India, April 28 -- A petition filed before the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has flagged a "grave and continuing environmental crisis" in Haryana, marked by widespread waterlogging, soil salinity and severe groundwater depletion.

Filed before the tribunal's principal bench by Jai Singh, a farmer from Bhiwani district, through counsels Gaurav Arya and Naveen Bamel, the plea states that nearly 982,000 acres are affected by waterlogging and salinisation, while over 60% of groundwater assessment units are categorised as "over-exploited". Around 174,000 acres fall in severely affected zones where the water table is as shallow as 0 to 1.5 metres, the petition claims.

The application traces the crisis to structural failure in water management ...