ASSAILING COMPOSITE DIRECTIONS ISSUED BY POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD UNDER AIR ACT AND WATER ACT

NGT’s jurisdictional powers

The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (“NGT Act”), established the National Green Tribunal (“NGT”) to inter alia adjudicate cases related to environment protection and enforcement of legal rights relating to the environment.

Section 14 of the NGT Act provides the NGT with original and subject matter jurisdiction to deal with all civil cases involving substantial question relating to protection of environment and enforcement of associated legal rights under the statutes enlisted in Schedule 1 of the NGT Act.Continue Reading Assailing composite directions issued by pollution control board under Air Act and Water Act

What is the Cost of Environmental Breaches? A Look at the Evolving Jurisprudence of Environmental Compensation

The term ‘compensation’ has been legally defined by the Hon’ble Supreme Court to be a return for loss or damage sustained. The Court expressly states that compensation must always be just, and not based on a whim or arbitrary.[1]

Environmental compensation refers to payment of monetary reparation by industries, imposed by authorities and judicial bodies for violating environmental rules and regulations. The imposition of environmental compensation on industry finds its basis in the key environmental law principle of ‘Polluter Pays.’ The Polluter Pays Principle, simply put, makes the offending industry responsible for the damage caused to the environment and to human health.[2] In the 1990s, the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India began relying heavily on this principle to order industries to pay environmental compensation for breach of environmental regulations. [3]Continue Reading What is the Cost of Environmental Breaches? A Look at the Evolving Jurisprudence of Environmental Compensation