Srinagar, Aug. 1 -- On Friday, however, came a breather.

At a hearing in New Delhi, officials from NIT Srinagar and the Deputy Commissioner of Pulwama told the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that no land had been acquired for the proposed campus at Qariwa Ranbirpora near Newa.

Based on their sworn affidavits, the tribunal dismissed a petition filed earlier this year by environmental activist Dr. Raja Muzaffar Bhat.

The bench, led by Justice Prakash Srivastava, concluded that the case was premature. But it left a door open.

If authorities move ahead with the project in the future, Dr. Bhat, or anyone else, can return to the tribunal.

The relief was immediate and visible across the cluster of villages bordering the Karewa. "This is our ...