Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The National Green Tribunal (NGT), by an order passed on January 28, 2026, has directed the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) to pay a penalty of ₹50,000 for failing to file its affidavit in connection with sand mining matters pending before the Tribunal.
The Tribunal has now rescheduled the hearing of the cases to February 16, 2026.
The matters pertain to 12 environment clearances (ECs) granted by the Goa State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (GSEIAA) on February 3, 2025, for regulating sand mining activities in the state. These ECs permitted sand mining in seven zones of the Mandovi river and five zones of the Zuari river.
However, the ECs were issued allegedly in contravention of law, as prior approval of the GCZMA is mandatory for granting such clearances in Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) areas. The clearances were challenged before the NGT through 12 separate appeals filed by the Goa River Sand Protection Network.
The primary contention raised in the appeals is that sand mining is not permitted under the CRZ Notification and, in fact, is explicitly prohibited in CRZ areas. It was also pointed out that the state government had attempted to persuade the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) to amend the CRZ notification to allow sand mining, but the proposal was rejected by the Ministry.
The appeals have been pending before the NGT for nearly a year. During the previous hearing, the Tribunal had granted GCZMA a final opportunity to file its affidavit. However, the authority failed to comply with the direction, prompting the Tribunal to impose the penalty.
The NGT has made it clear that procedural delays will not be tolerated, particularly in matters involving environmental protection, and has fixed February 16, 2026, for the next hearing in the case.
