The Supreme Court decided to examine the need for a ‘permanent environmental regulator’. File
| Photo Credit: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap
The Supreme Court on Wednesday (August 21, 2024) decided to examine the need for a ‘permanent environmental regulator’ similar to those found in the telecom and electricity sectors.
“There is a regulator in telecom [Telecom Regulatory Authority of India] and electricity [Central Electricity Regulatory Commission]…like that for climate and environment,” said Justice K.V. Viswanathan, who was accompanying Justices B.R. Gavai and P.K. Mishra on the Bench. Justice Gavai was heading the Bench.
Amicus curiae, senior advocate K. Parameshwar, submitted that regulators in separate areas covering various fields of environment and climate change were operating in silos.
“Would Your Lordships combine all these regulators into a behemoth, which would do the overall monitoring?” Mr. Parameshwar asked.
Centre’s view
Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati said the Union government had a “mixed response” to the issue.
Ms. Bhati said the existing system had specific regulators who were experts in their fields of environmental and climate change study. There were several tiers in decision-making and review, including the Ministries concerned, the National Green Tribunal, the Central Empowered Committee and finally the Supreme Court itself.
“Another regulator would only add another layer. It would be a duplication, and anyway, issues have to go to experts. For wildlife, we have the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife,” Ms. Bhati explained.
The Bench decided to hear the issue extensively on November 20.
A separate hearing saw the same Bench reiterate that States and Union Territories must use their Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) fund exclusively for restoring green cover lost on account of deforestation and not for any other purposes. The top court was informed by the amicus that the utilisation of CAMPA fund had been less than 50% in several States and UTs between 2018 and 2024.
Mining activities
Justice Gavai’s Bench, in a separate application, also asked the Centre to consider whether mining activities could be prohibited in areas declared conservation reserves and community reserves.
The Bench orally remarked that the the basic idea of providing community reserves and conservation reserves was to provide corridors for free movement of wildlife from one national park or wildlife sanctuary to another.
“We request the Union to consider whether at least in the areas which are declared as conservation reserves and community reserves, the mining could be prohibited or not,” the Bench said.
The court was hearing a matter related to mining activities within a one kilometre radius of conservation reserves and community reserves.
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