ABSTRACT
With the phase of rapid industrial development and technology progress, the nation is confronted with similar environmental challenges as the rest of the world, including multi-dimensionalissues like Climate change, Global warming, Loss of biodiversity, Deforestation, Species extinction and Pollutions of various forms.In order to deal environmental challenges, the menace of pollutions and to protect and improve environment andto promote sustainable development for present and future generations, a special fast tract environmental court, the National Green Tribunals (NGTs)was established in India with objective to effectively and expeditiously resolve the cases related to environmental protection and the conservation of forests and other natural resources and all the environmental disputes that involve multi-disciplines issues.
This article has made an attempt to analyse how far the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has contributed in environment protection, preventing environmental pollutions and in achieving sustainable development goals. Through this paper, a comprehensive analytical study has been made on NGT’s role in delivering environmental justice in India. This article also analyses the shortcomings of the National Green Tribunal Act and ends with some suggestive measures for better, efficient and effective function of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in delivering environmental justice in the country.
Keywords: Environmental Challenges, Pollutions, Sustainable Development, Precautionary Principle, Polluter Pay Principle, NGT’s Role, Environmental Justice.
INTRODUCTION
The environmental challenges that humanity are facing today are not isolated to a particular region or a country, it is a global issue. The danger of ecological disasters, affects not only a part of the world but affects the entire planet. The cumulative scientific data on acid rain, ozone depletion, climate change, global warming, bio-diversity loss, deforestation, species extinctionandpollutionsof variouskinds, has such global impact which shows that new measures of human restrain and international co-operation are required to address the issues.
Environmental pollution is one of the major challenges that India is facing today as elsewhere in the world, viz, air pollution, water pollution, land/soil pollution, noise pollution, heat/thermal pollution, radioactive pollution, etc. As the country develops rapidly in next industrial phase, pollutions levels have reached its peak, leading to serious environment degradation. As per latest report, Pollutions kills more than 8 millions peoples worldwide in 2017. India, the second most largest populated nation in the world, ranked first among the top ten nations in the world where premature death occurred due to pollution with 23,26,771 death, and second in the top ten nations in the world where premature death occurred due to air pollution with 12,40,529 death.[1] The World Air Quality Report 2018 by IQAir and Greenpeace revealed that 15 of the 20 most polluted cities globally were in India. Gurugram, was the worst air quality city in the world with an annual average concentrated of PM2.5 at 135.8 micrograms per cubic meter (ug/m3) and Delhi as the most polluted capital city across the world with an average yearly PM2.5 concentration of 113.5 micrograms per cubic meter (ug/m3).[2]In 2024, India was the fifth-most polluted country in the world, with an average PM2.5 concentration of 50.6 micrograms per cubic meter which is 10 times the World Health Organization’s recommended limit.[3]
Some of the major factors contributing to global environmental degradation include Unsustainable industrial development, Unregulated urbanization, Population explosion, Poverty, Over-exploitation of natural resources, Depletion of traditional resource of energy and raw materials, Industrial waste or emissions, Vehicular pollution, etc. which adversely affecting natural environment, human health, livelihood and economy of the country.
International efforts to protect and preserve the global environment started with the Stockholm Conference[4]1972, which is considered as the origin of modern era of ‘environmentalism’, which laid down the principles on which the nations should draft policies and legislate laws for protection and improvement of the global environment. Further, the Rio-Declaration[5]popularly known as The Earth Summit’1992reaffirmed the Stockholm Declaration, which mission was to put the world on a path of Sustainable Developmentwhich aims at meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising on the ability of the future generation to meet their own needs. The Brundtland Commission[6],the Kyoto Protocol[7], the Johannesburg Summit[8], the Paris Agreement[9], the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)[10].etc. are some of other important developments which have also taken place in the protection and improvement of the global environment.
The journey from the Stockholm Conference to the Rio Summit led to a recognition of the ‘Right of all human beings to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature’. This recognition has resulted the adoption of various environmental policies and laws in India, which aims to protect and preserve the environment and to promote sustainable development for present and future generations. However, despite of Constitutional mandate to protect and promote the environment and as many as 200 Statutory and other environmental laws in India, the environmental degradation couldn’t stopped completely, which resulted the Judicial intervention through its judicial activism and has played a vital and pro-active role in environmental protection.
However, the year 2010 is a milestone in the history of environmental jurisprudence in India as in this year a long dream of Indian judiciary to have a special fast tract environmental court was finally fulfilled by the enactment of the National Green Tribunal Act 2010. Under this act, the National Green Tribunals (NGT) was established with objective to effectively and expeditiously resolve cases related to environmental protection, conservation of forests and other natural resources and all the environmental disputes that involve multi-disciplines issues.[11]The Act also seeks to ensure the enforcement of legal rights concerning the environment, giving relief and compensation for damages to individuals, property, and the environment.
[1] Pollution and Health Metrics:Global, Regional and Country Analysis Report 2019 from GAHP (Global Alliance on Health and Pollution) available at:https://gahp.net (last visited on 22 July 2022).
[2] The World Air Quality Report 2018 by IQAir and Greenpeace.
[3] https://www.indiascienceandtechnology.gov.in/listingpage/air-pollution-india-status-and-challenges (Last visited on 27/05/2025).
[4] The United Nations Conference on Human Environment held from 5th to 16th June 1972 at Stockholm, Sweden.
[5] The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED),held from 3rd to 14th June1992.at Rio-dejanero, Brazil.
[6] Headed by Gro Harlem Brundtland, the then Prime Minister of Norway.
[7] Outcome of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
[8] World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) took place from 26th August to 4th September 2002.
[9] It is a legally binding International Treaty on Climate Change adopted during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) held in Paris on December 12, 2015 by 196 parties to limit Global Warming to well below 2 degree Celsius.
[10] A Global Action Plan adopted by the United Nations in Sustainable Development Summit,New York in Sept’ 2015.
[11]Annual Report 2011-2012, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, at p-276.