In the history of environmental movements in India,
the period from the 1980s onwards witnessed a peculiar phase. Following the
Emergency of 1975, the judiciary had already begun to take a much greater role
in the functioning of the government. Several environment matters relating
land, air and water were brought to the Supreme Court through an innovative
mechanism; Public Interest Litigations. In many of the
pollution related cases, the courts gave sweeping orders to shift the sites of
production or to shut down manufacture besides deciding on penalties, fines and
compensations.
The judiciary
established itself as the forest administrator by implementing compensatory
aforestation, plantation and other conservation issues. These establishments
led to the formation of National Green Tribunal (NGT). NGT have been empowered to issue directions
for the compensation and restitution of damage caused from actions of
environmental negligence. One of the unprecedented implications of
environmental clearances by NGT was it allowed a 5000MW thermal power plant to
operate on 121 conditions in June 2010. Compensatory Afforestation Planning and
Management (CAMPA) are meant to promote afforestation and regeneration
activities as a way of compensating for forest land diverted to non-forest
uses.
The judiciary took
effective measures to curb out atmospheric pollution which includes air, water
and noise pollution. These matters came under the Ministry of Health and
Welfare and the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, of the Economic
Planning Agency, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Ministry
of Construction and the Ministry of International Trade and Industry
respectively. However Ministry of health and welfare is commonly responsible
for all of them.
However, the efforts
of the judiciary in resorting to the ‘Polluter Pays’ principle has only
supported this trend as the ‘penalties’ have only helped to streamline
industrialization at the cost of environment rather than provide any justice to
those aggrieved by such developments.
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