Dehradun: The Uttarakhand high court on Monday banned all construction activity within 200 metres of all rivers in the state — including the Ganga and its tributaries such as the Alaknanda, Bhagirathi, Mandakini, Pindar, Kali and Gouri — with immediate effect. In 2000 the Uttar Pradesh government had allowed various religious organizations and trusts to construct dharmshalas and other ‘religious’ buildings within 200 metres of the Ganga. The court order came over two months after flashfloods and landslides caused widespread damage in Rudrapryag, Chamoli and Uttarkashi districts. A HC bench of chief justice Barin Ghosh and justice Sarvesh Gupta issued the order on a PIL filed by a Rishikeshbased social activist, Sanjay Vyas, about three months ago. Vyas had said that allowing religious organizations and trusts to construct dharamshalas near the Ganga had led to the mushrooming of such buildings along the river over the years.