Keralam govt requests NGT to exempt it from creating ring-fenced account for liquid waste management
The Kerala government has petitioned the National Green Tribunal to allow the use of its existing decentralized local governance framework for waste management instead of creating a centralized, ring-fenced account. Officials argue that centralizing funds would create administrative bottlenecks and hinder the operational autonomy of local self-government institutions.
Why it matters
This case highlights the tension between judicial mandates for centralized financial oversight and the practical implementation of decentralized governance models in environmental policy.
The Keralam government has requested the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to execute various environmental restoration, sewage and solid waste management projects through its existing decentralised plan for local self-government institutions instead of creating a separate, ring-fenced account for it.
The Principal Bench of the tribunal in New Delhi had earlier asked the authorities to set up a single, centralised ring-fenced account at the State level to deposit the funds earmarked as ‘environmental compensation’ for improper waste management. It had objected to the inclusion of funds received under various schemes, including the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme, into the ring-fenced account.
A report submitted by the Department of Local Self Government (LSGD) to the tribunal said that “creating an exclusive ring-fenced account to deposit hundreds of crores in environmental compensation is administratively daunting and contrary to the model of democratic decentralisation practised in the State”.
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