📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Trinidade
Business
National Green Tribunal suspends environmental clearance for Mormugao port channel deepening
✍️ The Times of India
🗓 13 Oct 2026, 06:32 AM
👁 12
The National Green Tribunal has ordered a halt to the environmental clearance for the deepening of the navigation channel at Mormugao port in Goa, citing potential ecological impacts.
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) issued an order on Wednesday to stay the environmental clearance granted for the proposed deepening of the navigation channel at Mormugao port in Goa. The tribunal said the clearance was issued without adequate assessment of the potential impact on marine ecology and coastal habitats.
The deepening project, aimed at allowing larger vessels to berth at the port, had been approved by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change earlier this year. NGT's intervention comes after several environmental groups raised concerns about sediment disruption, mangrove loss and threats to local fisheries.
Port authorities have been instructed to suspend any further work on the channel until the tribunal reviews the case and directs a comprehensive environmental impact study. The decision may affect cargo handling capacity and timelines for upcoming infrastructure upgrades at the port.
The NGT will hear detailed submissions from the Ministry, the port trust and environmental NGOs in the coming weeks, with a final order expected before the end of the month.
The deepening project, aimed at allowing larger vessels to berth at the port, had been approved by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change earlier this year. NGT's intervention comes after several environmental groups raised concerns about sediment disruption, mangrove loss and threats to local fisheries.
Port authorities have been instructed to suspend any further work on the channel until the tribunal reviews the case and directs a comprehensive environmental impact study. The decision may affect cargo handling capacity and timelines for upcoming infrastructure upgrades at the port.
The NGT will hear detailed submissions from the Ministry, the port trust and environmental NGOs in the coming weeks, with a final order expected before the end of the month.