Category: News
The Himachal Pradesh High Court has ordered a strict ban on commercial stalls and tents within 100 metres of Renuka Ji Lake, Parshuram Tal and the sacred Parikrama route during the Renuka Ji Fair, which runs from 19 to 24 November 2026. The court has also banned loudspeakers and amplified sound systems inside the wildlife sanctuary, and ordered 100 temporary toilets and curbs on plastic use for the fair.
A Division Bench of Chief Justice G.S. Sandhawalia and Justice Bipin C. Negi issued the directions on 4 November 2026 while hearing a batch of petitions, including CWPIL No. 46 of 2024, about environmental protection and arrangements in and around the Renuka Ji area in Sirmaur district.
What the court ordered
The court said no commercial stalls or tents will be allowed inside a 100-metre buffer zone around Renuka Ji Lake, Parshuram Tal and the Parikrama route. All commercial activity must stay on the designated mela grounds and must not block the sacred Parikrama route that devotees walk around the lake.
On noise pollution, the bench directed that loudspeakers and amplified sound systems shall not be used within the sanctuary limits. Cultural stages must be moved outside the sanctuary, and the Himachal Pradesh Pollution Control Board will monitor daily noise levels, with the forest and police departments enforcing silence zones around the lakefront temples.
The court also ordered 100 temporary toilets to be set up for the fair, restricted the use of plastic, and formed an inspection committee comprising the amicus curiae, district nominees and wildlife officials to oversee sanitation before and after the fair.
Why the court stepped in
The bench pulled up the authorities over severe environmental damage during previous fairs, including plastic littering around the lake and stray cattle eating waste. Renuka Ji is an ecologically fragile wetland and wildlife sanctuary, and the court said the fair’s arrangements must protect it, not damage it.
The matter has been listed for further hearing and compliance review on 15 December 2026, after the fair ends.
About the Renuka Ji Fair
The Renuka Ji Fair is one of Himachal Pradesh’s biggest religious gatherings, held every year at Renuka Lake in Sirmaur district to mark the meeting of Lord Parshuram with his mother Renuka. Lakhs of devotees visit the lake during the six-day fair, which runs from 19 to 24 November this year.
Visitors planning to attend should expect the commercial stalls to be set away from the lakefront this year, with quieter surroundings near the temples and the Parikrama route kept clear for devotees.
Source: ANI, 4 November 2026; Inshorts, 5 November 2026.
