Page 2 - Environmental Governance Architecture for India - Suggestions
P. 2
Discussion Paper
• The powers under the legislation and in the various Rules thereunder should vest primarily with SEMA, with the State Government and Central Government
(on advice of NEMA) having the power to issue directions.
• Similarly, SEMA should perform the functions presently performed by the State-level Environmental Impact Assessment Authorities (SEIAA), with the State
Government setting up Expert Appraisal Committees (EAC).
• To ensure that the environmental governance systems in the States can evolve to acceptable standards, an All India Service: Indian Environment Service,
should be created, along with mechanisms to encourage participation of academic and technical institutions in the management and policy making
processes.
1. Introduction this is aligned with current objective requirements,
and are not a cause of the impediment.
The environment, the world over, is under stress
for a variety of reasons. In the case of India, high Article 246 of the Constitution gives Parliament
population density, in some areas, putting pressure exclusive power to make laws with respect to any
on natural resources and carrying capacity is a major matter in List I (Union List) of the Seventh Schedule,
reason. Poverty and the need to increase the rate of and gives the State Legislature, the exclusive power
economic growth is another major reason. to make laws with respect to any matter in List II
(State List). Subjects in List III (Concurrent List) can
India’s strong base in Science &Technology (S&T), be the subject matter of law by Parliament or a State
its liberal democratic values, including an active civil Legislature, with the Central law normally prevailing
society, independent judiciary, and a well-developed in case of a contradiction (subject to the provisions of
administrative system, have enabled it to better article 254(2), which enables a State law to prevail in
understand the need for a fine dynamic balance and the State if assented to by the President).
to put in place mechanisms for this purpose.
‘Environment’ as a subject does not figure in
However, many of the mechanisms were initiated the Seventh Schedule in any of the lists. Article 48
in the 1970s and early 1980s, when systems were not A, inserted into the Constitution as a result of the
as well evolved and the state of knowledge was also Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act 1976,
not as good. As a result, in several sectors, there is a provides, as a Directive Principle of State Policy, that
perception that the framework of environmental laws the State shall endeavour to protect and improve
are an impediment to economic growth and that the the environment and to safeguard the forest and
framework is also not achieving its intended objective wildlife of the country. The same Constitutional
of environmental protection. Amendment Act also moved ‘forests’ and ‘protection
of wild animals and birds’ from the State List into
In this Paper, the term ‘Environment’ is used the Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule. One
generally in the same manner as defined in the of the objects of the Constitution Amendment Act
National Environment Policy 2006 (NEP 2006), was in fact to “remove the difficulties that have arisen
namely, that “environment comprises all entities, in achieving the socio-economic revolution that would
natural or manmade, external to oneself, and their end poverty and ignorance and disease and inequality of
interrelationships, which provide value, now or perhaps opportunity.”
in the future, to humankind. Environmental concerns
relate to their degradation through actions of humans”. In this background, the position regarding the
Extracts from NEP 2006 are in the Appendix. various Central legislations that are ‘environmental’
in character is as follows:
2. The Constitutional Framework The Forest Act, 1927, was enacted before the
It is important to bring to the fore the Constitutional concept of a ‘State List’ of subjects was formalized
scheme of things so as to analyse the extent to which
2 FEBRUARY 2016
• The powers under the legislation and in the various Rules thereunder should vest primarily with SEMA, with the State Government and Central Government
(on advice of NEMA) having the power to issue directions.
• Similarly, SEMA should perform the functions presently performed by the State-level Environmental Impact Assessment Authorities (SEIAA), with the State
Government setting up Expert Appraisal Committees (EAC).
• To ensure that the environmental governance systems in the States can evolve to acceptable standards, an All India Service: Indian Environment Service,
should be created, along with mechanisms to encourage participation of academic and technical institutions in the management and policy making
processes.
1. Introduction this is aligned with current objective requirements,
and are not a cause of the impediment.
The environment, the world over, is under stress
for a variety of reasons. In the case of India, high Article 246 of the Constitution gives Parliament
population density, in some areas, putting pressure exclusive power to make laws with respect to any
on natural resources and carrying capacity is a major matter in List I (Union List) of the Seventh Schedule,
reason. Poverty and the need to increase the rate of and gives the State Legislature, the exclusive power
economic growth is another major reason. to make laws with respect to any matter in List II
(State List). Subjects in List III (Concurrent List) can
India’s strong base in Science &Technology (S&T), be the subject matter of law by Parliament or a State
its liberal democratic values, including an active civil Legislature, with the Central law normally prevailing
society, independent judiciary, and a well-developed in case of a contradiction (subject to the provisions of
administrative system, have enabled it to better article 254(2), which enables a State law to prevail in
understand the need for a fine dynamic balance and the State if assented to by the President).
to put in place mechanisms for this purpose.
‘Environment’ as a subject does not figure in
However, many of the mechanisms were initiated the Seventh Schedule in any of the lists. Article 48
in the 1970s and early 1980s, when systems were not A, inserted into the Constitution as a result of the
as well evolved and the state of knowledge was also Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act 1976,
not as good. As a result, in several sectors, there is a provides, as a Directive Principle of State Policy, that
perception that the framework of environmental laws the State shall endeavour to protect and improve
are an impediment to economic growth and that the the environment and to safeguard the forest and
framework is also not achieving its intended objective wildlife of the country. The same Constitutional
of environmental protection. Amendment Act also moved ‘forests’ and ‘protection
of wild animals and birds’ from the State List into
In this Paper, the term ‘Environment’ is used the Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule. One
generally in the same manner as defined in the of the objects of the Constitution Amendment Act
National Environment Policy 2006 (NEP 2006), was in fact to “remove the difficulties that have arisen
namely, that “environment comprises all entities, in achieving the socio-economic revolution that would
natural or manmade, external to oneself, and their end poverty and ignorance and disease and inequality of
interrelationships, which provide value, now or perhaps opportunity.”
in the future, to humankind. Environmental concerns
relate to their degradation through actions of humans”. In this background, the position regarding the
Extracts from NEP 2006 are in the Appendix. various Central legislations that are ‘environmental’
in character is as follows:
2. The Constitutional Framework The Forest Act, 1927, was enacted before the
It is important to bring to the fore the Constitutional concept of a ‘State List’ of subjects was formalized
scheme of things so as to analyse the extent to which
2 FEBRUARY 2016
