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Supreme Court Takes Control of Rajasthan River Cleanup, Forms High-Level Oversight Panel

The court lifted the NGT stay to enforce a time-bound restoration plan under judicial supervision.

Overview

  • Calling the state’s failure a gross dereliction of the constitutional right to life, Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta censured Rajasthan over the polluted Jojari, Bandi and Luni rivers.
  • The High-Level Ecosystem Oversight Committee, led by former judge Sangeet Lodha, will craft a science-based River Restoration and Rejuvenation Blueprint and steer phased execution.
  • The committee can call records, direct state and local bodies, seek expert help, audit treatment infrastructure, and must submit its first report within eight weeks.
  • The court noted direct industrial dumping and a persistent mismatch between waste generation and treatment capacity, terming the degradation systemic.
  • The Supreme Court revived NGT’s February 2022 measures, including a ₹2 crore cost on civic bodies, and fixed the next hearing for February 27, 2026.