The book has been authored by Md. Zafar
Mahfooz Nomani, Senior Lecturer and Joint Editor of Aligarh Law Journal of Faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University, India. The author belongs to the second generation of
environmental law scholars. His writings are not fashioned in black letter law tradition rather offers an erudite explanation of environ-legal problems with greater pragmatism. The book in review remains a superb academic panorama in the sense that it has dealt quite exhaustively with all facets of law and policy related to preservation, conservation and repletion of natural resources. The author has also nicely covered all pertinent judicial pronouncements at relevant places.
The book runs into twelve chapters plus ten appendices covering all important environmental legislations in India. The first Chapter titled as “Constitutional Imperatives and Environmental
Protection” delves into the study of preservation of environment through the mechanism of constitution and through the vibrancy of constitutionalism. The chapter establishes that a constitution which is environmentally dry is worthy of repudiation in 21st century. The second chapter examines the amicability of the Environment impact assessment (EIA) law with the principles of federalism and the Indian approach to it. The author maintains that the EIA law in India is antagonistic to federal requirements; the final draft of EIA in 1994 exhibited a centripetal tendency of central clearance and crushed the very spirit and intent of EIA laws by introducing the financial criteria for project approval. The third chapter tiled as “Environmental Law and Justice in India” provides the reader with a comprehensive overview of the legislative and administrative developments plus the judicial trends to the prevention of Water pollution, Maintenance of ambient air, Management of solid and hazardous wastes, Conservation of forest and Biodiversity, Protection of wild life and Animal.
The menace and control of water pollution has been taken up in two chapters. Chapter four while dealing with the legal control of water pollution makes a meticulous study of the water quality and monitoring in India through as much as six easy to understand tables cited from the annual report of Central Pollution Control Board. Chapter twelve elucidates that how public participation is an effective tool to check water pollution. The author point out that the Water Act, 1986 does not promote community participation, but the 1988 amendment accords a partial recognition to it. Similarly in the constitution too, it was after the 1976 amendment that Article 48-A and Article 51 A(g) were inserted which gave space for public spirited environmental action. Chapter five deals with the Air Pollution, the legal mechanism for its check prescribed under the Air Act, 1981 and the National Ambient Air Quality monitoring programme (NAACM). The good thing about this chapter is a self-generated table by the author which summarizes the judicial response to contain air pollution providing the name of the cases, the nature of dispute and the relief & ruling that came out of that judicial exercise. The table covers as many as 27 cases including the famous M.C.Mehta case, Taj Mahal case, Vehicular pollution in Delhi case etc.
A separate chapter has also been devoted to radiation pollution and its environmental impact. It nicely encapsulates the international law (like the ILO convention on Radiation Protection, 1960, the Bamako and Lome Conventions), national law (like the hazardous wastes rules, 1989, Atomic energy Act 1962, Radiation protection rules 1971) and the judicial attitude (like in Law Society of India V. Fertilizer & Chemical Tranvancor Ltd., Irish Butter case) towards the radiation pollution. Chapter seven deals with the conservation of Eco-system and Biological Diversity and makes a study of international and national law vis-à-vis biological diversity. Most importantly it also takes up the question of patenting of biological resources, where the author has suggested a three fold strategy to establish harmony between IPR regime and the ecological and cultural wisdom, heritage of indigenous communities for BD conservation. Chapter eight makes an analysis of protection of health and environment under various industrial laws, for e.g. Chapter VI-A of the Factories Act 1948, relevant sections of Trade union Act 1926 and the Industrial Disputes Act 1947. It also covers the judicial trends in this regard like the SC ruling in Vincent Parlkunura V. UOI, T. Damodar Roa case and in many others. Chapter nine studies the law and policy relating to animal and wild life covering the National Zoo Policy, Wildlife Action Plan and the case laws regarding Animal Protection( Chief Secretary, Government of A.P V. P.K.Jain) and wildlife conservation(Centre for Environmental Law-WWF India v. State of Orissa). Chapter ten underpins the need and efficaciousness of community action for better implementation of environment protection laws. Chapter twelve deals with the provision for criminal liability for anti-environmental actions under various environmental laws as well as under the regular penal laws. Again the author has provided a self-made table providing in a nut-shell various criminal liability provisions under the Water act 1974, Water Case Act 1977, Air Act 1981, EPA 1986, Public liability Act, 1991 etc and the penalties they attract for their violation.
To conclude it can be comfortably said that the book remains multidimensional vis-à-vis environmental concerns and is indeed very wide in its coverage. It should be consulted by every lawman wishing to make a study on law and policy regarding preservation and protection of environment and by every layman wishing to get sensitized in this direction.