NGT chucks Chhath-at-Lake plea

KOLKATA: On the eve of Chhath Puja, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has refused to entertain any plea on Rabindra Sarobar, effectively shutting out devotees’ hopes of performing puja at the Lake this year.

The NGT decision to stay firm on its order was welcomed by environmentalists and green activists. But they also cautioned that the effectiveness of the ban on polluting the lakes depended on the administration’s will to enforce it. Around 30,000 devotees performed Chhath Puja at Sarobar last year.


A functionary of Rashtriya Bihari Samaj, an organisation that represents the interests of Chhath devotees, said it would not undermine the NGT order and advised devotees to avoid Rabindra Sarobar this year. It plans to move the apex court on the issue after the festival.

At Rabindra Sarobar, an eerie calm prevailed on Monday with police officers remaining evasive on measures planned to enforce the order. A small section of the pathway at the far east of the lake has been barricaded. But it appeared inadequate to contain a large group of devotees should they turn up on Tuesday.

“We will abide by the court order,” an officer at Lalbazar said, but did not disclose measures being taken to either divert devotees to other venues or prevent them from storming in. Sources though said police would tread with caution and not resort to tough measures should devotees land up in large numbers. That the police have asked KMDA to organize women private security guards, along with the 56 guards who are currently on duty at the Lake hinted at such a strategy.

“Police had begun erecting barricades at the lake’s entrance near the Buddha temple on Sunday but removed some of them on Monday morning, apparently to ensure it did not inconvenience walkers. The barricades may be reinstalled on Tuesday morning. But nothing has been done to large parts of the lake, including the section opposite Menoka Cinema. Unless a large police contingent is deployed to maintain law an oder, we could easily be overpowered by a crowd,” said a private security staff at the Lake.

A government official was more forthright about the situation. “You cannot expect police to barricade the Lake and keep devotees away unless there is order from the top. Had an unambiguous message been sent out, requesting Chhath devotees to go to alternative venues, the police would have been more proactive,” he reasoned.

Green activist Subhas Datta, whose petition led to the NGT order, is also wary of Monday’s developments in the absence of adequate administrative support.

“The government has acted with purpose to stop dumping of flowers and leaves into the river during immersion of Durga, Kali, Ganesh and other idols. How can it allow it in the Lake where the water is stagnant? Rabindra Sarobar, the second-largest green patch in this urban jungle, is our heritage and we must protect it for the future generation at all costs,” said Datta.

Mani Prasad Singh, president of Rashtriya Bihari Samaj, who had approached the NGT hoping to present the case that would grant a relaxation this year, admitted being disappointed at the refusal to even file a plea. Though he claimed that the organisation would do nothing to undermine the court order, he also made it known that it was not party to a meeting that Kolkata Police and KMDA had held on the issue.

Environmentalist S M Ghosh, who is a regular at the Lake, said the police needed to secure the lake with a stronger fence and deployment of adequate force to enforce the order. But fellow morning walker Siddhartha Adhikary felt if people were still not concerned about pollution and the need to keep the lake clean, there was little to hope for by way of enforcement.