Context:

• The southern Bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has slapped a fine of over ₹2 crore on the Public Works Department; the Ports and Fisheries Department, Udupi.
• The Tribunal was set up as per recommendations of the Supreme Court, Law Commission and India’s international law obligations to develop national laws on the environment and implement them effectively.

About NGT

• The National Green Tribunal was established IN 2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010.
• Its main role is
  • effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and conservation of forests and other natural resources.
  • enforcement of any legal right relating to the environment and
  • giving relief and compensation for damages to persons and property.
• It is a specialized body equipped with the necessary expertise to handle environmental disputes involving multi-disciplinary issues.
• The Tribunal shall not be bound by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, but shall be guided by principles of natural justice.
• The Tribunal is mandated to make an endeavor for disposal of applications or appeals within 6 months of filing of the same.
• The Tribunal’s orders are binding and it has power to grant relief in the form of compensation and damages to affected persons.
• The laws covered by NGT:
  • The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974;
  • The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977;
  • The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980;
  • The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981;
  • The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986; ○ The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991; ○ The Biological Diversity Act, 2002.

Pros of the NGT

• Multidisciplinary approach to the complex environmental questions.
• Access to special bodies to address various environmental issues.
• As it follows principles of natural justice, it can ensure speedy, cost effective redressal of the issues.
• The limit of 6 months is a key step in speed resolution of cases and hence speedy implementation and reduction in the pendency.
• This court can rightly be called ‘special’ because India is the third country following Australia and New Zealand to have such a system.
• The National Green Tribunal is India’s first dedicated environmental court with a wide jurisdiction to deal with not only violations of environmental laws, but also to provide for compensation, relief and restoration of the ecology in accordance with the ‘Polluter Pays’ principle and powers to enforce the ‘precautionary principle’.
• The commencement of this Tribunal is a giant step forward towards achieving environmental democracy

The role of NGT is evident in successful cases like the fine on Goel Ganga construction in Pune, steps on Delhi air pollution and related judgements on crackers in Diwali.

Issues and challenges

Yet there are many issues that impede it’s working

• Vacancies in critical posts like in members. Under the NGT Act 2010, the tribunal has to have a full-time chairperson and up to 20 judicial and expert members each. However this is hardly met.
• Pendency of the cases and consequent delay in judgments.
• Poor quality of judgements.
• Shortfall of experts among the members. Since 2014, only IFS officers have been appointed as experts, although the NGT’s realm extends beyond forests to air, water, noise pollution, hazardous substances, among other environmental issues.
• Role of government in appointments and functioning of the NGT and members and budgetary dependence on the government.
• Weak administrative support from the central government.
• There is no institutional mechanism to ensure that the environmental regulatory authorities comply with the orders of the tribunal.

Way forward

• The United Kingdom’s Environment Agency (EA) is financially much more It is sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). NGT should have been provided more powers similar to EA in the field of jurisdiction and infrastructure, and these powers should be subject to judicial review.
• Other country laws (polluters pay principle) related to the environment should also be included within the ambit of the NGT Act.
• It also needs to apply certain effective systems along with the traditional so that justice can be achieved at a grassroots level.
• Further there should be independence from the government in working, appointment etc.
• It should have more power with respect to implementation of its orders.
• There should be a clear cut policy on calculation of fines on violation of environmental laws.

Conclusion

• The need of the hour is to realise the balance between development and environment. For this we need an efficient and professional NGT.

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