Tag: Environmental Damage

Supreme Court Slashes NGT’s ₹50 Crore Fine, Rules Turnover Can’t Dictate Environmental Penalty
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Slashes NGT’s ₹50 Crore Fine, Rules Turnover Can’t Dictate Environmental Penalty

In this judgment, the Supreme Court curtailed the National Green Tribunal's (NGT) powers, ruling that environmental compensation cannot be arbitrarily linked to a polluter's turnover, lacking a direct nexus to the actual damage. It also held that the NGT lacks jurisdiction to direct investigations by the Enforcement Directorate under the PMLA, affirming that such actions require a scheduled offence to be registered. The Court emphasized that penalties must be determined based on established methodologies and legal principles, not rhetoric. Facts Of The Case: The case originated from a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Adil Ansari before the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in 2019 against M/s C.L. Gupta Export Ltd. The allegations were that the company, an exporter of handicraft ite...
Supreme Court Empowers Pollution Boards to Levy Environmental Damages
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Empowers Pollution Boards to Levy Environmental Damages

The Supreme Court held that Pollution Control Boards can impose restitutionary and compensatory damages, including ex-ante bank guarantees, under Sections 33A and 31A of the Water and Air Acts. This power is distinct from punitive penalties and is grounded in the 'Polluter Pays' principle to remediate environmental damage. Facts Of The Case: The Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) issued show cause notices in 2006 to multiple entities, including residential and commercial complexes, for operating without the mandatory "consent to establish" and "consent to operate" under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981. As a condition for granting consent, the DPCC demanded the payment of fixed sums a...