HISTORY OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION IN INDIA

The History of the evolution of Law to handle pollution and other environmental problems in
India can be studied under the four periods;

1. In Ancient India
2. In Medieval India
3. During the British period; and
4. The post Independence period.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION IN ANCEINT INDIA

In the Hindu theology forests, wildlife, trees were held to be in high esteem and given high
respect. A detailed description of trees, plants and wildlife and their importance to people was
given in Vedas, puranas and Upanishads.

The Rig Veda highlighted the potentialities of nature in controlling the climate, increasing
fertility and improvement of human life emphasizing for intimate kinship with nature.

Atharva Veda considered trees as abode of various gods and goddesses.

Yajur Veda emphasized that relationship with nature and animals should not be that of
dominion and subjugation but of mutual respect and kindness.

The Hindu society was conscious of adverse environmental effects caused by deforestation and
extinction of animal species. As the cutting of trees was prohibited during the Vedic period and
there was a penalty for cutting trees under Yajnavalkya Smriti. Many instructions for the use
and maintenance of water were given in Charak Samhita.

There also existed a relationship of mutual respect and kindness between Animals and humans.
Ancient Hindu Scriptures strictly prohibited the killing of birds and animals. In Yajur Veda it is
said that no person should kill animals, but being helpful to all and by serving them, should
obtain happiness.

Environment protection has been an important facet of Hindu way of life, the civilization of
Mohenjodaro, Harappa lived in consonance with its ecosystem, small population and their needs,
maintained the harmony with environment.

The Mauryan period was the most glorious chapter of the Indian History from environmental
protection point of view. It was in this period detailed and perspective legal provisions were
found in Kautilya’s Arthashastra. The necessity of forest administration was realized, the
state assumed functions of maintenance of forest, regulation of forest produce and protection
of wild life during the Mauryan reign.
Under Arthashastra various punishments were prescribed for cutting trees, damaging
forests, and for killing animals etc. Wild life in sanctuaries enjoyed complete protection from
being killed except when they turn harmful. There were also punishments prescribed for
causing of pollution and uncivic sanitation.

To sum up ancient India had a philosophy of environmental management enshrined in old

injunctions as they were contained in many scriptures. Abuse and exploitation of nature for
immediate gains was considered unjust, irreligious and against environmental ethics of Hindu
culture.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION IN MEDIEVIAL INDIA

From the point of view of environment conservation , a significant contribution of Moghul

emperors has been the establishment of magnificent gardens, fruit orchards and green parks
round about their palaces, central and provincial headquarters, public places, on the banks of the
rivers and valleys and dales which they used as holiday resorts or places of retreat or temporary
headquarters during summers.

Among the officials empowered for administration of justice by the Sultans and emperors of
India, ‘Muhtasibs’ were vested with the duty of prevention of pollution. Though the Moghul
emperors were great lovers of nature they didn’t make any attempts to conserve forest. To the
Moghul emperors the forests were just wooded lands where they could hunt, for their governor’s
they were properties which generated revenue. A few species of trees enjoyed patronage and
were called as ‘royal trees’ and had a restriction on being cut. However, there was no restriction
in cutting of other trees. In the absence of any protective management, forests shrank during this
period.

The waste and forestlands were treated as open access resources. Untrammeled use of forest and
other natural resources however did not mean that they could be used or misused by one and all
without any restraints. Rather the resources were quite effectively managed with the help of
complex range of rules and regulations woven around the socio cultural and economic activities
of the local communities.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION DURING THE BRITISH RULE IN INDIA

Early days of British rule in India were days of plunder of natural resources. There was total
indifference to the needs of forest conservancy. They caused a ‘fierce onslaught’ on India’s
forests; it was due to the increasing demands for military purposes, for British Navy, for local
construction, supply of teak and sandalwood for export trade etc.
The British Government started exercising control over forests in the year 1806 when a
commission was appointed to enquire into the availability of teak in Malabar and
Travancore by way for appointment of Conservator of forests. This move failed as the
conservator plundered the forest wealth instead of conserving it.

The second half of the 19th century marked the beginning of an organized forest management
in India with some administrative steps taken to conserve forest; the formulation of forest
policy and legislations to implement the policy decisions. The systematic management of
forest resources started with the appointment of first Inspector General of Forest in 1864.
The task of forest department under the Inspector gen. was that of exploration of resources,
demarcation of reserves, protection of forests etc. The objective of management of forests
thus changed from obtaining timber to protection and improvement of forests.

Forest Act, 1865 was enacted as the 1st step of the British govt. to assess the state monopoly
right over the forest. The Act was revised in 1878 and extended to most of the territories under
British rule. It expanded the powers of the state by providing for reserved forest, which was close
to people and by empowering the forest administration to impose penalties for any transgression
of the provision of the Act.

On 19th October 1884, the British Govt. declared its first Forest Policy with the following
objectives:

1. Promoting the general well being of the people in the country;

2. Preserving climatic and physical conditions in the country; and
3. Fulfilling the need of the people.

This policy also suggested classification of forest into various categories such as

1. Forests, preservation of which was essential on climatic and physical grounds;

2. Forests which offered a supply of valuable timber for commercial purposes;
3. Minor forests which produced only the inferior sorts of timber; and
4. Pastures which were forests only in name.

To implement the forest policy of 1884, the Forest Act of 1927 was enacted.

Apart from the management of forest resources the British Government also concentrated on
certain other areas like water pollution, air pollution, wildlife and land use by enacting
numerous legislations. Some of the important legislations made by the British Govt. were IPC
(1860), Indian Easement Act (1862) etc. which contained provisions for the regulation of
water pollution and also prescribed punishments for the violation of these legislations.

For controlling Air pollution the British Govt. enacted Bengal Smoke Nuisance Act (1905)
and Bombay Smoke Nuisance Act (1912).
For protection of Wildlife the British Govt. made provisions like The Elephant’s Preservation
Act (1879), The Wild Birds and Animals Protection (1912) aimed at the conservation of Bio-
diversity.

British Government enacted various provisions for prevention of pollution and for conservation
of natural resources. Though it is pointed out that the British enacted the legislations to earn
revenue and not conserve environment. But then also the legislations can be regarded as the 1st
step towards conservation of natural resources. Though made with ulterior motives these
legislations have contributed significantly to the growth of environmental jurisprudence in India.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION DURING THE POST INDEPENDENCE ERA

The post independence era witnessed a lot of changes in the policies and attitudes of the
Governments with respect to environmental protection. The Constitution of India came into force
on 26th January 1950, had few provisions regarding environmental management.

Article 39(b) provides that “the state shall direct its policy towards securing that the ownership
and control of the material resources of the community are so distributed as best to sub serve the
common good”.

Article 47 provides that the State shall regard the rising of the level of nutrition and the standard
of living of its people and the improvement of public health as among its primary duties.

Article 48 direct that “the State shall endeavor to organize agriculture and animal husbandry on
modern and scientific lines and take steps for preserving and improving the breeds and
prohibiting the slaughter of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle.

Article 49 directs that “it shall be the obligation of the State to protect every monument or places
or object of artistic or historic interest, declared to be of national importance, from spoliation,
disfigurement, destruction, removal, and disposal or export as the case may be”.

From the above articles, one can understand that the COI was not environmentally blind, though
the word environment was not expressly used in the Constitution; the object of the above articles
is to conserve the natural resources and to protect the natural environment.

Van Mahtsava, National Festival of planting trees was adopted in 1950, with an object to create
mass awareness about the value of forests in human well being.
National Forest Policy was formulated for the purpose of proper management of forests of
the country and to maximize the benefits of forests formed in the year 1952.

The Pitambar Pant Committee on Human Environment was set up to prepare a report on the
state of environment for representation at the United Nations Conference on Human
Environment held at Stockholm in 1972.

The year 1972 was a landmark year in the history of Environmental Management in India,
because the Stockholm conference was held in Stockholm. The views expressed in the
conference influenced many policies in India.

In the year 1972 on the recommendation of the Pitambar Pant committee, NCEPC (National
committee on Environmental planning and coordination) was set up in Dept. of Science and
technology to plan and coordinate environmental programs and policies and advise various
ministries in matters relating to environment protection.

1972 Stockholm Declaration affirms that "Man has the fundamental right to freedom, equality
and adequate conditions of life, in an environment of quality that permits a life of dignity and
well-being, and he bears a solemn responsibility to protect and improve the environment for
present and future generations..." This shows that it has been internationally recognized that
man's fundamental rights embraces the need to live in an uncontaminated environment but it also
puts forth man's obligation to protect the environment for posterity.
The Supreme Court has laid down that the "Precautionary principle" and the "Polluter Pays
Principle" are essential features of "sustainable development". These concepts are part of
Environment Law of the country.

The "Precautionary Principle" establishes that a lack of information does not justify the
absence of management measures. On the contrary, management measures should be established
in order to maintain the conservation of the resources. The assumptions and methods used for the
determination of the scientific basis of the management should be presented.

The essential ingredients of the precautionary principle are:

(i) Environmental measures- by the state government and the statutory authorities- must
anticipate, prevent and attack the causes of environment degradation.
(ii) When there are threats of serious and irreversible damage, lack of scientific certainty
should not be used as a reason for postponing measure to prevent environmental
degradation.
(iii) The “Onus of Proof” is on the actor or the developer/industrialist to show that his
action is environmentally benign.
(iv) Precautionary duties must not only be triggered by the suspicion of concrete danger
but also by concern or risk potential.
In 1972, Wild life (protection) Act was enacted for protection of ‘wild animals, birds and
plants’ and to prevent the hunting; control trade in wild life products.

In 1973, centrally sponsored scheme “Project Tiger” was launched to ensure maintenance of
population of tigers in India.

In 1974, the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act was passed for the purpose of
prevention and control of water and for restoring wholesomeness of water. The Act also
provides for Pollution Control Boards.

In 1976, the COI was amended by the 42nd Amendment Act, two new articles were added in
Part IV and part IV- A of the COI. The newly added A-48a directs the State that ‘the State shall
endeavor to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wild life of the
country. In the Part IV-A a list of Fundamental duties of citizens of India was prescribed.

In 1980, The Tiwari Committee was formed under the Chairmanship of Deputy Chairman of
the Planning Commission Mr. N.D. Tiwari. The report of this committee suggested a number
of administrative and legal measures for environmental protection. Based on its
recommendations, the Government of India set up a Department of Environment with effect
from November 1, 1980.

In April 1981, National Committee on Environmental Planning was constituted for preparing
annual ‘State of Environment’ Report. The eighties witnessed the creation of many eco-
specific organisations like: Botanical Survey of India, National Museum of Natural History,
Zoological Survey of India etc.

In 1981, the Air (Prevention and Control of pollution) Act was enacted to provide prevention,
control and abatement of air pollution.

In January 1985, the Department of Environment became part of a new Ministry of

Environment and Forests. It consisted of two departments, viz., the Department of
Environment and the Department of Forests & Wildlife.

In 1986, ‘Environment (Protection) Act was made to empower the Central Government to
take all necessary measures to protect and improve the environment and to prevent
hazards to human beings, other living creatures, plants and property.

In 1987, the Govt. formulated the “National Water Policy” with the object to develop,
conserve, utilize and manage the water resource as the water resource is scarce and
precious and utmost national importance.

In 1988, the ‘National Forest Policy’ was formulated with the aim of ensuring environmental
stability and maintenance of ecological balance.
In the year 1991-92, ‘The Project Elephant’ was launched aiming at ensuring long term
survival of identified viable population of elephants and tackling problematic elephant
populations causing serious depredation.

In 1995, the National Environment Tribunal Act was enacted to provide for strict liability for
damages arising out of any accidents occurring while handling any hazardous substance.

The planning process in India responded to the problem at a snail’s pace. It was only in the
Fourth Five Year Plan the necessity of introducing environmental aspect into the planning
process was clearly articulated  . The Fifth Plan (1974-79) stressed the need for environmental
protection while pursuing development. The Sixth Plan (1980-85) devoted a complete section to
"Ecology and Environment" and called for a bold new approach to development, based on
techno-environmental and socio-economic evaluation of each developmental project. The
Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth Plans also emphasized the need for environmental planning. The
Tenth Plan (2002-2007) proposed very vital environmental strategies for achieving sustainable
development using key indicators such as
(i) encouraging multi-stakeholder participatory process involving effective exchange of
information;
(ii) supplementing command and control regime with market based economic instruments
and evolving environmental markets at least on experimental basis;
(iii) evolving methodologies and apparatus for indicators/indices of sustainability,
monitoring process, assigning responsibility, incentives and accountability;
(iv) promoting sustainable consumption levels and patterns through effective classification
and awareness programmes;
(v) promoting sustainable production, transportation, clean technology, waste minimization,
renewable energy, and energy efficiency;
(vi) institutionalizing cross-sectoral and inter-disciplinary research and transparency in
decision making;
(vii) professionalising Pollution Control Boards with built-in accountability, etc.
11th Five year plan

 Increase forest and tree cover by 5 percentage points.

 Attain WHO standards of air quality in all major cities by 2011–12.
 Treat all urban waste water by 2011–12 to clean river waters.
 Increase energy efficiency by 20%
 Target growth:8.33% Growth achieved:7.9%

Constitutional and Legislative measures – The Constitution of India and Environment.

To protect and improve the environment is a constitutional mandate. It is the commitment for a
country wedded to the ideas of a welfare State. The Indian constitution contains specific
provisions for environmental protection under the chapters of Directive Principles of the State
Policy and Fundamental Duties. The absence of any specific provision in
the Constitution recognising the fundamental right to (clean and wholesome) environment has
been set off by judicial activism in the recent times.

 Article 48A and 51 (A)(g)

A global adaption consciousness for the protection of the environment in the seventies prompted
the Indian Government to enact the 42nd Amendment (1976) to the Constitution. The said
amendment added Art. 48A to the Directive Principles of State Policy. It Declares:-

“the State shall endeavor to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests
and wildlife of the country”.

A similar responsibility imposed upon on every citizen in the form of Fundamental Duty –

Art. 51(A) (g)

“to protect and improve the natural environment including forest, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and
to have compassion for living creatures”.

The amendments also introduced certain changes in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.
‘Forest’ and ‘Wildlife’ were transferred from the State list to the Concurrent List. This shows the
concern of Indian parliamentarian to give priority to environment protection by bringing it out
the national agenda. Although unenforceable by a court, the Directive Principles are increasingly
being cited by judges was a complementary to the fundamental rights. In several environmental
cases, the courts have guided by the language of Art. 48A. and interpret it as imposing “an
obligation” on the government, including courts, to protect the environment.
Article 246

Art.246 of the Constitution divides the subject areas of legislation between the Union and the
States. The Union List (List I) includes defence, foreign affairs, atomic energy, intestate
transportation, shipping, air trafficking, oilfields, mines and inter-state rivers. The State List (List
II) includes public health and sanitation, agriculture, water supplies, irrigation and drainage,
fisheries. The Concurrent list (List III) (under which both State and the Union can legislate)
includes forests, protection of wildlife, mines and minerals and development not covered in the
Union List, population control and factories. From an environmental standpoint, the allocation of
legislative authority is an important one – some environmental problem such as sanitation and
waste disposal, are best tackled at the local level; others, like water pollution and wildlife
protection, are better regulated uniform national laws.
 Article 253

Art.253 of the Constitution empowers Parliament to make laws implementing India’s

international obligations as well as any decision made at an international conference, association
or other body. Art.253 states: Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provision provisions of
this chapter, Parliament has power to make any law for the whole or any part of the territory of
India for implementing any treaty, agreement or convention with any other country or countries
or any decision made at any international conference, association or other body. The Tiwari
Committee in 1980 recommended that a new entry on “environmental Protection” be introduced
in the concurrent list to enable the centre to legislate on environmental subjects, as there was no
direst entry in the 7th seventh enables Parliament to enact comprehensive environment laws. The
recommendation, however, did to consider parliament’s power under Art.253

 Article 14 and Article 19 (1) (g)

ART. 14 states: “The states shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal
protection of the laws within the territory of India.’’ The right to equality may also be infringed
by government decisions that have an impact on the environment. An arbitrary action must
necessary involve a negation of equality, thus urban environmental groups often resort to Art.14
to quash arbitrary municipal permission for construction that are contrary to development
regulations.

 Article 21

(Right to Wholesome Environment)

"No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according procedure
established by law."

In 2000, the Central Government by virtue of powers conferred on it by the Environment

(Protection) Act, 1986 made the following rules;

1. The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000;

2. Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000;
3. The Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000; and
4. Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules, 2001.

Apart from the above eco-specific legislations, realizing that there is no comprehensive
legislation dealing with bio-diversity in India, and to fulfill its international obligation under
Convention on Bio-Diversity (CBD), the Govt. of India has enacted the Biological Diversity
Act 2002.