The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) to recover the remaining Rs 66 lakh environmental compensation from the Municipal Council, Kurali. The penalty has been imposed for violations of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016.The directions were issued by the Principal Bench of the NGT comprising of NGT Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and Expert Member Dr Afroz Ahmad, while disposing of application filed by Amarjit Singh and others. The matter concerned the alleged dumping of municipal solid waste at a landfill site on Siswan Road, Kurali, without the required permission and in violation of environmental norms.The Tribunal, in its order dated August 13, stated that remedial and punitive action had been initiated during the pendency of the case. The Municipal Council, Kurali, informed the Tribunal that the municipal solid waste dump at the site had been cleared and no legacy waste remained.It also stated that fresh dumping had stopped and a resolution had been passed on February 23, 2026, to close the sanitary landfill at Siswan road.As per the MC affidavit, it had constructed a resource management centre at the Siswan Road site comprising three all-weather sheds and 84 compost pits for wet waste. It also constructed an adjoining sanitary landfill facility and applied to the PPCB for authorisation.However, the permission was denied because the site was located less than 200 metres from a highway and a water body. Subsequently, the council passed a resolution to close the landfill and issued public notices seeking a new site compliant with the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016.The PPCB told the Tribunal that environmental compensation totalling Rs 86 lakh had been imposed on the Municipal Council, Kurali, for violations of the Solid Waste Management Rules during the period from July 1, 2020, to December 31, 2025.The council has so far deposited only Rs 20 lakh, leaving Rs 66 lakh outstanding. The PPCB’s compliance report detailed successive compensation orders covering different periods between July 2020 and December 2025.The Tribunal was also informed that the PPCB was in the process of filing a complaint before the adjudicating officer against the Municipal Council, Kurali, and its Executive Officer for violation of the Solid Waste Management Rules. The Board stated that following amendments to the Environment (Protection) Act through the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023, punitive provisions had been replaced by financial penalties.The NGT directed the PPCB to ascertain whether there had been any violation after the period for which compensation had already been imposed and, if so, levy environmental compensation for the subsequent period.It further directed the PPCB to take effective steps to recover the outstanding Rs 66 lakh from the Kurali MC. After recovery of the compensation, the PPCB, in coordination with the Deputy Commissioner and Divisional Forest Officer, has been directed to prepare a restoration plan to remediate the environmental damage caused by the illegal dumping and ensure its execution.