The Supreme Court has raised significant concerns about the unchecked dumping of plastic and other waste materials into water bodies, warning that this pollution is severely degrading the environment and harming aquatic life.

A bench comprising Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justice SVN Bhatti stressed that without a coordinated effort from authorities and public cooperation, attempts to address illegal constructions and improve water quality in rivers, including the Ganga, will be "illusory."

"The dumping of plastic is causing serious environmental degradation and also impacting aquatic life in the riverbanks and the water bodies in the country. Unless a concerted effort is made by the responsible authorities with people’s cooperation, irrespective of the efforts to target illegal/unauthorized constructions, the desired improvement of the quality of the water in River Ganga/all other rivers and water bodies in the country will remain illusory,” the bench stated in its August 2 order.

The Court has given Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, representing the Union of India and the National Mission for Clean Ganga, four weeks to file an affidavit addressing the environmental concerns outlined in the order.

Bihar, represented by advocate Azmat Hayat Amanullah, was also instructed to submit an affidavit within the same timeframe, detailing steps taken to address unauthorized constructions along the Ganga in and around Patna.

This directive followed advocate Akash Vashishtha’s arguments on behalf of petitioner Ashok Kumar Sinha, emphasizing the issue of indiscriminate plastic dumping in the Ganga and other water bodies. Vashishtha urged the bench to protect India’s natural resources from the threats of plastic pollution and unauthorized construction, which continue to endanger water bodies.

The Supreme Court’s order builds on a December 1, 2023 directive, which required the Bihar government to identify and remove unauthorized constructions adjacent to the Ganga. The state reported it had identified 213 such illegal constructions and was working to remove them.

On August 2, the Bihar government sought clarification of the 2023 order, which stated that “no further construction” would take place adjacent to the Ganga, particularly in and around Patna. Bhati and Amanullah noted that the original wording might be misconstrued, as it did not specify that only unauthorized and illegal constructions were condemned.