Art of Living Foundation must pay remaining fine for damaging Yamuna floodplains: NGT

-Down to Earth

Sri Sri Ravishankar’s organisation went back on its commitment to pay the fine for hosting a three-day festival that affected Yamuna floodplains

The Art of Living Foundation, which is led by spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravishankar, must pay remaining Rs 4.75-crore fine for hosting a massive festival on the banks of the River Yamuna in Delhi, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) said today.

Strongly criticising organisation for going ahead with the three-day "World Culture Festival" on the banks of the River Yamuna, the country's top environment court said that the organisation has tried multiple legal cases "in order not to pay the fine" and that questions the "conduct of the foundation’.

The Art of Living paid Rs 2,500,000 last year and then went back on its commitment. An expert committee had told the NGT in August 2016 that the festival had "completely destroyed" the riverbed.

Hundreds of thousands of devotees attended the event at what was called the world's largest stage, spreading over seven acres. It was alleged that the permission given to the festival was vague, in excess of the powers vested in the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and not in consonance with the previous orders of the NGT.

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