Everyday hundreds of Barges, mostly belonging to Bangladesh, carry fly ash from the Indian ports of Kolkata and Haldia in West Bengal to Bangladesh ports like Khulna, Mongla or Chattagram. Fly ash from India feeds cement factories in Bangladesh. The navigation route of cargo vessels cuts across Sundarban mangrove forests in both India and Bangladesh – the largest nursery of fish in Bay of Bengal and the only mangrove tiger habitat on this planet. Indian Sundarban has seven conservation regimes on it. Sundarban’s water area harbours prime estuarine fishing grounds. Besides stretches of Hooghly river falling in the cargo navigation route have been declared as Hilsa Sanctuary. In Indian side at least 100 thousand small scale and artisanal fishing communities are dependent upon the fisheries in River Hooghly and the Sundarbans for their survival and livelihood. Fly ash is a well known toxic and hazardous industrial waste that arises out of burning of coal in thermal power plants and other industries. Capsize of ships and barges laden with fly ash pollutes a large water area adjacent to the place of capsize and not only that, it is always related with oil spill from the sunk vessels. Moreover, the capsized boat and associated rescue activities make the area inaccessible for fishing. The sunken structures continue to damage fishing nets and boats by entanglements and collisions. Frequent sinking of the ships and barges indicates that the vessels are not seaworthy. They are old and mostly over their operational life. Dakshinbanga Matsyajibi Forum (DMF) had repeatedly moved the Inland Waterways Authority of India, Kolkata Port Trust, Government of West Bengal and the State Pollution Control Board with the following demands – – Immediate hauling up of the fly ash laden sunken ships from the river; – Taking precautionary measure against dumping of fly ash loaded in the ship into the river; – Assess the damage inflicted to water environment and fish resources and make the concerned shipping company pay for it; – Compensate the fishers whose livelihood has been affected by the ship or barge capsize; – Take immediate measure to stop sailing of old and non-seaworthy ships or barges in the Indo-Bangladesh navigation route; – Stop cargo ship navigation through eco-sensitive zones like Hilsa Sanctuary and Sundarban and make alternative arrangement for cargo transport. Failing to get any appropriate response from the concerned authorities Dakshinbanga Matsyajibi Forum (DMF) was compelled to move the National Green Tribunal (NGT) by preferring an application under Section 14 read with section 15 of the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 raising substantial questions relating to the environment which affects the community at large as defined under Section 2(m) of the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010. DMF gratefully acknowledges the legal counselling and support given by the Legal Initiative for Forest and Environment [LIFE] in filing the case in NGT. DMF also acknowledges the inputs provided by Avli Verma and Shripad Dharmadhikari of Manthan Adhyan Kendra in developing necessary understanding of the issues related to inland waterways.