Nitish Banka

    • Environmental Laws-Path to sustainable development.

     

    We have laws for human beings which are quite popular area of legal practice, but above all the laws Mother Nature has its own laws and if we break those laws laid by the nature then in every probability we would get punished by the nature. The recent disaster at uttarakhand is an example that no human being is above the fury of nature and the punishment for crime against nature is disaster. But since the laws laid by nature are not codified neither there are any tribunals nor any trial, only there is punishment, so there is a sense of responsibility for the human beings to understand the nature and codify the natural laws into the Environmental laws so that the intervention of mother nature is prevented.

    However the laws made by the humans are like double edged sword, on one side we need to conserve nature and on the other side we need sustainable development and to strike a balance between the two is the core of environmental laws.

    In India the environmental laws needs to be strict as she is among the fastest growing economy in the world, There is a sense of obligation towards environment  as India is also one of the complex bio diversities among the world the challenge is to preserve the eco-sensitive areas.

    We have as of now main acts which govern the environmental concerns  in India but still these laws are not so strict to stop the environmental degradation laws like Environmental Protection Act, Wild life protection act etc. have lost their teeth’s.

    It is due to some of the environmental activists organization like WWF,PETA etc which are doing great job to protect environmental degradation but legally speaking the Indian Environmental Laws have become obsolete, there is a sense of implementing following things to make a sustainable growth.

    1. Policy to implement the energy from renewable sources.

    2. Stricter fine/punishment for environmental laws violation.

    3. Stricter environmental clearance norms for eco sensitive areas such as Himalayas, Ganges, western and Eastern Ghats etc.

    4. Checks to curb carbon emissions and stricter norms for new projects.

    5. For citizens the promotion and development of public transport systems in major cities.

    6.  Emphasis on interdependence than on independence.

    7. Promotion of new technologies.

    Recent Initiatives in the area of environmental laws.

    Recently in year 2010 India became 3rd country having green tribunal  established under National Green Tribunal Act 2010 for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and conservation of forests and other natural resources including enforcement of any legal right relating to environment and giving relief and compensation for damages

    The number of cases handled by national green tribunal.

    source WWF

    Conclusion

    If India wants to become a super power then we cannot take it for granted the environmental issues, The greed of the people must be curtailed by stricter norms to prevent natural disasters like that of uttarakhand which happened due to illegal mining, no regulation on hydel projects, Environmental degradation by tourism and infinite human greed.

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