According to data submitted by Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) to the National Green Tribunal (NGT), local authorities are yet to address nearly 54% identified sources that are polluting rivers and other water bodies in Panjab. A status report filed by PPCB revealed that out of 1,511 polluting point sources identified across Panjab, action was completed against 692. However, 819 sources, or 54.2%, continued to discharge pollutants into rivers and other water bodies. The break-up of polluting sources placed before the NGT shows that the Department of Rural Development and Panchayats account for the highest number of pending cases. Out of 800 polluting sources identified under the department, only 290 were closed, leaving 510 sources still discharging wastewater. The report by PPCB also includes a tentative action plan for the renovation of 510 village ponds to which NGT has sought strict compliance with timelines. Meanwhile, Panjab Indian National Congress party president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring demanded a statewide environmental audit, citing excessive sand mining in riverbeds, along riverbanks and near road and railway bridges. He said the devastating floods witnessed in Panjab in 2025 should act as a warning of a serious environmental threat if immediate corrective steps are not taken. Furthermore, the Panjab and Haryana High Court has put on hold the implementation of contentious provisions of the Punjab Unified Building Rules (PUBR), 2025. A Division Bench passed the interim order on a petition filed by two residents Harbinder Singh Sekhon and Jasinder Singh Sekhon who had said that the newly notified PUBR were inconsistent with existing laws, including the Punjab Fire Prevention and Fire Safety Act, 2004, and the National Building Code of India, 2016. The petitioners’ lawyers argued that new rules were framed keeping in mind the constitution of a Real Estate Advisory Committee that ‘mainly will comprise private developers, colonizers, and promoters, who have vested business interests and have, thus, ignored the public interest.’ The rules permitted construction up to stilt plus four floors even on residential plots situated along 40-feet-wide roads and in certain cases allowed ground coverage up to 100% for commercial buildings in core areas and extended an option to owners of plots abutting roads of 60 feet or more to opt for construction (earlier coverage).
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