The Madras High Court, on Tuesday, adjourned to August 20, 2026, the hearing on a batch of cases, including the one filed by CREDAI-Chennai chapter, challenging the ban imposed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on new construction approvals on 8,584.44 acres of land located within a distance of 1 km around the boundaries of Pallikaranai marsh land, a Ramsar site.

First Division Bench of Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan said they were inclined to set aside the blanket ban imposed by the NGT even before the determination of the ‘zone of influence’ around the wetland. They, however, did not want the lifting of the ban by the court to be mistaken as licence for indiscriminate constructions around the marshland.

The judges insisted there must be a balance between the need to preserve the environment by protecting the sources of water to the wetland and the need for infrastructure development. They directed Additional Advocate General P.V. Balasubramaniam to come up with suggestions on areas where constructions could be permitted and those where they could be banned until the final determination of ‘zone of influence.’

The judges granted two weeks’ time to submit the suggestions and said they shall pass further orders after analysing the matter in detail.