National Green Tribunal Faces Supreme Court Criticism

The Supreme Court has criticized the National Green Tribunal (NGT) for frequently issuing ex parte orders without hearing affected parties and imposing substantial damages amounting to crores of rupees.

Key Points on National Green Tribunal’s Ex Parte Orders

• Ex-Parte orders are those that can be granted without waiting for a response from other sides. Issues with ex parte orders include lack of fairness, potential for incorrect decisions due to one-sided information, and undermining procedural integrity.
• The Supreme Court set aside one such ex parte order and instructed NGT to reevaluate such cases by issuing notices to all relevant parties, hearing their arguments, and then making appropriate decisions.
• The Supreme Court also said that there is a need for NGT to ensure fair hearings and due process to maintain its credibility as a guardian of environmental protection.
• The Supreme Court observed that Imposition of huge sums for damages proved to be counterproductive in safeguarding the environment.

What is the National Green Tribunal (NGT)?

• It is a specialised body set up under the National Green Tribunal Act (2010) for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and conservation of forests and other natural resources.
• India became the third country in the world to set up a specialised environmental tribunal, only after Australia and New Zealand, and the first developing country to do so.
• NGT is mandated to make disposal of applications or appeals finally within 6 months of filing of the same.
• The NGT has five places of sittings, New Delhi is the Principal place of sitting and Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai are the other four.
• It draws inspiration from India’s constitutional provision of Article 21, which assures the citizens of India the right to a healthy environment.

Objective of the National Green Tribunal

• It is to provide a specialized forum for effective and speedy disposal of cases pertaining to environment protection, conservation of forests and for seeking compensation for damages caused to people or property due to violation of environmental laws or conditions specified while granting permissions.

Structure Of NGT

• The National Green Tribunal (NGT) comprises three major bodies namely: the Chairperson, the Judicial Members, and the Expert Members.
• Also, there should be a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 20 fulltime Judicial as well as Expert members in the NGT.
• They shall hold office for term of three years or till the age of sixty-five years, whichever is earlier and are not eligible for reappointment. 
• The Chairperson of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) is appointed by the Central Government of India in accordance with the Chief Justice of India.
• A Selection Committee is formed by the central government of India for the appointment of Judicial Members and Expert Members.

Powers Of NGT

The NGT has the power to hear all civil cases relating to environmental issues and questions that are linked to the implementation of laws listed in Schedule I of the NGT Act. These include the following:

1. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974;
2. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977;
3. The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980;
4. The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981;
5. The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986;
6. The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991;
7. The Biological Diversity Act, 2002.

This means that any violations pertaining only to these laws, or any order / decision taken by the Government under these laws can be challenged before the NGT. Importantly, the NGT has not been vested with powers to hear any matter relating to the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, the Indian Forest Act, 1927 and various laws enacted by States relating to forests, tree preservation etc. Therefore, specific and substantial issues related to these laws cannot be raised before the NGT.

Methodology Of NGT

• The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 under Section 19 gives the Tribunal power to regulate its own procedure.
• Additionally, the Tribunal is not bound by procedure under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 or the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 and is guided by principles of natural justice.
• However, the Tribunal is vested with the powers of a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure for discharging its functions.

Challenges Faced by the NGT

• The judgements of the NGT are often challenged in High Courts under Article 226, claiming that the High Court is a Constitutional Body, whereas the NGT is a statutory body.
• There is no set mechanism or formula to determine the compensation provided by NGT in cases of environmental disputes.
• Sometimes, the judgements of NGT are not adhered to completely, citing that it is not feasible to implement the tribunal’s decisions within the given time limit.
• Also, NGT has been facing a lack of human and financial resources, which has weakened its objective of disposing off the appeals within 6 months.
• The limited number of regional benches of NGT has also been a cause of concern.
• The Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 are outside the purview of National Green Tribunal’s Powers.
• Whereas, these two acts are directly related to environmental protection.

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