Indian environmental law explained

Indian environmental law concerns the law and policy of India concerning the protection of the environment, measures taken to reverse climate change and achieve a zero carbon economy.

Since the sixties concern over the state of environment has grown the world over. There has been substantive decline in environment quality due to increasing pollution, loss of vegetal cover and biological diversity, excessive concentration of harmful chemicals in the ambient atmosphere and in food chains, growing risks of environment accidents and threats to life support systems. The Decision which were taken at united nation conference on the human conference on the Human Environment held in Stockholm in June 1972 were based on the world community's resolve to protect and enhance the environmental concerns. Although several measures had been taken for environmental Protection both before and after the Conference it was found necessary to enact a comprehensive law on the subject to implement the decision of the conference. Accordingly the Environment (Protection) Bill passed was introduced in the Parliament Various different areas of environmental protection have been covered by different laws, drawn up at different times.

Some of the areas covered include :-

• Air pollution
• Water pollution
• Forest and wildlife protection
• Waste management
• Wild Life

As with environmental protection legislation in many countries, the regulations are only effective if they are properly enforced, which hasn't always been the case in India, for a number of reasons, some of which are down to local administrative authorities.

Because of the huge population of India, there have been enormous demands placed on the environment, with the regulations not proving to be entirely satisfactory in dealing with the tremendous pressures.

General protection

The Environment Protection Act, 1986.^[1] is enforced by the Central Pollution Control Board and the numerous State Pollution Control Boards.

• The National Green Tribunal established under the National Green Tribunal Act of 2010^[2] has jurisdiction over all environmental cases dealing with a substantial environmental question and acts covered under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.
• The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991
• National Green Tribunal Act

1. Air pollution

• The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981
• Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) (Union Territories) Rules, 1983

Water

Legislation to protect water quality include:

• The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974
• The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977
• Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Rules, 1978
• Ganga Action Plan, 1986
• National Water Policy
• Coastal Regulation Zone
• Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal
• Interstate River Water Disputes Act
• Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal

Forests and wildlife

• Indian Forest Act, 1927
• Wild life protection act, 1972
• Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980
• National Forest Policy, 1988
• M. C. Mehta v. Kamal Nath (1997) 1 SCC 388
  • Biological Diversity Act, 2002 Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act, 2001
• Wild Life Protection Act, 1972, which does not fall within the jurisdiction of the National Green Tribunal.^[3] Appeals can be filed in the Supreme Court of India.^[4]
• Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960
  • • CAMPA bill

Waste management

• Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules, 2001
• Recycled Plastics, Plastics Manufacture and Usage Rules, 1999
• Basel Convention on Control of TransboundaryMovements on Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, 1989 and Its Protocols
• Hazardous Wastes (Management and Handling) Amendment Rules, 2003^[5]
• Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules, 2016

See also

• Environmental policy of the European Union
• Environmental law
• United Kingdom environmental law
• United States environmental law
• Environmental policy in China
• ASME’s 2019 Advanced Clean Energy Summit - Nuclear Power’s Role in Combating Climate Change

Further reading

• Saravanan, Velayutham. Environmental History of Modern India: Land, Population, Technology and Development (Bloomsbury Publishing India, 2022) online review[[[Category:Environmental law]]

Notes and References

1. Web site: THE ENVIRONMENT (PROTECTION) ACT, 1986. envfor.nic.in. 2015-08-27. https://web.archive.org/web/20020613044316/http://envfor.nic.in/legis/env/env1.html. 2002-06-13. dead.
2. Web site: Archived copy . 2017-11-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130810151851/http://moef.nic.in/downloads/public-information/NGT-fin.pdf . 2013-08-10 . dead .
3. Web site: THE INDIAN WILDLIFE (PROTECTION) ACT, 1972. envfor.nic.in. 2015-08-27.
4. Rhuks Temitope, "THE JUDICIAL RECOGNITION AND ENFORCEMENT OF THE RIGHT TO ENVIRONMENT:DIFFERING PERSPECTIVES FROM NIGERIA AND INDIA", NUJS LAW REVIEW, 2 January 2015
5. Book: Surendra Malik, Sudeep Malik. Supreme Court on Environment Law. 2015 . EBC. India. 9789351451914. 2015.