SC Slams “Decades of Apathy”, Revives NGT’s Full Remedial Plan; Constitutes Powerful Ecosystem Oversight Committee
In a landmark environmental intervention, the Supreme Court of India has issued an unprecedented order directing the immediate implementation of the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) 2022 remedial framework to tackle catastrophic pollution in Rajasthan’s Jojari, Bandi and Luni rivers, declaring that the contamination has put over 2 million people, livestock, and the entire riverine ecosystem in grave danger.
Calling the prolonged regulatory failure a “systemic collapse of governance”, the Court held that the unchecked discharge of untreated industrial effluents and municipal sewage for nearly 20 years amounts to a direct constitutional injury under Article 21 (Right to Life).
The Court also constituted a High-Level Ecosystem Oversight Committee, headed by Justice Sangeet Lodha (Retd.), armed with sweeping powers to inspect, audit, direct action, fix accountability, and prepare a full River Restoration Blueprint for the region.
The Supreme Court clarified that its earlier stay on the NGT order no longer protects polluters or blocks environmental clean-up, except for limited issues concerning remarks and compensation imposed on authorities.
This judgment is being hailed as one of the biggest environmental orders of 2025, with enormous implications for industrial regulation, municipal governance, public health, and constitutional environmental rights across India.
In Re: 2 Million Lives at Risk, Contamination in Jojari River, Rajasthan, 21-11-2025