkhand-based private company engaged in the National Highway-53 expansion project.
The bench, comprising judicial member B Amit Sthalekar and expert member Arun Kumar Verma, has directed responses from the chief secretary, water resource department secretary, and other key officials within four weeks.
According to the petition, filed through advocates Sankar Prasad Pani and Ashutosh Padhy, the construction company has allegedly set up labour camps, material yards and office structures on the riverbed without necessary permissions. The petitioner claims these activities threaten the river’s ecosystem and natural flow.
“The matter requires consideration,” the bench stated, while issuing notices to multiple respondents, including the district magistrate of Kendrapada and tehsildar (Marshaghai).
Information obtained through RTI applications reveals that the construction company lacks both consent to establish (CTE) and consent to operate (CTO) certificates. The petition also alleges illegal sand extraction from the riverbed near Badapal.
The tribunal has scheduled the next hearing for January 27, 2025.
