Kullu News
Himachal Pradesh News : NGT awards ₹47 lakh compensation to Kullu trout farm for damage caused by construction debris
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has ordered ₹47.14 lakh as environmental compensation to Kushal Gupta, owner of the Himalayan Trout Fish Farm in Kullu, for losses caused by the illegal dumping of muck and debris during the construction of a bridge over Haripur Nallah.
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has ordered ₹47.14 lakh as environmental compensation to Kushal Gupta, owner of the Himalayan Trout Fish Farm in Kullu, for losses caused by the illegal dumping of muck and debris during the construction of a bridge over Haripur Nallah.
The order was passed by a Bench comprising NGT Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and Expert Member A. Senthil Vel.
The Tribunal held that the Himachal Pradesh Public Works Department (HPPWD) and its contractor violated Section 24 of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, by allowing construction waste to enter the stream. The pollution led to the death of thousands of trout fish and destruction of fish eggs at the downstream fish farm, causing significant financial and environmental damage.
Rejecting the respondents’ plea that the case was time-barred, the Tribunal observed that the application had been filed within the permissible period after excluding the time spent in earlier High Court proceedings and considering the Supreme Court’s extension of limitation during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The NGT relied on inspection reports from the Fisheries Department, Revenue authorities, the gram panchayat and the State Pollution Control Board, all of which confirmed environmental degradation linked to the construction activity.
The Tribunal directed the HPPWD and the contractor to jointly pay ₹47.14 lakh within two months. It also granted the state department liberty to recover the amount from the contractor.
