The Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy and Rainmatter Foundation organised the second episode of Season 2 of THE GREEN MANDATE on ‘Public Participation in Environmental Decision Making’ with noted environmental and socio-political activist Prafulla Samantara at the National Law University, Odisha, on 18th April 2023.
Public participation is integral to sustainable development and the Environmental Rule of Law. Several laws and regulations emphasise the importance of consulting communities and stakeholders before making environmental decisions. The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification of 2006, the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act of 2006, the National Green Tribunal Act of 2010, and the Right to Information Act of 2005 establish a framework for public involvement in decision-making. These legal instruments ensure that project proponents provide information to the public, solicit comments and objections, empower citizens to file petitions against environmental violations, grant access to information, and recognize the rights of forest-dwelling communities. Despite these provisions, public participation in India faces challenges. Integrating local knowledge and perspectives into decision-making processes is crucial, as it leads to more informed and context-specific outcomes, fostering trust, social cohesion, and a sense of community.
One of the key benefits of public participation is the integration of local knowledge and perspectives, which enriches decision-making processes. In India, there is a wealth of traditional knowledge and practices related to the environment. By incorporating this local expertise, decision-makers can make well-informed choices that consider different communities’ unique contexts and requirements. When people perceive that their voices are heard, and their concerns are taken seriously, they are more likely to trust government decisions. This fosters social cohesion and strengthens the sense of community.
In the second episode of Season 2 of THE GREEN MANDATE, the discussion centred around the effectiveness of public participation in environmental decision-making in India. It underscored the importance of involving the public in shaping policies that impact the environment while highlighting the challenges and opportunities arising from such participation. The recording of this discussion can be found on YouTube, and the following is a transcript summarising the key points discussed.
Question – You have a long experience in environmental activism since the 1970s and have seen different political regimes; when it comes to environmental disputes, can there be any alternate dispute redressal mechanism apart from the Courts?
The way our judicial system functions, we cannot get justice everywhere and every day through the Courts. Sometimes the Courts give judgements in favour of the laws and the Constitution but not in favour of the people. Even with the Forest Rights Act (FRA), many retired forest officers have approached the Supreme Court contending that the FRA is unconstitutional. The Supreme Court, in several judgments, have given observations that the tribal people should be evicted from the forest land. Amendments in various environmental laws weaken the National Green Tribunal. In my case against Vedanta concerning mining in the Niyamgiri Hills, wherein the company violated multiple principles and environmental laws in 2016, the NGT in 2022 judgement admitted the alleged violations by Vedanta with a fine of 25 crore rupees for continued violations. These are all limitations in environmental disputes, and educated people should campaign to pressure the state to implement the law and protect the environment. In the name of development, everything should not be destroyed.
Question – In 2022, the government proposed amendments to six environmental legislations. Only 12 working days were given for the public to comment. Recently, the Govt of India came out with the Jan Vishwas Bill 2022, which proposes to amend 42 laws, including four environmental laws- Environment Protection Act, 1986; Indian Forest Act, 1927; Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 and Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991. How can we approach this problem wherein laws are changing, but the scope for people to intervene is limited?
We are in a democracy; democratic rights are curtailed because of the State’s nature. When I was jailed for one year in an emergency by Mrs Indira Gandhi, the people fought against the imposition of emergency. India is democratic, and our Constitution is democratic, sovereign, secular and socialist. The laws are being changed in favour of corporations because corporations influence politics, not just in India but in other capitalist countries. But we need to fight because development means the people’s common needs must be fulfilled first, not the needs of the industries. Why should we extract bauxite and aluminium at the cost of water resources and climate? We need to fight the changes being made in environmental laws. In various parts of the country, people have led democratic struggles to protect their rights and natural resources. The only alternative in democracy is to make a people’s political agenda, which means environment, climate justice, right to livelihood, right to clean water and right to healthy food.
Some Selected Questions from the Audience
Question – You mentioned the exploitation of natural resources, the destruction of livelihoods and the infringement of forest-dwelling communities’ rights are driven by the capitalist mode of development. Is lasting change possible with public participation programmes and targeted legal interventions, or do we need a radical overhaul of the economic system before we can think of other alternatives?
This mode of development is increasingly exploiting natural resources. Even recently, the Government of India de-nationalised the coal mines; now anybody can lease the mines, extract coal, sell it within India or export it. This will have a devastating impact on States like Odisha, Chhattisgarh, the Central part of India. This extractive mode of development is to be prevented, and it cannot be done individually; the people have to come together to protect resources for sustainable development. Only then can we have lasting change and prevent the effects of the current development system. Internationally, we can see in Latin America that African people’s struggles will prevent climate change.
Question – Should we not include the tribal people within the fold of development?
First, we must respect the dignity of a person and a community. Tribals have their dignity and community, and that dignity is connected with nature, natural habitat and resources. They think that we are the owners. We cannot talk of development just in the context of setting up industries, which prevented education for the tribal people within their cultural and linguistic fold. There is a constitutional right to education, but we have not included the tribal people in that right. We need to include them within the fold of development with a context; they have many resources like mangoes and various other foods, why do we not include them in food processing? We cannot impose our understanding of development on every community. The development also needs to account for intergenerational equity. We need to learn from the tribal communities and reduce our overconsumption to prevent climate change. Wherever there has been displacement in our country, people have been deprived of their resources. They are led to seek alternate ways to sustain themselves. Mr Samantara highlights that we should not impose our notions of culture and development on the tribal people.
Question – How can the urban population act individually to protect the environment?
We need to make governance transparent and honest. All the States and the Centre have laws and rules to protect the environment and fight climate change. But we lag the implementation of the law in its spirit. The sincerity of the government and civil society is needed to protect the environment.
