The Environment related Laws enacted by the Parliament under Articles 252 and 253 of the Constitution of India. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 was promulgated as a Central Legislation under Article 252 of the Constitution. Since, the "water" is listed under the State list, a Resolution from two or more State Assemblies empowering the Parliament to enact the Legislation on the State List was required. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 became effective at the State level when it was adopted by the concerned State Assemblies. The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 and the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 were promulgated under Article 253 of the Constitution of India, which empowered the Parliament to enact legislations on such matters as necessary for compliance of International Agreements in which India has been a party.
The Supreme
Court of India in numerous matters elaborated the scope of Article 21 of the
constitution of India, which deals with protection of life and personal
liberty - No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty
except according to procedure established by Law. In the matter of Rural
Litigation and Entitlement Kendra Vs State of U.P. - the Hon’ble Supreme court
held that the right to unpolluted environment and preservation and protection
of nature’s gifts has also been conceded under Article 21 of the Constitution
of India. The Constitutional provisions provide the bed-rock for the framing of
environmental legislations in the country. Article 48-A of the Constitution
deals with the Protection and Improvement of Environment and Safeguarding of
Forests and Wildlife – The State shall endeavour to protect and improve
the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country.
On the basis of the said provisions, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and
the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 (as amended in 1986) have been enacted by
the Parliament. Under Part IV-A of the Directive Principles of State Policy,
Fundamental Duties have been added under Article 51-A by the 42nd
Amendment of the Constitution in 1976. Under Article 51-A(g) provides the Fundamental
Duties with respect to the environment which includes - To protect and
improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife
and to have compassion for living creatures.
Supreme
Court Cases-2006S.C.C.vol.1 page1
Constitution of India
— Arts. 21, 48-A and 51-A(g) — Forests — Conservation of —
Adoption of incentive compatible/market oriented instead of command and control
methodologies for — Diversion of forest land to non-forest use — Creation of
market in forest use, ensuring inclusion of social opportunity
cost/<169>externalities<170> of such use, in contemporary context and
in terms of intergenerational equity, in pricing model therefore — Levying of
appropriate Net Present Value (NPV) of such diverted forest land as the price
of such forest use, on user agencies — Need, justification and scope of such
NPV, discussed — Public trust doctrine reiterated and employed — Inadequacy of
compensatory afforestation by itself in compensating for loss of natural
forests, explained — Held, the appropriate NPV has to be worked out on economic
principles — Expert Committee, comprising three experts, one from Institute of
Economic Growth, Delhi University, directed to be constituted — Terms of
reference of said Committee specified — Committee to report to Supreme Court
within four months of this order — Various methods of, and considerations
involved in estimating said NPV discussed and emphasised — Clarified that
various environmental outputs from forests appear as public goods for which
there is no market — Such outputs enumerated, and directed to be accounted for
by said Committee in arriving at estimate of said NPV — Committee to undertake
entire exercise within framework and on basis of doctrine of sustainable
development — Further held, larger public interest has to be the guiding
principle and not present interest of the user agency only, (2006) 1 SCC 1-A
Constitution of India
— Arts. 21, 48-A, 51-A(g) — Forests — Conservation of —
Diversion of forest land to non-forest use — Levying of appropriate NPV of such
diverted forest land as the price of such forest use, on user agencies — Updation
of NPV amounts — Periodicity — Held, whatever be the NPV to be charged as
determined by expert committee set up in terms of this judgment, the amounts
shall have to be updated every three years, (2006) 1 SCC 1-B
Constitution of India
— Arts. 21, 48-A, 51-A(g) — Forests — Conservation of —
Diversion of forest land to non-forest use — Levying of appropriate NPV of such
diverted forest land as the price of such forest use, on user agencies —
Payments of NPV pending final determination by expert committee set up in terms
of this judgment — Need for user agencies to make — Held, besides NPV as being
presently calculated by MoEF, user agencies shall give undertakings to pay
remaining/further amounts as determined by said expert committee, (2006) 1 SCC 1-C
Constitution of India
— Arts. 21, 14, 48-A, 51-A(g) — Sustainable development —
Applicability of principle of — Forest use — Primacy between dictates of
development and protection of environment in — Held, Forest Policy, 1998, which
has a statutory flavour dictates that derivation of economic benefit must be
subordinated to ensuring environmental stability and maintenance of ecological
balance — Non-fulfilment of this principle would be violative of Arts. 14 and
21 — Furthermore, in the ultimate analysis, economic development at cost of
degradation of environment and depletion of forest cover would not be
long-lasting — Such development would be counterproductive — Dwindling of
forest cover in India — Importance of India as major biogeographic/<169>megadiversity<170>
country — Need for vision for overall development and systematic approach —
Concept of forest management discussed as possible practical mode to achieve
the same, (2006) 1 SCC 1-D
Constitution of India
— Arts. 21, 48-A, 51-A(g) — Right to enjoyment of healthy
life under — Violation of, from threats to the ecology — Conservation of
natural resources — Obligations of all concerned, including Union and State
Governments — Duty of Supreme Court — Held, Constitution enjoins upon Supreme
Court a duty to protect the environment, (2006) 1 SCC 1-E
Constitution of India
— Arts. 21, 48-A, 51-A(g) — Forests — Conservation of —
Diversion of forest land to non-forest use — Levying of appropriate NPV of such
diverted forest land as the price of such forest use, on user agencies —
Projects/user agencies to be exempted from payment of NPV — Held, though issue
is to be finally decided by expert committee set up in terms of this judgment,
prima facie, revenue charging projects, even though they be public utilities,
would not be exempt, while non-revenue earning projects could be exempted, (2006) 1 SCC 1-F
Environment Protection and Pollution Control
Forests
— Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning
Agency (<169>CAMPA<170>) set up in terms of MoEF notification dt.
23-4-2004 — Validity of — Held, constitution of CAMPA is necessary to fully and
effectively implement recommendation dt. 9-8-2002 made by CEC for protection of
environment, (2006) 1 SCC
1-G
Environment Protection and Pollution Control
Forests
— Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning
Agency (<169>CAMPA<170>) set up in terms of MoEF notification dt.
23-4-2004 — Constitution/Composition of executive body of CAMPA — Need for
inclusion of conservationists, environmentalists, economists and experts in
forestry — Held, cl. 2.2 of CAMPA notification dt. 23-4-2004 shall be amended
so as to include two more environmentalists, one expert in field of forests and
the other in field of forest economy development — Said amendment to be made
within one month of this judgment, (2006) 1 SCC 1-H
Environment Protection and Pollution Control
Forests
— Sums tendered as NPV for diverted forest land —
Appropriation and use of — Appropriation whether to CAMPA Fund set up in terms
of MoEF notification dt. 23-4-2004 or State Governments — Purposes for which
funds to be used — Held, payment to CAMPA fund is constitutional and valid —
Natural resources/ecology not being in ownership of any State or individual,
public at large is beneficiary and they belong to all — Hence amounts of NPV
cannot be made over to State Governments — In any case, proprietary rights of
States over the land, timber or minerals are not affected — Effect of change in
scheme of forest management from Forest Act, 1927 to Forest (Conservation) Act,
1980 and removal of forest and wildlife from State List in Sch. VII of
Constitution in this regard, discussed — CAMPA or CAMPA Fund set up to protect
ecology and provide for regeneration of forests cannot in constitutional scheme
be considered as a fund under Arts. 266, 283 or 284 — Hence neither Arts. 110,
199, 195 nor 294 will have any application — Furthermore, imposition of NPV is
a charge or a fee within Sch. VII List III Entries 47 and 20 — Lastly, 12th
Finance Commission has recommended a grant of Rs 1000 crores, spread over
2005-2010 for maintenance of forests, to the States over and above what they
have been spending through their forest departments, (2006) 1 SCC 1-I
Environment Protection and Pollution Control
Forests
— Sums tendered as NPV for diverted forest land to CAMPA
fund — Territorial usage of — Held, cl. 6.4(v) of CAMPA notification dated
23-4-2004 to be amended within one month of this order so as to provide that
ordinarily expenditure shall be incurred in State or UT from which such sums
are received, but leaving it to discretion of CAMPA to also incur expenditure
in adjoining State or UT where impact of diversion of forest in question is
also felt, (2006) 1 SCC
1-J
Environment Protection and Pollution Control
Forests
— Establishment of SPV under CAMPA notification dt.
23-3-2004 — Legality of — Held, there is no illegality in establishment of the
same in terms of cl. 6.6 of the said notification — However, before
establishing SPV, its format to be filed in Supreme Court, and further action
to be taken on orders thereupon — In meantime, word <169>may<170>
in cl. 6.6, which left it discretion of CAMPA to establish SPV, to be amended
to <169>shall<170> within one month of this judgment, (2006) 1 SCC 1-K
Environment Protection and Pollution Control
Forests
— CAMPA Fund set up in terms of CAMPA notification dt.
23-3-2004 — Accounting method to be followed — Held, there should be corporate
accounting based on double-entry system and auditing is to be done by CAG, every
six months — Relevant clauses of CAMPA notification to be amended within one
month of this judgment, (2006) 1 SCC 1-L
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