In yet another set back to the Art of Living foundation, a National Green Tribunal (NGT) appointed committee of experts said that the cultural festival hosted by the spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's organisation completely destroyed the riverbed of Yamuna. "The committee observes that entire floodplain area used for the main event site i.e. between DND flyover and the Barapulla drain (on the right bank of river Yamuna) has been completely destroyed, not simply damaged. The ground is now totally levelled, compacted and hardened and is totally devoid of water bodies or depressions and almost completely devoid of any vegetation,"  the report submitted on July 28 said.

The committee headed by Justice Swatanter Kumar noted that due to the three-day event, the floodplain has lost "almost all its natural vegetation" like trees, shrubs, tall grasses, aquatic vegetation including water hyacinth, which provides habitat to large number of animals, insects and mud-dwelling organisms. Speaking to the newspaper, The Art of Living has refuted the report and said that the NGT is yet to hear their application for reconstitution of the commitee and the allegations of environmental damage are unscientific, biased and unsustianable. The NGT will hear the matter next on September 28.