NGT announces Rs 5,000 fine for littering on Railway track

In a significant decision, the National Green Tribunal, NGT, has announced a fine of Rs 5,000 on individuals spotted littering or throwing waste on the railway platforms and tracks.

A bench, headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar, passed a slew of directions to the Railways and other authorities for maintaining cleanliness on railway tracks.

The Tribunal directed the Railways to place dustbins after identifying exact locations for collection of garbage. NGT also directed the Railways to collect, transport and treat the waste at the treatment plants instead of directly releasing the garbage into sewer system.

The green bench also asked the concerned authorities to install mobile toilets near slum clusters in order to control pollution caused by plastic products and human defecation around railway tracks.

The Tribunal’s direction came on a petition filed by lawyers Saloni Singh and Arush Pathania seeking a blanket ban on use and sale of plastic products on railway platforms across the country besides a ban on open defecation by people around tracks.