The National Green Tribunal has pulled up the district magistrate of Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh, for repeatedly missing deadlines to file a report on alleged illegal and midstream mining in the district. The Tribunal has imposed a fine of ₹10,000 on the officer for what it described as a lack of prompt compliance with its orders.

In an order dated November 13, a bench led by NGT Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and expert member A. Senthil Vel recorded that the Tribunal had, back in April, constituted a joint committee to examine allegations of unlawful mining activity. The district magistrate was designated the nodal officer of this committee, which also included representatives from the Ministry of Environment’s Lucknow regional office, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), a

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