The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has barred any construction along the Gomti river in Lucknow that violates the River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Authorities Order, 2016, while hearing a plea alleging that the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) is carrying out projects within the river’s floodplain without mandatory approval.NGT issues notices to LDA and other respondents, grants four weeks to reply, next hearing scheduled for August 25. (Sourced)Passing an interim order on July 9, a bench comprising NGT chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and expert member Afroz Ahmad directed that no construction be undertaken on the riverbank or active floodplain of the Gomti, a tributary of the Ganga, in violation of the 2016 order.The NGT also issued notices to the LDA and other respondents, granting them four weeks to file their replies. The matter has been listed for further hearing on August 25.Meanwhile, LDA vice chairman Prathamesh Kumar said the authority was carrying out construction only after obtaining the required permissions. “Hon’ble NGT has asked for no construction to be done in contravention of any rules/acts. We are doing construction after taking the due permission,” Kumar told Hindustan Times.Notably, the order came on an application filed by Lucknow-based environmentalist and advocate Alok Singh, who alleged that the LDA is constructing embankments, a four-lane road and several high-rise buildings along the Gomti, including within the riverbed and its floodplain.Singh argued that since the Gomti is a tributary of the Ganga, the provisions of the River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Authorities Order, 2016, issued by the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, apply to the river in full.According to the application, Singh had submitted a complaint to the director general of the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) on January 5, 2026, objecting to the alleged construction activities. The NMCG subsequently wrote to the Lucknow district magistrate, who is also the chairperson of the District Ganga Committee, and the Uttar Pradesh chief secretary on January 9, asking them to take necessary action.The applicant alleged that despite the communication, the construction continued.During the hearing, counsel appearing for the state authorities submitted that no construction in violation of the 2016 order could be permitted. Taking note of the submission, the NGT directed, as an interim measure, that no construction work in violation of the River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Authorities Order, 2016, shall be carried out.The NGT referred to key provisions of the 2016 order, which declare the banks and active floodplains of the Ganga and its tributaries as construction-free zones to reduce pollution and preserve groundwater recharge. The order prohibits permanent or temporary residential, commercial, industrial or other structures on the riverbank or active floodplain, except in specified circumstances such as natural calamities or religious events with prior permission from the NMCG.It also makes prior approval from the NMCG mandatory for the construction of bridges, associated roads, embankments, ghats, jetties and other hydraulic structures on the Ganga, its tributaries or their floodplains.