"We hold respondent no. 3 (Art of Living) responsible for the damage to the Yamuna floodplains," green tribunal head Justice Swatanter Kumar said in his order.
The verdict comes after a report by an environmental experts panel accused the organisation of causing extensive damage to the Yamuna floodplains in Delhi during the World Culture Festival in 2016.
The NGT has already find the Art of Living Rs 5 crore for the damage and said the amount would be used to restore the fragile floodplains.
"In case more funds are required, Art of Living will have to pay," the NGT chief said. However, if restoration costs less, the remaining amount of the already deposited Rs 5 crore will be refunded.
The green court also asked the capital's lead planning body, the Delhi Development Authority, to do a fresh assessment of how much money would be required to restore the damaged floodplains.
Environmentalists had vocally objected to organising the World Culture Festival on the ecologically fragile Yamuna banks -- which included a 7-acre stage for 35,000 musicians and dancers, newly built dirt tracks and 650 portable toilets across 1,000 acres.
The Art of Living has denied it caused any damage to the banks, alleging that it has been a victim of a "conspiracy".
"We have never caused any damage to the environment but have in fact worked for preserving and reviving it through various environment-related projects over the years," the organisation said.
The research team evaluated three classroom-based wellness training programs that incorporate breathing and emotional intelligence strategies, finding that two led to improvements in aspects of wellbeing.
The most effective programme led to improvements in six areas, including depression and social connectedness.
The researchers, who reported findings in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry, said such resiliency training programmes could be a valuable tool for addressing the mental health crisis on university campuses.
"Student mental health has been on the decline over the last 10 years, and with the pandemic and racial tensions, things have only gotten worse," said study lead author Emma Seppala from the Yale University in the US.
For the findings, the research team conducted the study, which tested three skill-building training programs on 135 undergraduate subjects for eight weeks (30 hours total) and measured results against those of a non-intervention control group.
They found that a training programme called SKY Campus Happiness, developed by the Art of Living Foundation, which relies on a breathing technique called SKY Breath Meditation, yoga postures, social connection, and service activities, was most beneficial.
Following the SKY sessions, students reported improvements in six areas of wellbeing: depression, stress, mental health, mindfulness, positive affect, and social connectedness.A second programme called Foundations of Emotional Intelligence, developed by the Yale resulted in one improvement: greater mindfulness -- the ability for students to be present and enjoy the moment.
A third programme called Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, which relies heavily on mindfulness techniques, resulted in no reported improvements.
"Now that I have these techniques to help me, I would say that my mentality is a lot healthier," study participant Davornne Lindo said.
"I can devote time to studying and not melting down. Races have gone better. Times are dropping." Another participant in the SKY programme," Lindo added.
Anna Wilkinson, who participated in the study, said she was not familiar with the positive benefits of breathing exercises before the training, but now uses the technique regularly.
"I didn't realise how much of it was physiology, how you control the things inside you with breathing. I come out of breathing and meditation as a happier, more balanced person, which is something I did not expect at all," Wilkinson said.
(IANS)
You May Also Read:
Mental Illness Of Two Sons Forces Odisha Family To Seek Govt Help
For A Strong Immune System Add Protein & Vitamins To Your Diet