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National
Green
Tribunal
UPSC Environment Notes
(NGT) -
Environment
Notes for
UPSC IAS
Preparation
The National Green Tribunal was formed on 18th October 2010 through National Green Tribunal Act,
2010. It is a statutory and specialized body that handles the major environmental disputes in India. It
replaced the National Environment Appellate Authority. National Green Tribunal (NGT) is one of the
most important topics for UPSC IAS Examination.

In this article on the NGT, we shall discuss its structure, objectives, powers, significance, challenges faced
and key judgements pronounced. This will be very useful for aspirants in the UPSC Prelims Exam.

What is National Green Tribunal (NGT)?

 It is a statutory and specialized body formed under the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 by
replacing the National Environment Appellate Authority.
 It ensures efficient and expeditious disposal of cases linked to various domains like
environmental protection, conservation of forests & other natural resources, etc.
 By establishing a specialized body for environmental protection, India became the 3rd country of
the world in 2010 to form an environmental tribunal.
 The other two countries to form an environmental tribunal till 2010 were Australia and New
Zealand.
 Its has the principal sitting in New Delhi, while other 4 places of sittings are also there, namely:
Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai.
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Also read: NCERT Notes on Rashtrakuta Dynasty here

Structure & Term of National Green Tribunal

 The National Green Tribunal consists of a Chairperson and a few Judicial and Expert Members.
 There should be atleast 10 and at max 20 full time Judicial and Expert members in the NGT.
 The Chairperson, Judicial & Expert Members of the NGT hold office for a period of 5 years.
 Also, these dignitaries of the NGT are not eligible for reappointment.
 The Central Government in consultation with the Chief Justice of India (CJI) appoints the
Chairperson of the NGT.
 Whereas, the Judicial and Expert Members of the NGT are appointed by a Selection Committee
constituted by the Central Government.

Read about various environmental issues here.

Objectives of National Green Tribunal

 NGT ensures an efficient and expeditious disposal of cases linked to various domains like
environmental protection, conservation of forests & other natural resources, etc.
 NGT ensures that proper relief and compensation is provided for any kind of damage caused to
people or properties due to environmental issues.
 NGT also handles a wide range of environmental disputes involving many stakeholders.

Powers of National Green Tribunal

 It is compulsory for the NGT to dispose off the applications or appeals within 6 months from the
date of their filing.
 The NGT can hear all types of civil cases which involve a substantial question relating to
environmental matters, which also includes the enforcement of any legal right relating to the
environment.
 As NGT is a statutory adjudicatory body just like courts, hence it has both original and appellate
jurisdiction in environmental matters.
 This means that NGT hears original petitions relating to environmental matters and also has the
power to hear appeals on environmental matters.
 NGT is not limited by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure 1908, and in
turn, NGT is guided by the principles of ‘Natural Justice’.
 Whenever NGT passes an order, decision or an award, it applies the principles of sustainable
development, and also the precautionary principle and the polluter pays principle.
 Through an order, NGT can provide:
 relief & compensation to the victims of pollution and other environmental damage (including
accident occurring while handling any hazardous substance)
 for restitution of property damaged, and
 for restitution of the environment for such area or areas, as the Tribunal may think fit.
 An order, decision or an award passed by NGT is also executable as a decree of a civil court.
 The NGT Act also has provisions for penalty in case of non-compliance which are as under:
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 Imprisonment for a term extendable to three years,

 Fine which may be extendable to ten crore rupees, and
 Both fine & imprisonment.
 An appeal against the judgement passed by NGT can be filed in the Supreme Court of India,
within 90 days from the date of communication of NGT’s Judgement.

Also, study the NCERT Notes on Geography Environment from the linked article.

Jurisdiction of NGT

The NGT deals with civil cases under the seven laws related to the environment listed in Schedule I of the
NGT Act, these include:

 The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974,

 The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977,
 The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980,
 The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981,
 The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986,
 The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 and
 The Biological Diversity Act, 2002.
 A decision made by the Government in any of the above mentioned laws or any act violating the
provisions of these acts can be challenged in the National Green Tribunal.

Learn more about Renewable Resources.

Significance of NGT

 The National Green Tribunal has been the bulwark of environmental protection since its
establishment.
 The NGT has passed many important judgements ranging from pollution to deforestation and
waste management.
 NGT helps to reduce the burden on judiciary, specially in environmental matters by providing a
mechanism of alternative dispute resolution.
 NGT is less formal, cheaper and a faster source of securing justice in case of environmental
disputes as compared to ordinary courts.
 The NGT functions as an independent and autonomous body as its chairperson & members are
not eligible for reappointment.
 National Green Tribunal also ensures that strict adherence to the provision of Environmental
Impact Assessment is followed.

Also read: NCERT Notes on The August Offer here

Environmental Impact Assessment - EIA

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 Environmental impact assessment is a process of evaluating the potential environmental

impacts of a proposed project or development, taking into account the inter-related socio-
economic, cultural and human-health impacts, both beneficial and adverse.
 EIA is a tool used to assess the positive and negative environmental, economic and social
impacts of a project.
 It is used to predict the environmental impacts of a project at the pre-planning stage itself so that
decisions can be made to reduce the adverse impacts.
 The main objective of EIA is to protect the environment and bring the best combination of
economic and environmental costs and benefits.

Some Landmark Jugdements of National Green Tribunal

 It urged states to adopt solid waste management guidelines and outlawed open burning of
waste on lands in the Almitra H Patel Vs Union of India case.
 It had suspended the approval given to POSCO, a South Korean steelmaker, to build a 12
million-tonne steel factory in Odisha in 2012.
 The NGT delayed a 6,400-crore hydro project to conserve a bird's habitat after hearing the Save
Mon Federation Vs Union of India case.
 Aranmula Airport in Kerala, the Lower Demwe Hydro Power Project and Nyamnjangu in
Arunachal Pradesh, mining projects in Goa, and coal mining projects in Chhattisgarh were
either abandoned or re-evaluated.
 In the Uttarakhand floods case in 2013, the Alaknanda Hydro Power Co. Ltd. was ordered to
compensate the petitioner – the NGT directly relied on the principle of "polluter pays" in this
case.
 All diesel vehicles older than ten years would be forbidden from functioning in Delhi-NCR,
according to a 2015 ruling by the National Green Tribunal.
 After the Art of Living Festival on the Yamuna Food Plain was found to be in breach of
environmental norms, the NGT panel imposed a penalty of Rs. 5 crores in 2017.

Challenges related to the National Green Tribunal

 The Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and Scheduled 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.
 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.
o Whereas, the NGT Act, 2010 provides for the appeal against the tribunal's decisions
before the Supreme Court of India as well as the High Courts.
 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.

Article 226 of the Indian Constitution

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 Article 226 of the Constitution empowers the High Courts of the country to issue writs to any
person or authority within its jurisdiction for the enforcement of fundamental rights or any legal
rights.
 Since the provisions of this article are not fundamental rights, it is not guaranteed like Article 32.
 Article 32 of the Constitution i.e. Right to Constitutional Remedies is a fundamental right and it
deals with the measures for enforcement of Fundamental Rights.
 According to this article, a person can approach the Supreme Court of India when his
fundamental rights are violated or deprived and the Supreme Court has the power to issue
directions or orders or writs for the enforcement of fundamental rights.
 Further, under this Article, Parliament may by law empower any court to issue directions or
orders or writs.
 The Supreme Court has declared the right to constitutional remedies a fundamental feature of
the Indian Constitution and hence cannot be abridged or taken away in any way.

Checkout the test series for UPSC IAS Exam here.

We hope that all your doubts regarding the National Green Tribunal will be cleared after going through
this article. You can download the Testbook App now to check out various other topics relevant to the
UPSC IAS Exam.

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