Tuesday, April 9, 2024
The Government of India has recently been instructed by the Supreme Court to enact a series of measures aimed at safeguarding the critically endangered Great Indian Bustard. In a landmark ruling emphasizing the importance of climate change and ecological preservation, a bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, alongside Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra, established an expert committee to address the conservation of this endangered bird. The Court highlighted the significance of Article 21, which recognizes the right to life and personal liberty, and Article 14, ensuring equality before the law and equal protection of the laws for all individuals.
“These articles are important sources of the right to a clean environment and the right against the adverse effects of climate change,” the Court added.
The Court interconnected Articles 21 and 14 of the Constitution of India and observed that, “If climate change and environmental degradation lead to acute food and water shortages in a particular area, poorer communities will suffer more than richer ones. The right to equality would undoubtedly be impacted in each of these instances.”
The Court amended its broad directive issued in 2021, which mandated the undergrounding of all high voltage cables to safeguard the Great Indian Bustard.
The Court observed that, “While balancing two equally crucial goals – the conservation of the GIB on one hand, with the conservation of the environment as a whole on the other hand – it is necessary to adopt a holistic approach which does not sacrifice either of the two goals at the altar of the other.”
The Court established an expert committee to address the preservation of the Great Indian Bustard and evaluate alternatives to high voltage overhead cables. The Committee has been tasked with completing its assignment and delivering a report by July 31, 2024.
Wednesday, May 1, 2024
Thursday, May 2, 2024
