Mahakumbh 2025: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has taken a tough stand on the issue of open defecation during the Kumbh Mela. The main bench of the NGT has issued a notice to the UP government seeking a reply on the petition seeking action against the lack of toilet facility at the Mahakumbh Mela. Apart from this, notice has also been issued to Prayagraj Mela Authority and Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board.
A petition was filed by Nipun Bhushan regarding open defecation in Mahakumbh. The petition said that despite the local authorities claiming to establish state-of-the-art bio-hallmarks to clean all dirt, including sewage, due to lack of these facilities or lack of hygiene, most people on the banks of river Ganges Forced to defecate in the open. The petition alleged that lakhs of common people and families are forced to defecate in the open along the Ganges river due to lack of adequate facilities.
In support of the arguments made in the application, the applicant has also attached a pen drive, which has video clips for open defecation in the river. Let us tell you that recently the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) filed a report before the main bench of the National Green Tribunal, in which shocking about the quality of river water during the ongoing Mahakumbh Mela in Prayagraj (UP) Conclusions have come out.
The report states that during the Kumbh, the water testing of the rivers in which people are bathing across the country have found a high level of fecal coliform (a mixture of human or animal stool). The NGT will now hear the case on 24 February. On this day, UP government, Prayagraj Mela Authority and Uttar Pradesh Control Board will have to present their side.
