Shillong: The High Court of Meghalaya ordered the Meghalaya State Pollution Control Board to test the Umtrew River. Water samples must go to the lab. Chief Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice W. Diengdoh issued the directive during a hearing about industrial pollution in Byrnihat. The court expects formal reports soon.
A state Health department report paints a grim picture. Nineteen people in the area have cancer. Some local industries restarted work after they answered show-cause notices. The court is now watching these sites closely.
Judges also turned their eyes to a bridge. They ordered Additional Advocate General N.D. Chullai to submit an affidavit with photos. He must prove that crews cleared the garbage dumped under the Umtrew River bridge. The court demanded accountability for the mess.
The Central Pollution Control Board must now act. The agency faces orders to file an affidavit on how the Assam Pollution Control Board and a task force plan to fix pollution on the Assam side of Byrnihat. The bench emphasized this work. "The court will continue to monitor the implementation of its orders to ensure environmental and public health safeguards in the industrial belt," the bench stated.
Administrative shifts also hit the case record. Counsel for the National Highways Authority of India noted that road projects shifted to the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited in 2025. The court ordered the Registry to add the corporation as a respondent to the ongoing litigation.
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