COMPENDIUM OF SUMMARIES OF JUDICIAL DECISIONS IN ENVIRONMENT RELATED CASES

INDIA

India - Constitutional Rights, Environmental Education

M.C. MEHTA v. UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS

WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) NO. 860 OF 1991 THE CHIEF JUSTICE, G.N. RAY, J., and A.S. ANAND, J.

Introduction

Petitioner, M.C. Mehta filed this application in the public interest, asking the Supreme Court to: (1) issue direction to cinema halls that they show slides with information on the environment; (2) issue direction for the spread of information relating to the environment on All India Radio; and (3) issue direction that the study of the environment become a compulsory subject in schools and colleges.

Petitioner made this application on the grounds that Article 51A(g) of the Constitution requires every citizen to protect and improve the natural environment, including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and to have compassion for living creatures. To fulfil these obligations to the environment, the Petitioner argued that people needed to be better educated about the environment.

Legal Framework

Constitution of India, Article 5lA(g).

Water Pollution Control Act of 1974.

Air Pollution Control Act 1981.

Environment Protection Act of 1986.

Held

The Court noted the world-wide concern about environmental matters had increased greatly since the early 1970s. The Court also noted that the enormous increase in human population in the last fifty years, as well as changes in lifestyles, have necessitated that environmental issues be given more attention, and that it is the Government's obligation to keep citizens informed about such matters.

The Court noted that the Attorney-General of India agreed to work out procedures to take care of some of the Petitioner's concerns. Thus, the Court issued the following directions:

(1) The State Governments and Union Territories will require, as a condition of licenses to all cinema halls, touring cinemas and video parlours, that at least two slides/messages provided by the Ministry of Environment, and which deal with environmental issues, will be shown free of cost as part of each show. Failure to comply with this order is grounds for cancellation of a license.

(2) The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting will start producing short films which deal with the environment and pollution. One such film will be shown, as far as practicable, in one show every day by the cinema halls.

(3) All India Radio and Dooradarshan will take steps to make and broadcast interesting programmes on the environment and pollution. The Attorney-General has said that five to seven minutes can be devoted to these programs each day on these radio/TV stations.

(4) The University Grants Commission will take appropriate steps to require universities to prescribe a course on the environment. They should consider making this course a compulsory subject.

As far as education up to the college level, every State Government and every Education Board connected with education up to the matriculation stage, as well as intermediate colleges, is required to take steps to enforce compulsory education on the environment in a graded way.

Compliance is required for the next academic year.