Courting the Environment
Tracking environmental justice on ground
Summary: Through documentaries and case briefs, Vidhi tracks the implementation of five landmark judgments of the Supreme Court of India and the National Green Tribunal on environmental protection.
The Supreme Court of India has a stellar track record on environmental protection. It is credited with taking important steps to clean Delhi’s air, protecting the Taj Mahal from industrial pollution, preserving forests and halting polluting activities in the Ganga. However, the life of environmental law exists beyond the courtroom and case books. While the recognition of important environmental principles as part of the law of the land is the first step towards environmental protection, we would be failing in our duty as environmental lawyers, activists and academics if we did not scrutinise the practical implementation of these principles. We must examine whether there is compliance with the Court’s orders and directions, and if not, identify and address the reasons for this.
With this objective, the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy has been tracking the implementation of five landmark judgments of the Supreme Court of India and the National Green Tribunal (‘NGT’) on environmental protection. These judgments span different geographical areas-the rivers of Uttarakhand, industrial areas in Telangana, rhinoceros territory in Assam, and toxic air and landfills in Delhi. They also span different environmental issues-ecological threats posed by dams, the efficacy of effluent treatment plants, wildlife conservation, air pollution, and waste management. Through a combination of field research, judgment analysis, and interviews with petitioners, lawyers, and other stakeholders, Vidhi has produced a set of five documentaries and a research report that provide a comprehensive overview of environmental judgments and their implementation on the ground.
Together, these briefs and documentaries provide the legal background for each case, present the key facts, summarise the major orders and directions of the Supreme Court and NGT, and discuss the degree of success with which these have been implemented.
Also Read: Can the Environmental Rule of Law Give Us a Cleaner Environment?
1.‘HARI PHULJHARI’: Firecrackers Ban in Delhi
‘Hari Phuljhari’ is a deep dive into the implementation of the Supreme Court’s orders regulating the manufacture and use of firecrackers.
Related Articles:
i. Delhi: ‘Ad hoc solutions won’t help, strong political will needed to fight bad air’, Times of India (25 November 2020)
ii. Choked: Hari Phuljhari, a documentary film, analyses air pollution through the firecracker ban in Delhi, Gaon Connection English (13 November 2020)
iii. Opinion: This Diwali, let’s just be selfish! Citizen Matters (13 November 2020)
iv. Delhi Pollution Crisis: Vidhi Centre’s Documentary Shows Why Supreme Court Judgment Failed on Ground Level Implementation, The Leaflet (17 November 2020)
2. ‘AN UNEQUAL FIGHT’: Industrial Pollution in Patancheru
‘An Unequal Fight’ tracks one of India’s oldest environmental cases involving pollution by bulk drug manufacturing industries in Patancheru and Bollaram area in Telangana.
Related Articles:
i. Hyderabad: Film highlights pollution in Patancheru, The Hans India (4 December 2020)
ii. Documentary highlights the effect of pollution from Patancheru-Bollaram cluster, The New Indian Express (3 December 2020)
3. ‘MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY’: Protection of Wildlife Corridors in Kaziranga
‘My Way or the Highway’ traces the impact of various judicial interventions related to the protection of wildlife corridors in Kaziranga landscape in Assam.
Related Articles:
i. The Success Story of Kaziranga’s Tigers – Unpacking the Dichotomy, VCLP (April 2020)
ii. Judiciary Steps in Even as the State Fails to Protect Wildlife, VCLP (March, 2020)
4. ‘Ladenge Jeetenge’: Dams in Uttarakhand
‘Ladenge Jeetenge’ tracks the implementation of judicial orders related to hydropower projects in Uttarakhand.
5. ‘Garbage Matters’: Solid waste Management in Delhi
‘Garbage Matter’ looks into judicial interventions involving solid waste management issues in Delhi.
Related Articles:
i. Delhi’s Waste Management Process is Pushing Waste Pickers to the Margin, VCLP (29 May 2020
“ENVIRONMENT & JUDICIARY”
(A Photo Essay)
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About the Authors
Debadityo is a Senior Resident Fellow and Lead, the Climate & Ecosystems team at Vidhi. His research interest lies in the intersection of ecology, law, and policy. He graduated with B.Sc. (Hons) in Zoology from the University of Delhi in 2009 and completed M.Sc. (Tech.) Environmental Science & Technology from Banaras Hindu University in 2012. He has also undertaken training on Tropical Forest Restoration from Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies in 2016. He has over 12 years of professional experience in issues related to the environment and wildlife protection. In the past, he has worked with organizations like Vikram A. Sarabhai Community Science Centre, Legal Initiative for Forest & Environment, WWF-India, Wildlife Trust of India and several grassroots organizations. He is founder and trustee of Vindhyan Ecology and Natural History Foundation (since 2012). He is a recipient of the Sanctuary Wildlife Service Award' (2019) and is member of IUCN-Species Survival Commission’s Bear Specialist Group and EKOenergy network, Helsinki. Debadityo has also initiated litigations in the National Green Tribunal on issues related to environmental clearance, declaration of eco-sensitive zones and compensation for environmental damage.
Dr. Dhvani Mehta {B.L.S. LL.B. (University of Mumbai); BCL, D.Phil (Oxon)} is a Co-Founder at Vidhi and Lead, Health. She has worked specifically on research projects on environmental clearances, the National Green Tribunal, organ transplant laws, end of life care, and pharmaceutical and medical device regulation. She has appeared in the Supreme Court of India in petitions filed by Vidhi on advance medical directives and discrimination against persons affected by leprosy. She has authored chapters on the implementation of environmental judgments and healthcare corruption in India. Dhvani read for a doctoral degree at the University of Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship, where she was Chairperson of Oxford Pro Bono Publico and an editor of the Oxford Human Rights Hub blog. Her doctoral thesis explores the idea of an environmental rule of law in India and was cited by the Supreme Court of India.
Yogini is a Research Fellow working in the area of Health and Environment. Yogini completed her B.A. LL. B. (Hons.) from the West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences, after which she pursued the Young India Fellowship at Ashoka University. Prior to joining Vidhi, Yogini worked at the Centre for Policy Research on the subject of Urban Sanitation. Yogini is interested in studying the workings of the law in the larger social, economic, and political contexts, especially with respect to health and environment and has published her work on this in various online media outlets and blogs.
Shyama Kuriakose was a Senior Project Fellow at Vidhi.
Esha was a Project Fellow at Vidhi.
