NGT has fined a Pune builder ₹1.7 crore for illegal construction without environmental clearance.
The case involved four residential buildings on Katraj–Kondhwa Road, treated as a single large project exceeding the legal size limit.
The fine will be used by MPCB for environmental restoration, while the tribunal stressed stricter compliance with green laws.
Pune, 30 August 2025: The National Green Tribunal (NGT), Western Zone Bench, has ordered a Pune-based real estate developer to pay ₹1.7 crore as compensation for environmental damage caused by unauthorised construction on Katraj–Kondhwa Road.
The ruling, delivered by Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh and expert member Vijay Kulkarni, came after a petition by resident Vishal Shantaram Darwatkar. The petitioner alleged that the developer carried out large-scale construction without mandatory permissions.
According to the case, the builder constructed three buildings between 2011 and 2016, followed by a fourth building completed in 2023. Though the developer claimed these were separate projects, the tribunal ruled they formed a single integrated development.
Since the total built-up area exceeded 20,000 square metres, the project required prior environmental clearance along with approvals from the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) and the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA). Both agencies confirmed that no such permissions were obtained.
Referring to the Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling in the Goel Ganga Developers case, the tribunal imposed a penalty amounting to five percent of the project’s estimated ₹34 crore cost. The developer has been directed to deposit ₹1.7 crore with the MPCB within one month. The tribunal also instructed MPCB to utilise the money for environmental restoration within six months and submit a compliance report.
The petitioner further alleged violations such as illegal groundwater extraction, narrowing of a natural stream, absence of a proper sewage treatment plant, and inadequate green cover. The tribunal noted that the case reflected a clear disregard for environmental safeguards.
Emphasising the responsibility of real estate developers, the bench observed that builders cannot bypass environmental rules. The compensation, it said, was meant both to penalise violations and to help repair the ecological damage caused by the project.