environment 1

7/24/2019 Environment 1

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C ntents

• National Green Tribunal and Environmental Justice in India

• IPCC 5th Assessment Report

• Paris conference (COP21 or CMP 11) November-December 2015

• Tiger conservation in India

• Namami Gange Programme

• Yamuna Revitalization Plan 2017

• What is Polluters Pay Model?

• T S R Subramanian Panel Report

• E-waste in India

• Issues related to Pollution Control Board

• Sand mining and its impact

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URRENT AFFAIRS

Environment-1



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tesNational Green Tribunal and Environmental

Justice in India

The National Green Tribunal has been established under the National GreenTribunal Act, 2010 for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to

environmental protection, conservation of forests and other natural resources.

It is responsible for enforcement of any legal rights relating to environment and

giving relief and compensation for damages to persons, property and for matters

connected therewith or incidental thereto. It is a specialized body equipped

with the necessary expertise to handle environmental disputes involving multi-

disciplinary issues.

In India, National Green Tribunal (NGT) was established in 2010 under ‘Article

21’ of the Indian Constitution. This particular article of Indian constitution

assures its citizens the protection of life and personal liberty. Keeping in view

this constitutional right, the government has started a new green tribunal to

exclusively deal with the environment related litigations. The newly established

tribunal is a unique judicial mechanism in the sense that it is a fast-track,

‘quasi-judicial’ body to ensure speedy justice on the environment related cases.

The Tribunal comprises of equal number of judges and environmental experts

to ensure efficient disposal of cases. It has also provision of compensation to

be paid by the polluter for damages caused to the affected parties. The tribunal

has jurisdiction on environment related subjects. The Tribunal is not bound by

the Civil Procedure Code of 1908. It works on the ‘Principles of Natural

Justice’.

The principal bench of the tribunal is located in New Delhi, the capital of

India. There are circuit benches in Bhopal, Chennai, Kolkata and Pune. The

objective behind these establishments in different parts of the country is to

reach the remote parts of India. By this way people from different parts of the

country can have access to tribunal. Principal bench as well as regional benches

of the Green Tribunal are currently functional. Besides this, another major

purpose for the establishment of green courts in different cities is aimed towards

reducing the burden of litigation in the general courts. Indian courts are already

overburdened with the cases, in every court: from lower to upper court .

The impact of NGT

Since its inception in October 2010, the National Green Tribunal of India is

successfully upholding its mandate. It is acting as a ‘fast-track court’ for effective

and expeditious disposal of cases relating to protection and conservation of

environment. The following graph shows the number of cases settled by NGT

till December 2013. It is observed that number of cases settled is increasing

with the span of time. The number of cases settled is almost double in firsthalf (January –June) of 2013 than that of () 2012. Similarly the July-December

session of 2013 has settled more than double the number of cases than the

same session of 2012. In this way NGT is proved to be the first-track court

in environmental justice.



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Figure- Number of cases judged by National Green Tribunal till December 2013

Recent Judgments

a) National Green Tribunal (NGT) ordered that every household in Delhi

will have to pay a monthly environmental compensation to clean up the

Yamuna River. According to the direction, the compensation to be paid

will be directly proportional to the property tax or water bill, whichever

is higher. In case of unauthorized colonies s that does not pay property

tax or water bill, these will have to pay an amount between hundred to

five hundred rupees.

b) The National Green Tribunal (NGT) banned mining or removal of sandfrom river beds across the country without license of Environmental

Clearance from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests.

c) National Green Tribunal (NGT) issued a ban on the process of burning

of tires at public places like roads and areas surrounded by buildings. The

order was passed following the action of burning of tires during the religious

and political processions, as it causes health hazards. Burning tires create

smoke, which is also a serious environmental threat.

d) The National Green Tribunal (NGT) ordered a complete ban on burning

of any kind of garbage, leaves, plastic waste and rubber in the open in

Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) to control air pollution. Asper NGT, burning of garbage and other material like plastic is responsible

for nearly 30 percent of the air pollution in the capital and its suburbs. The

person who is found burning or responsible for burning would be liable to

pay compensation in accordance with the terms of Section 15 of the



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National Green Tribunal Act, 2010. It also directs authorities to levy a

fine of Rs 5000 on anyone committing this.

Issues and challenges before the NGT

Speedy and Effective justice

A fundamental problem facing the judicial system in India is speedy disposal

of cases. The problem is even more pronounced where environmental issues

are concerned. A study done by the Delhi-based Centre for Science and

Environment (CSE) on the status of cases filed by the state pollution control

boards showed that as many as 96 per cent, 76 per cent and 55 per cent of

cases filed by Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Karnataka boards respectively, were

pending in the lower courts.

In the three-and-a-half year since its establishment, NGT has done much

better. It had 6,017 cases instituted and 3,458 cases were disposed of—a rate

of about 60 per cent, as of August, 2014.

The high court would normally not earmark more than three hearings in a year

for an environmental matter. NGT, on the other hand, is much more regular

in scheduling hearings, typically with time gap of two to three weeks between

two consecutive hearings. Perhaps, this promptness in deliberating over cases

is reflected in the more number of cases being settled by NGT. This has also

created optimism in the community regarding decisions of environmental dispute.

Despite the high percentage of cases being disposed off, there is also an

increasing backlog of cases in NGT. Till August 31 2015, 2,559 cases-about

40 per cent of all cases-were pending before different Benches of NGT. The

pendency was more than 60 per cent in the southern, western and easternBenches. At the principal Bench, the pendency was about 30 per cent. The

pendency indicates both the resources available at different Benches and the

number of cases filed. All Zonal Benches are handled by just one judicial and



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Is justice accessible?

NGT may be an efficient institution but is its justice available to everybody?

This was discussed when the NGT Act was being debated in Parliament in

2010. Many parliamentarians expressed the opinion that as NGT would takeover the powers of the lower courts, people would not have local access to

justice. This would be most disadvantageous to the economically weaker sections

of society as they would not be able to use the more than 13,000 district and

subordinate courts to address environmental disputes. In tribal areas of

Jharkhand, Orissa, Chhattisgarh etc, people do not have much knowledge

about NGT. For a tribal activist of a remote location, it is extremely difficult

to travel to Kolkata and find accommodation there.

A green tribunal should be based in a place that has the highest forest cover

or the largest mineral deposit. That is where most disputes occur and also the

extremely poor lives.

Is NGT overstepping its Jurisdiction

NGT has been accused of overstepping its jurisdiction and taking actions for

which it has not been empowered under the NGT Act. Three issues have

frequently cropped up. First, does NGT have powers to take cognizance of a

matter on its own and take action upon it-the power of Suo-motu. Second, can

NGT review and direct change in rules and regulations-the power of judicial

review. Third, can NGT take up any case which can be termed as ‘substantial

question of environment’?

The NGT Act refers to the scope of NGT’s jurisdiction in Sections 14, 15 and

16. Section 19 states that the tribunal can determine its own procedure andthis provision has been used by NGT to include within its ambit issues that

the NGT Act does not authorize it to adjudicate upon.

Suo-motu powers:

In the past, NGT has taken up cases on its own motion (Suo-motu). In Himachal

Pradesh, the tribunal took up issues relating to the adverse impact of heavy

and unregulated tourism in the Rohtang Pass area. The tribunal issued a long

order with many directions. The ministry had been constantly reminding NGT

that taking up Suo-motu cases is not within its jurisdiction. In India, Suo-motu

jurisdiction is limited to superior courts like the Supreme Court and the high

courts. According to ministry officials, NGT in the past has written to them

to give it Suo-motu and contempt power, both of which were denied.

However, Justice Swatanter Kumar, NGT chairperson, maintains, ‘Suo-motu

jurisdiction has to be an integral feature of NGT for better and effective

functioning. Under the Constitution, high courts also have not been exclusively

conferred Suo-motu jurisdiction. However, they have been exercising the power.

There are some inherent powers which are vital for effective functioning and

Suo-motu jurisdiction is one such power’

IPCC 5th Assessment Report

• The IPCC was established in 1988 by the World Meteorological

Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme

(UNEP) to assess scientific, technical and socio-economic information

concerning climate change, its potential effects and options for adaptation

and mitigation.



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• The IPCC in its recent report— Fifth Assessment Report (AR5)—publishedin 2014 has observed that there has been an increasing trend in theanthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) since the advent of the industrial revolution, with about half of the anthropogenic CO

2

emissions during this period occurring in the last forty years.

• According to the report the period 1983- 2012 is likely to have been thewarmest thirty year period of the last 1400 years.

• CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion and industrial processes have

contributed a major portion of total GHG emissions during the period1970 - 2010.

• Till 2011, the world has emitted 1,900 Gt (Gigatons) of CO2, thus already

consuming around two-thirds of this budget. This means that out of the budget of 2,900 Gt, only 1,000 Gt remains to be used between now and2100.

• According to the report the change in the climate system is likely to haveadverse impact on the economy, livelihoods, cropping pattern, and foodsecurity.

• Future Projections in the Report

a) Further warming will continue if emissions of greenhouse gases continue.

b) The global surface temperature increase by the end of the 21st centuryis likely to exceed 1.5 °C relative to the 1850 to 1900 period for mostscenarios, and is likely to exceed 2.0 °C for many scenarios

c) The global water cycle will change, with increases in disparity betweenwet and dry regions, as well as wet and dry seasons, with some regionalexceptions.

d) The oceans will continue to warm, with heat extending to the deep ocean,affecting circulation patterns.

e) Decreases are very likely in Arctic sea ice cover, Northern Hemispherespring snow cover, and global glacier volume

f) Global mean sea level will continue to rise at a rate very likely to exceedthe rate of the past four decades

g) Changes in climate will cause an increase in the rate of CO2 production.Increased uptake by the oceans will increase the acidification of the oceans.

h) Future surface temperatures will be largely determined by cumulativeCO

2, which means climate change will continue even if CO

2 emissions

are stopped.

How South Asia will be affected

The report shows how climate change is particularly affecting key aspects of life in various parts of the world. It says this about South Asia:

• Over the mid-term (2046–2065), an increase of 2-4°C is projected for the

region with the warmest temperatures concentrated in Iraq, Saudi Arabia,Iran, Russia, China, Mongolia, Nepal, and Bhutan.

• The warmest daily maximum temperature is projected to increase 4-7°C,

with the highest temperature changes in Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria, northern

India, Pakistan, China, Nepal, and Bhutan.



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• The number of tropical nights (that is the number of nights above 20°C)is projected to significantly increase, with most concentrated in India,Thailand, portions of Myanmar, Laos, and portions of Vietnam. Thisextended period of heat can be problematic for human health.

• Overall, annual precipitation is projected to increase across eastern Asia,the Tibetan Plateau, and South and Southeast Asia.

• Over the mid-term (2046–2065) there is a 10 to 20% decrease of precipitation projected in March – May for portions of Southeast Asiaand a 30% increase during September – November for China and Pakistan

• Cloudiness, which can amplify warming and humidity, which can affecthuman health are projected to increase over Pakistan and India.

• Annual mean soil moisture, which affects how well plants can grow, isprojected to decrease across much of the western portion of the region

(Turkey, Russia, Syria, Iraq, Iran), Nepal, Bhutan, China, Myanmar, Laos,Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Malaysia while there are small increasesprojected for India, Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh.

• Annual runoff, that is the amount of water discharged from major rivers,is projected to decrease (-30% to -40%) across much of the already drywestern portion of the region (Middle East) and increase (up to 40%) insome of the flood-prone regions, such as northern China, Pakistan, India,and in Southeast Asia.

• The impacts of climate change on food production and food security inAsia will vary by region; however, many regions are expected to see adecline in food productivity, with the largest numbers of food-insecurepeople located in South Asia.

• Fisheries, a major source of livelihoods and protein for many countries,are also projected to be negatively impacted by climate change, especiallyin South and Southeast Asia.

• The Indo-Gangetic Plains (India), which produce about 14-15% of globalwheat, could suffer significant reductions due to climate change-inducedheat stress, affecting about 200 million people (based on the currentpopulation).

• Warming temperatures may adversely affect rice and other crops growing

near their heat stress limits in places such as Pakistan/North India (duringOctober), South India (April, August), East India/Bangladesh (March-June), Myanmar/Thailand/Laos/Cambodia (March-June), Vietnam (April,August), Philippines (April, June), Indonesia (August) and China (July-August).

• Sea-level rise threatens coastal and deltaic rice production areas in Asia,such as those in Bangladesh, Myanmar, and the Mekong River Delta. For example, about 7% of Vietnam’s agricultural land may be submerged dueto sea-level rise.

• Winter wheat yields could increase with warming temperatures in thenorthern portion of its production (northern Pakistan), however, extremeweather events could counter some of these gains.

• Climate change-induced floods also threaten vulnerable regions that havehigh concentrations of people and infrastructure, including many in India,Bangladesh, and China.



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• By the 2070s, the top Asian cities with the most people at risk (including

all environmental and socioeconomic factors) to coastal flooding are

expected to be Kolkata, Mumbai, Dhaka, Guangzhou, Ho Chi Minh City,

Shanghai, Bangkok, Rangoon, and HaiPhòng.

• Severe child stunting (lack of growth due to malnutrition) is projected to

increase by 62% in South Asia due to climate change by 2050 without

accelerated investment in planned adaptations.

• Permafrost is projected to decrease 20-90% by 2100 in North Asia and the

Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, which will have substantial impacts to erosion,

infrastructure, and livelihoods.

• Climate change may further complicate the unsustainable consumption of

groundwater for irrigation and other uses in some locations, such as the

Indian states of Rajasthan, Punjab, and Haryana.

• Climate change will challenge water supply issues in South Asia and mayadversely affect agricultural and livestock sustainability.

India’s Stand on Climate Change Issues

• India has been following action-oriented policies to bring rapid development

to its people while purposefully addressing climate change. India has been

one of the foremost advocates of long-term global cooperation in combating

climate change in accordance with the principles and provisions of the

UNFCCC.

• Climate change impacts being witnessed today are a result of the total

accumulated greenhouse emissions for which the major responsibility lieswith the developed nations. Moreover, despite the fast growth registered

by some of the developing countries, a large proportion of people in these

countries still live in extreme poverty. The Indian stance in the climate

change negotiations has been guided by the principle of CBDR.

• India thus believes that the climate change agreement of 2015 should take

into consideration a whole gamut of issues including adaptation, finance,

technology development and transfer, capacity building, transparency of

action and support in a balanced manner, and loss and damage in addition

to mitigation.

India’s stand on Different Parameters of Climate Change are:a) Mitigation: Historical responsibilities of developed countries and equity

in access to global atmospheric resources should continue to be the basis

of defining mitigation commitments. The 2015 agreement must ensure

that the developing countries be given their fair share of carbon and

development space. The contribution of developing countries to mitigation

efforts is far greater than that of developed countries and could be further

enhanced if developed countries effectively implement and significantly

increase their commitments of providing finance, technology, and capacity

building support to developing countries.

b) Adaptation: Equal weightage has to be given to adaptation as it is essentialfor reducing vulnerabilities of communities to climate change. This assumes

more importance in view of the fact that the developing countries are the

most vulnerable to climate change. However, both global action and finance

flows have been biased in favour of mitigation. The developing countries



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are pushing hard to include adaptation in a comprehensive and balanced

manner in the 2015 agreement.

c) Finance: The responsibility of providing financial assistance to the

developing countries lies with the developed countries and this has been

clearly articulated in the UNFCCC. India together with other developing

countries continue to urge the developed countries to honour their obligation

to provide new, additional, and predictable financial support to developing

countries in a measurable, reportable, and verifiable manner. In this context

ambitious capitalization of the GCF assumes significance. Developed

countries have been urged to provide clear timelines and pathways to

reach the US$ 100 billion annual commitment made by them in 2010.

d) Technology Transfer: Technology forms a major component of any move

towards combating climate change. The important issue in this regard is

that while the developed countries are the frontrunners in clean technology,

the developing countries do not possess either sufficient technical capabilityor the financial resources to develop clean technologies. Appropriate

mechanisms for smooth transfer of technology from the developed to

developing countries have to be agreed upon. The intellectual property

rights price-tag should not come in the way of such technology transfer.

India’s Stand on Montreal Protocol

• The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer was

designed to reduce the production and consumption of ozone depleting

substances in order to reduce their abundance in the atmosphere, and

thereby protect the earth’s fragile ozone Layer.

• The Montreal Protocol stipulates that the production and consumption of

compounds that deplete ozone in the stratosphere—chlorofluorocarbons

(CFCs), halons, carbon tetrachloride, and methyl chloroform should be

phased out.

• The Indian government recently took a leading role in global efforts to

address climate change by proposing a hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) phase-

down amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete

the Ozone Layer (Montreal Protocol).

• HFCs were introduced to replace ozone-depleting substances (ODSs) in

applications including refrigeration, air conditioning, fire protection and

technical and medical aerosol products, but they are no longer necessary

in most applications. The Indian proposal exempts HFC production and

consumption for metered dose inhalers (MDIs) and other medical

applications, and for feedstock applications.

• India’s proposed amendment would require all parties to phase down

HFCs to a set level. However, developing countries – referred to as Article

5 parties under the Montreal Protocol – would be given an additional 15

years to do so, in an effort to give domestic industries enough time to find

suitable alternatives.

• If the amendment is accepted, developing countries would reduce HFC

production and consumption to a 15 percent level, relative to a set baseline, by 2050 while developed countries would have until 2035. The ‘baselines’

used to determine these levels would also depend on whether a country

is classified under Article 5 or not.



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• The proposal also makes suggestions for strengthening the Montreal

Protocol’s financial and technology transfer mechanisms to assist developing

countries in making their transitions towards cleaner energy.

Paris conference (COP21 or CMP 11) November –December 2015

The United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP21 or CMP11 will be

held in Paris, France in 2015.

What is likely to be agreed in Paris?

We know already what the biggest emitters have committed to. The EU will

cut its emissions by 40%, compared with 1990 levels, by 2030. The US will

cut its emissions by 26% to 28%, compared with 2005 levels, by 2025. China

will agree that its emissions will peak by 2030.

Nations responsible for about two-thirds of global emissions have now comeup with their targets – known in the UN jargon as Indented Nationally

Determined Contributions or INDCs – but some countries, most notably India,

have not yet done so, despite being asked to meet a deadline at the end of

March.

What we already know, however, is that the commitments made, and likely to

be made by December, will not by themselves be enough to hold the world to

no more than 2C of warming. In order to bolster these targets, two approaches

have been suggested: that more effort should be made to bring down emissions

outside the UN process, for instance by engaging ‘non-state actors’ such as

cities, local governments and businesses to do more; and that the INDCsshould be subject to regular review and ratcheting up in the years after the

Paris meeting.

Major issues before the COP 21

The other key question, apart from emissions reduction, is finance. Poorer

countries want the rich world to provide them with financial help that will

enable them to invest in clean technology to cut their greenhouse gas emissions,

and to adapt their infrastructure to the likely damage from climate change.

This is a hugely contentious issue. At Copenhagen, where the finance part of

the deal was only sorted out at the very last minute, rich countries agreed to

supply $30bn ($20bn) of ‘fast-start’ financial assistance to the poor nations,and they said that by 2020, financial flows of at least $100bn a year would be

provided.

Poor nations want a similar provision in place beyond 2020, but there is strong

disagreement over how this should be done. Some want all the money to come

from rich country governments, but those governments are adamant that they

will not provide such funding solely from the public purse. They want

international development banks, such as the World Bank, to play a role, and

they want most of the funding to come from the private sector. An agreement

on this is still possible, but it will be one of the main obstacles to a Paris deal.

Major challenges faced by India

As we look forward to the 21st session of the UN Climate Change Conference

or COP21, countries across the globe will commit to create a new international

climate agreement by the conclusion of the Paris Climate Summit in December,



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2015. As the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases (GHGs), after China

and the United States, India faces international pressure on what’s its Intended

Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) will be.

The Earth’s climate is changing at a fast rate, transforming many ecosystems

and will continue to do so at an accelerated pace. Despite mounting evidences,

we fail to decipher the complexity that is creating many inconsistencies in

climate negotiations. We suffer from climate-related anticipation which can be

attributed to cultural and historical logic, and not by any biological conscience.

Furthermore, the dialogue surrounding climate negotiations is very specific and

often uses jargon that is unfamiliar to the layperson.

India, like many other developing countries needs its own directive policies

aimed at mitigation and adaptation. This requires engagement from multiple

stakeholders. Implementation of the existing climate policies is not adequately

monitored in the country, and lacks methodological clarity required to guide

policy trade-offs and priorities. The solution to these problems should not be buried in national and international documents. The on-going revolution of

climate change requires wider attention, while presenting climate change as a

behavioural and political issue. This is not the case in India which makes

climate negotiations a major management objective for decision-makers.

In the midst of all these complexities, India faces insurmountable challenges

in the areas of growth and development of its economy, environment and

energy security. With a population of more than a billion, the country faces

tremendous energy needs and it is becoming increasingly difficult to meet

those needs through traditional means of power generation. For India to achieve

a zero emission scenario would seem like an impossible expectation, especially

if the country is still trying to provide the basic necessities to sustain humanlife. Therefore, the primary goal of the current government still remains

development. India aims for parallel development tackling the twin challenges

of fighting poverty, and climate change.

28 out of 29 states in India have their own climate action plans. There has

been debate about these plans for not having prioritized objectives. No evidence-

based studies support many of these reports. Existing information is available

through either private institutions or scientific research communities. There is

also increasing consensus about pushing through reforms that would weaken

India’s existing environmental laws and threaten the rights of those who rely

on forests for their livelihoods. The apparent, albeit incomplete, solution would

require India to achieve plans and polices that fulfil the obligations of the

international conventions and promise development, while promoting local

livelihoods.

Over one third of India’s rural population does not have electricity. This is

compounded by the fact that energy demand is expected to double over the

next 20 years. The new government says it will reduce dependency on fossil

fuels and become the ‘renewable energy capital’ of the world. Since 2011,

from barely 20 megawatts, India has installed solar capacity up to 1,686

megawatts by the end of 2013. The government is planning on adding 10,000

megawatts of energy capacity to the renewable sector, every year — that’s

about half of the country’s current total installed capacity. Although India isstill developing domestic energy sources to satisfy the growing demand, it has

imported increasing amounts of fossil fuels over the last year. With the aim

of expanding its power-generation by 44%, coal imports for the country were

exceptionally high in 2014 and will likely rise further over the next five years.



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Nevertheless, the ambitious targets for the solar and wind energy sectors have

engaged many foreign renewable energy companies eagerly waiting business-

friendly ventures as promised by the government.

To achieve aspirational goals, announcing foreign financing could provide leverageto the thriving renewable industry. However, major details are deeply flawed on

how the government will actually improve the investments and how only

renewable energy can meet India’s underlying energy needs. Therefore, the

inability to generate affordable renewable energy is seen as a major limitation

to India’s pursuit of reaching energy security. The existing centralized model

of power generation, transmission and its distribution is becoming more costly

every day, and its maintenance limits flexibility which is required to meet the

continuous growing energy demands. Decentralized business models should be

encouraged because they are more practical and fit into reality. India is blessed

with an abundance of renewable resources like solar, wind, hydro (although

this depends on the locale), biomass, biogas, and geothermal. Yet, the countryspends large sums to import oil, coal, and natural gas. Having said that, India’s

renewable energy targets of 100 gigawatts of solar and 175 gigawatts of total

renewable sources of energy by 2022, therefore, does seem like an ambitious

task.

The larger issue that India needs to accept is whether the target is achievable,

and assuming if the target is not, does it make sense for India to have unrealistic

goals for its climate commitment? Solar energy is widely recognized and is

creating more jobs per unit of energy produced than any other energy source

and the wind energy market is also escalating. However, the problem is that

India is still not considered a sound capital investment. India’s high rate of

stalled capital infrastructure projects has made investment difficult for the

renewable sector. If climate funds do not increase and their supporting policies

do not materialize, the country will be left with a number of incomplete

projects and a tarnished foreign investment reputation.

Tiger conservation in India

The Indian strategy of Project Tiger since 1972 to focus on tiger source areas

in the form of ‘core areas’ thus stands vindicated. This vision and ongoing

initiatives led India to have the maximum tiger source sites in the world today.

Efforts are underway to mainstream the concerns of tiger in the landscape

surrounding such source sites through restorative actions, while providinglivelihood options to local people to reduce their dependency on forests.

Objectives of NTCA are to provide statutory authority to Project Tiger so that

compliance of its directives becomes legal. In the face of pressing challenges

of surging human population and pressure on forest land, the Project’s biggest

success has been to secure several source populations of tigers. In its new

avatar as NTCA, the Project strives to streamline scientific modules of

conservation and co-opt communities as responsible stakeholders.

Recent initiatives

• Strengthening of anti-poaching activities, including special strategy for monsoon patrolling, by providing funding support to tiger reserve states,

as proposed by them, for deployment of anti-poaching squads involving

ex-army personnel/home guards, apart from workforce comprising local

people, in addition to strengthening of communication/ wireless facilities.



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• Declaration of nine new tiger reserves and in-principle approval accorded

for creation of four new reserves - Biligiri in Karnataka, Pilibhit in Uttar

Pradesh, Ratapani in Madhya Pradesh and Sunabeda in Orissa.

• The revised Project Tiger guidelines have been issued to states for strengthening tiger conservation, which apart from ongoing activities, include

funding support to states for enhanced village rehabilitation package for

people living in core or critical tiger habitats (from ‘1 lakh to ‘10 lakh per

family), rehabilitation of communities involved in traditional hunting,

mainstreaming livelihood and wildlife concerns in forests outside tiger

reserves and fostering corridor conservation through restorative strategy to

arrest habitat fragmentation.

• Financial and technical help is provided to States under various centrally

sponsored schemes, viz. Project Tiger, Project Elephant and Integrated

Development of Wildlife Habitats for enhancing the capacity andinfrastructure of the states for providing effective protection to wild

animals.

· A Global Tiger Forum of Tiger Range Countries has been created for

addressing international issues related to tiger conservation.

· As part of active management to rebuild Sariska and Panna tiger reserves

where tigers have become locally extinct, reintroduction of tigers have

been done.

· Special advisories issued for in-situ build-up of prey base and tiger

population through active management in tiger reserves having lowpopulation status of tiger and its prey.

Problems with Project Tiger

a. Funds

Project Tiger seems have serious problems related to funds can be looked at

under the following heads:

• Funds received by a majority of parks are usually inadequate. In addition

to being late, funds are often delayed. The Project Tiger Status Report

clearly reveals this. The data for 2004-2005 shows that funds are still

delayed and in deficit of what is demanded.

• A major problem seems to be the Annual Plan of Operation mode of

financing. It makes the receipt of funds an uncertain process.

b. Staff

Project Tiger National Parks are also suffering from serious staff problems.

Most of these problems are associated with Forest Guards- the ground-level

staff that is responsible for the protection of the wildlife and forests. 30 per

cent of the posts of forest staff are vacant.

Forest Guards, who are the ground-level enforcement staff, usually are trainedonly once during the course of their employment. This training, too, is not up

to the mark. Proper training is lacking. Non-Government Organisations (NGOs)

and various international agencies train the forest guards from time to time.

This training, too, is sporadic in nature.



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c. Infrastructure

Adequate Infrastructure is lacking in most Project Tiger National Parks. The

Forest Guards and Range Officers are not adequately equipped. Roads, wireless

equipment, jeeps, arms and ammunition and other anti-poaching equipmentare lacking in many Project Tiger National Parks. Even where arms are available,

the bearers of the arms do not have the permission to use them.

d. Other problems

Apart from the above, National Parks also suffer from problems of poaching,

grazing, encroachment, man-animal conflict, and man-forest conflict.

Forests and Wildlife are subjects under the concurrent list in the Indian

Constitution. Project Tiger, a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, is planned by the

Central Government and executed by the State Governments. The Central

Government has limited powers over the execution of Project Tiger. Thus,

while the guideline issued by the Central Government maybe sound their

translation in ground realities depend totally on the commitment of the State

Government to the issue. Also, it leads to excessive reliance of the State

Governments on the Central Government for funds for issues on the concurrent

list. This, in case of Project Tiger, has led to a dismal state of management of

most National Parks in the country where most National Parks still lack the

basic infrastructure, staff, etc envisaged by the Task Force of 1972.

Namami Gange Programme

A number of initiatives have been undertaken to clean the river according to

a report in the last three decades, around Rs 40,000 crore has been spent oncleaning and conserving the river, but failed to deliver desired results due to

corruption, lack of technical expertise, poor environmental planning, and lack

of support from religious authorities .

Conservation and improvement of the Ganga was one of the main agenda of

PM Narendra Modi, so keeping his promise Narendra Modi announced Namami

Ganga project in July 2014 budget for which Rs. 2,037 crores was set aside.

In addition a sum of Rs. 100 crores has been allocated for developments of

Ghats and beautification of River Fronts at Kedarnath, Haridwar, Kanpur,

Varanasi, Allahabad, Patna and Delhi in the current financial year. Recognizing

the multi-sectoral, multi-dimensional and multi-stakeholder nature of the GangaRejuvenation challenge, the key Ministries comprising of (a) WR, RD&GR,

(b) Environment, Forests & Climate Change, (c) Shipping, (d) Tourism, (e)

Urban Development, (f) Drinking Water and Sanitation and Rural Development

have been working together since June, 2014 to arrive at an action plan.

Following steps are proposed to be taken up under Namami Gange Programme:-

Nirmal Dhara- ensuring sustainable municipal sewage management

• Project prioritization in coordination with Ministry of Urban Development.

• Incentive for states to take up projects on Ganga Main-stem by providing

an additional share of central grants for sewerage infrastructure.

• Uniform standards for both MoUD scheme and Namami Gange

programme, 10 years mandatory O&M by the same service provider at

par with NGRBA programme and PPP, Mandatory reuse of treated water



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• Expanding coverage of sewerage infrastructure in 118 urban habitationson banks of Ganga- estimated cost by MoUD is Rs 51000 Crores

Nirmal Dhara- managing sewage from Rural Areas

• Mo DWS scheme for all Ganga bank Gram Panchayats (1632) free fromopen defecation by 2022, at a cost of Rs 1700 Crores as central share

Nirmal Dhara- managing Industrial discharge

• Making ZLD mandatory

• Rationalized water tariff to encourage reuse

• Real time water quality monitoring

Aviral Dhara

• Enforcing River Regulatory Zones on Ganga Banks

• Rational agricultural practices, efficient irrigation methods

• Restoration and conservation of wetlands

Ensuring ecological rejuvenation by conservation of aquatic life and biodiversity

Promotion of Tourism and Shipping in a rational and sustainable manner

Knowledge Management on Ganga through Ganga Knowledge Centre

Issues and challenges with the project

i. Planning and implementation issues

The dream project of P.M. ,Modi, the Clean Ganga project is supposed to becompleted in 18 years with an estimated cost of INR 2,037 crore. It is supposedto clean the river in its entirety – something, which is almost next to impossible.The river covers seven States in India and runs across almost the whole of north, central and eastern India. It might take a lot of time to actually just finda feasible plan for cleaning up the entire length of the river and that could verywell set the project back.

The Supreme Court has already, on several occasions, hauled up and asked theGovernment why it has been unable to provide any proper blueprint of how

the project will be executed in the days ahead. For a Government that islooking to present itself as more accountable and efficient as compared to itspredecessor, such a lack of progress at the very beginning indicates a rather sorry state of affairs. The Government has shown a plan to the apex court,which too has failed to get the approval of the judicial body.

Uma Bharati, Minister in charge of the ministry who leads this project, hasstated that it might take around three years to just come up with a plan for cleaning the river. This pace has surely left the Supreme Court miffed. It hasstated that the main stumbling block in the timely execution of the project iscorruption, a vice that has been plaguing the country since time immemorialand has gone as far as to suggest that some people related to the project should

be left out of the same if it has to progress.

ii. Problems at the official level:

The Indian Government has set up a number of bodies for executing the

project. However, the way they have gone about in approaching the project has



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left a lot to be desired. For example, the National Mission on Clean Ganga or

NMCG, which is supposed to be the primary body responsible for executing

the project, is supposed to have 27 permanent officers for executing the project

but till date it has had only three on its rolls, which is a matter of great

concern. What has compounded the misery is that these officers are also

playing important roles in other departments of the Government, which means

that they are unable to devote their fullest time to the more important project.

The situation is same with the National Ganga River Basin Authority as well

with a number of vacancies severely impeding the operations.

iii. Sewage treatment issues:

Secondly, the river has been heavily polluted by the various industrial units that

have been working over the years near the river. These units are guilty of

dumping untreated sewage into the river and most of them have admitted that

they do not have the necessary resources to treat the sewage better. The questionthat comes up now is how the Government will go about addressing this

problem. Will it cleanse the river only for these units to pollute it yet again and

thus pour cold water over its plans? Or, will it look to increase the waste

treatment facilities of these organizations.

The question is how much will it pay in case of technological upgradation of

these units. Will the State Governments bear any expenses – what happens if

the State Governments in hostile territories such as Bengal and Uttar Pradesh

deny the NDA Government such assistance? Will the Government force the

companies to do it all by themselves. In that case there is a distinct possibility

that some of them might downsize and some of them might just go out of business. What will happen to the people who lose their jobs? Will the

Government employ them? These are some of the aspects that the national

administration needs to ponder before taking any decisions in this matter.

iv. Political problems leading to stoppage

In December 2014 the work of the project had been stopped at Varanasi by

officials of the State forest department. At that time many in the Government

had asked why UP government was trying to put a hindrance to the project.

Well, in India – more than most countries of the world – politics has always

been a game of one-upmanship. The general culture in the country is also toprioritize petty interests over projects that can serve a greater good. Perhaps by

trying to stop the project the State government was trying to flex its muscles

in its own turf.

The situation could jolly well be similar in Bengal as well with the ongoing war

between the BJP and the TMC. The ruling party of the eastern province could

very well bring to halt the project under some pretext or the other and only

the river and the project will be poorer for it.

The project is supposed to take 18 years to be completed? The current NDA

needs to ask itself honestly if it will remain in power for such a long time.What will happen if the project is incomplete by the time the next regime

change takes place in India – will it be abandoned like its predecessors or will

it be completed? Going by the trend of Indian politics it could very well be

left behind and considering the aim of the project it would be a shame.



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Yamuna Revitalization Plan 2017 Yamuna

Revitalization Plan 2017

The Yamuna is one of the most important rivers of north India. It passes

through Uttarakhand, Haryana, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh. It merges with theGanga at Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh. At one time, it was the lifeline for the

people of the area, but today it is the most polluted river of the country.

The Yamuna has five segments – Himalayan Segment (from origin to Tajewala

Barrage 172 km), Upper Segment (Tajewala Barrage to Wazirabad Barrage 224

km), Delhi Segment (Wazirabad Barrage to Okhla Barrage 22 km), Eutriphicated

segment (Okhla Barrage to Chambal Confluence 490 kms), and Diluted segment

(Chambal Confluence to Ganga Confluence 468 kms). The Yamuna is the

most polluted in its Delhi Segment. The River Yamuna enters Delhi from Palla

village. 22 drains fall into the Yamuna. Out of these, 18 drains fall directly into

river and 4 through Agra and Gurgaon canal.

Lack of sufficient number of sewage treatment plants has led to the increase

in the polluted stretch of the Yamuna. Earlier the most polluted stretch of

Yamuna was located between Wazirabad in Delhi to Etawah in Uttar Pradesh.

Recently the polluted stretch has increased and shifted its starting point to

Panipat, Haryana. So 100 Km of polluted stretch has been added.

In the last two decades more than Rs 6,500 crore has been spent to clean the

Yamuna. But in its latest report, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)

has stated that polluted stretch of Yamuna has increased from 500 km to 600

km.

To support aquatic life, water should have 4.0 mg/ l dissolved Oxygen. Itsrange in the Yamuna from Wazirabad Barrage in Delhi to Agra is 0.0 mg/ l

to 3.7 mg/ l.

Water pollution is measured by measuring its biochemical oxygen demand

BOD) levels and the permissible range is 3 mg/ l or less. Whereas the most

polluted stretch of the Yamuna has 14 – 28 mg/ l BOD concentration. BOD

is increasing because there are numerous untreated sewage drains which dump

drains to the river.

Stretch of the Yamuna between Nizamuddin Bridge and Agra has high level

of toxic ammonia.

Stretch between Panipat and Agra has high level of Coliform bacteria.

Installation of Sewage Treatment Plants (STP), Installation of Effluent

Treatment Plants (ETP), Installation of Common Effluent Treatment Plants,

Yamuna Action Plan, Environmental Awareness Campaign are few of the

initiatives taken by the Delhi Government to clean the Yamuna. Apart from

this water is checked regularly for its quality.

Recently a Bench of the National Green Tribunal comprising of the Justice

Swatanter Kumar (Chairperson), Justice M.S. Nambiar (Judicial Member), Dr.D.K. Agrawal (Expert Member) and Prof. A.R. Yousuf (Expert Member)

issued 28 directions for implementation of the project called, ‘Maily Se Nirmal

Yamuna’ Revitalization Project, 2017, to be completed by 31st March, 2017.

• Under these directions, the bench put a spot fine of Rs 5,000 on anyone

spotted throwing waste in Yamuna, as is generally seen in Delhi where

people dispose worship material waste into the holy river from bridges



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across it. It also put a fine of Rs 50,000 on dumping of construction

debris in the river.

• The Bench was primarily concerned with that section of River Yamuna

which flows in the National Capital Territory of Delhi.• Further, according to the Tribunal, ancillary to this solution recycling and

reutilization of the water that would be discharged from these STP’s after

treatment of the sewage. ’This would not only help in providing usable

water for horticulture and industrial purposes for which there is a great

shortage in Delhi, but, would also minimize the discharge into River

Yamuna, preventing its pollution on the one hand and furthering the cause

of its restoration on the other,’.

• Another facet which called for attention of the Tribunal was that all the

natural and manmade drains in Delhi should be kept clean, free of

obstruction and dumping of any material or municipal waste, in or aroundthem should be strictly prohibited.

• According to the Tribunal, industrial units within a particular industrial

cluster have to pay these amounts on the ‘Polluter Pays’ Principle, for the

pollution already caused by them and even which they are causing

presently, as well as to prevent pollution in future on the Precautionary

Principle. Major part of such costs, obviously have to be borne by the

authorities concerned, let us say 2/3rd, while 1/3rd of the total costs

should be borne by the industries.

What is Polluters Pay Model?• The ‘polluters pays’ principle is the commonly accepted practice that

those who produce pollution should bear the costs of managing it to

prevent damage to human health or the environment. For instance, a

factory that produces a potentially poisonous substance as a byproduct of

its activities is usually held responsible for its safe disposal.

• This principle underpins most of the regulation of pollution affecting

land, water and air.

• The polluter pays principle is a way of ‘internalizing the externality’. It

makes the firm / consumer pay the total social cost, rather than just theprivate cost. (Social cost = private cost+ external cost)

• The polluter pays principle is an important basis of international law. In

1972, the OECD wrote Guiding Principles concerning International

Economic Aspects of Environmental Policies, stating:’… the polluter should

bear the expenses of carrying out the above-mentioned measures decided

by public authorities to ensure that the environment is in an acceptable

state.’

• The polluter pays principle was incorporated into the 1992 Rio summit The

declaration stated: Principle 16: ‘National authorities should endeavor topromote the internalization of environmental costs and the use of economic

instruments, taking into account the approach that the polluter should, in

principle, bear the cost of pollution, with due regard to the public interest

and without distorting international trade and investment.’



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• Difficulties of Implementing Polluter Pays Principle:

a) It can be difficult to measure how much pollution is produced, e.g. firms

may try to hide the extent of their pollution.

b) It can be difficult to impose regulations or tax on firms from other countries.For example, when we contribute to global warming, the problem effects

everyone around the world, but it can be difficult to create international

agreements to impose penalties on those polluting.

c) Pollution havens. These are countries which have weaker environmental

legislation and firms can escape taxes and regulations on pollution by

shifting production to those countries.

d) Some costs are unexpected and occur after the event. e.g. in building

nuclear power plant.

e) Administration costs of collecting information and implementing tax. For example, a few drunks late at night may make a lot of noise and disturb

the neighbourhood, but it would be impractical to impose a tax on those

who make noise after a hard-days night. Administration costs have

prevented the extension of congestion charge to smaller cities like

Manchester – even though in principle it would make economic sense to

have a charge for those who cause the external cost of congestion.

T S R Subramanian Panel Report

• The Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change had appointed

the High Level Committee (HLC) to review the following Acts

administered by the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change.

i. Environment (Protection) Act, 1986

ii. Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980

iii. Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

iv. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

v. The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981

• The terms of reference were as follows:-

i. To assess the status of implementation of each of the above Actsvis-à-vis the objectives;

ii. To examine and take into account various court orders and judicial

pronouncements relating to these Acts;

iii. To recommend specific amendments needed in each of these Acts

so as to bring them in line with current requirements to meet

objectives; and

iv. To draft proposed amendments in each of the above Acts to give

effect to the proposed recommendations.

• The high level committee has recommended formulating a new ‘umbrella’law to streamline the process of environment clearances for development

projects in the country.

• Under the new proposed Environment Law Management Act (ELMA),

full-time expert bodies—National Environment Management Authority



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(NEMA) and State Environment Management Authority (SEMA)—are

to be constituted at the Central and state levels respectively to evaluate

project clearance (using technology and expertise), in a time bound manner,

providing for single window clearance.

• A ‘fast track’ procedure for ‘linear’ projects (roads, railways and transmission

lines), power and mining projects and for the ‘projects of national

importance’ has been prescribed in the new mechanism.

• The Subramanian committee has proposed to club the Air Act and the

Water Act with EPA. The existing Central Pollution Control Board and

the State Pollution Control Boards, which monitor and regulate the

conditions imposed on the industries to safeguard environment, are proposed

to be ‘subsumed’ by NEMA and SEMA once the new bodies come into

existence.

• Under the new project clearance mechanism, the report says, GIS referencemaps, combined with use of multilayer data captured through satellite

imagery for relief and topography, hydrology, including underground water

resources, soil characteristics and settlement patterns would be used for

preliminary screening and speedy process of project clearance applications.’

• In the new system, the project proponents will be responsible for self

certification of the information on their projects. ‘A new concept of ‘utmost

good faith’ has been inducted, through a new legislation, to ensure that the

applicant for clearance is responsible legally for his statements.’

• ELMA also provides for an appellate mechanism against the decisions of

NEMA/SEMA or MoEF & CC, in respect of project clearance, prescribing

a three month time limit for disposal of appeals.

• The report also recommends that an ‘environmental reconstruction cost’

should be assessed for each project on the basis of the damage caused by

it to the environment and should be dovetailed with the cost of the

project. This cost has to be recovered as a cess or duty from the project

proponent during the life of the project.

• An ‘Environment Reconstruction Fund’ is proposed to be established for

accumulation of this cost and other penalties recovered from projects.

• The report also proposes a National Environment Research institute ‘onthe lines of the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education’ to

bring in the application of high-end technology in environment governance.

To bring qualified and skilled human resource in the environment sector,

the committee has recommended creation of a new all India service—

Indian Environment Service.

• The report also recommended a ‘fast track’ procedure for ‘linear projects’

which provide benefit to community at large, as well as power/mining

projects, as also projects of national importance. ‘This is in line with the

ministry’s order that consultation with all the villages should not be insisted

for the approval of linear projects. In case of mining and power projects,there will be separate cells in NEMA and SEMA with experts of the

fields to specifically look into these projects and prescribe specific

conditions such as greening of unused portions of the mine along with the

mining operation in other parts.



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• It has also suggested that the area for compensatory afforestation in the

revenue land should be doubled from the current one hectare for each

hectare of forestland diverted to non-forest use for development projects.

• The compensatory afforestation in degraded forest land should be increased

to three times the forestland diverted to non-forest use from the current

rate of two times the diverted land.

• The committee also recommended increasing the net present value (NPV)

of the forest paid by the project proponents for diversion of forests to five

times of what it is today.

• The committee also recommends identification of ‘no go’ forest areas –

primarily with over 70 per cent canopy cover and ‘protected areas’—

which shall not be disturbed ‘except in exceptional circumstances, and

that too only with the prior approval of the Union Cabinet’.

E-waste in India

Electronic waste or E-waste is relatively a novel addition to the ever-growing

hazardous waste stream. It includes discarded electronic and electrical

equipment. Developing countries are facing enormous challenges related to the

generation and management of E-waste which are either internally generated

or imported illegally; India is no exception to it. However, the existing

management practices related to E-waste in India are reasonably poor and have

the potential to risk both human health and the environment. Moreover, the

policy level initiatives are not being implemented in an appropriate way.

While considering the problems related to E-waste in India, there are five

major components which should be focused upon. These are Main Sources of E-waste in India, Magnitude of the Problem with respect to the Indian scenario,

Health and Environmental Implications of E-waste, Current Management

practices of E-waste in India and Policy level initiatives in the country. Main

Sources of E-waste. The involvement of various sectors could be observed as

the sources of generation of E-waste.

Magnitude of the Problem with respect to the Indian scenario

In Indian context, the electronics industry has emerged as the fastest growing

segment of Indian industry both in terms of production and exports. The

Information Technology Revolution of the early 1990s intensified the problem

of E-waste in India. Sixty-five cities in India generate more than 60% of thetotal E-waste generated in India. Ten states generate 70% of the total E-waste

generated in India. Maharashtra ranks first followed by Tamil Nadu, Andhra

Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Delhi, Karnataka, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh

and Punjab in the list of E-waste generating states in India.

Among the top ten cities generating E-waste; Mumbai ranks first followed by

Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmadabad, Hyderabad, Pune, Surat and

Nagpur.

The recycling of E-waste is a major concern in India. The workers in the

recycling sector are dominated by the urban poor with very low literacy levels

and hence they have very little awareness regarding the potential hazards of E-waste. Among the urban poor, there are a substantial number of women and

children engaged in various recycling activities which further exaggerate the

problem of E-waste as they are more vulnerable to the hazards from this kind

of waste.



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One of the major concerns related to E-waste, particularly in developing countries

like India and China, are dumping of E-waste from some developed countries.

Large quantities of used electronics are typically sold to countries like India,

China and other countries in the Asia Pacific region. These electronics have

very high repair capability and high raw material demand. This can result inhigh accumulations of residue in poor areas without strong environmental laws.

Major reasons for these exports are cheap labour and lack of environmental

and occupational standards in Asia. In this way the toxic effluent of the

developed nations would flood towards the world’s poorest nations.

According to a Delhi-based non-governmental organization (NGO) Toxics Link,

India annually generates $1.5 billion worth of E-waste domestically, with the

booming IT sector being the largest contributor, as 30 percent of its machines

reach obsolescence annually. Bangalore, the IT hub of India, alone generates

8,000 tons a year.

Health and Environmental Implications of E-waste

Electronic and Electrical Equipment are composed of an enormous amount of

components. Many of them fall under the hazardous category. Majority of

these components contain toxic substances that have adverse impacts on human

health and the environment if not handled properly. Often, these hazards arise

due to the improper recycling and disposal processes that are in practice in

most of the developing countries including India. Such offensive practices can

have serious aftermath for those staying in proximity to the places where E-

waste is recycled or burnt.

Disposal of E-wastes is an unembellished problem faced by many regions

across the globe. Electronic wastes that are landfilled produces contaminatedleachates which eventually pollute the groundwater. Acids and sludge obtained

from melting computer chips, if disposed on the ground causes acidification of

soil. For example, Guiyu, Hong Kong a flourishing area of illegal E-waste

recycling, is facing acute water shortages due to the contamination of water

resources. This is due to disposal of recycling wastes such as acids, sludges etc.

in rivers.

Mercury leaches when certain electronic devices, such as circuit breakers are

destroyed. The same is true for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from

condensers. When brominated flame retardant plastic or cadmium containing

plastics are land-filled, both poly-brominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) and

cadmium may leach into the soil and groundwater. It has been found thatsignificant amounts of lead ion are dissolved from broken lead containing

glass, such as the cone glass of cathode ray tubes, gets mixed with acid waters

and are a common occurrence in landfills.

In addition, uncontrolled fires may arise at landfills and this could be a frequent

occurrence in many countries. When exposed to fire, metals and other chemical

substances, such as the extremely toxic dioxins and furans. The most dangerous

form of burning E-waste is the open-air burning of plastics in order to recover

copper and other metals. The toxic fall-out from open air burning affects the

local environment and broader global air currents, depositing highly toxic by-

products in many places throughout the world.

Incineration of E-waste possesses another threat. It can emit toxic fumes and

gases, thereby polluting the surrounding air. Moreover, shipping of hazardous

waste to developing countries is a major alarm. It happens because of cheap

labour and lack of environmental legislations in developing countries.



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Management of E-waste in Indian Context

In India, it has been observed that in most of the cases, electronic items are

stored unattended because of lack of knowledge about their management.

Such electronic junks lie in houses, offices, warehouses etc. Generally, these

wastes are mixed with household wastes, which are finally disposed of at

landfills. This necessitates implementation of appropriate management measures

including stringent regulations. The management practices currently in operation

in India have severe health and environmental implications.

The composition of E-waste consists of diverse items many of which contain

hazardous elements. Therefore, the major approach to treat E-waste is to reduce

the concentration of these hazardous chemicals and elements through recycle

and recovery. In the process of recycling or recovery, certain E-waste fractions

act as secondary raw material for recovery of valuable items.

In Indian context, primarily recycling, reuse and recovery are done as measures

to treat E-waste. The recycle and recovery includes the unit operations like

dismantling, segregation of ferrous metal, non-ferrous metal and plastic by

shredder process, refurbishment and reuse, recycling / recovery of valuable

materials and treatment/disposal of dangerous materials and waste. Dismantling

includes removal of parts of the electrical and electronic equipment containing

perilous substances (CFCs, Hg switches, PCB); removal of easily accessible

parts containing valuable substances (cable containing copper, steel, iron,

precious metal containing parts etc.).

Refurbishment and reuse of E-waste has potential for those used electrical and

electronic equipment which can be easily renovate to put to its original use.

Recycling / recovery of valuable materials includes recycling and recovery of valuable materials from the E-waste stream like non-ferrous metals in smelting

plants, precious metals in separating works. As most of the electrical and

electronic equipment contain many precious metals, this process is an important

step in the management of E- waste. The materials of potential hazard are

disposed of in landfill sites or sometimes incinerated. However, the process of

incineration is quite expensive. CFCs are treated thermally, PCB and Mercury

is often recycled or disposed of in underground landfill sites.

In India, primarily two types of disposal options based on the composition are

in practice. These are Landfilling and Incineration. However, the environmental

risks from landfilling of E-waste cannot be neglected because the conditions

in a landfill site are different from a native soil, particularly concerning theleaching behaviour of metals.

In addition it is known that cadmium and mercury are emitted in diffuse form

or via the landfill gas combustion plant. Although the risks cannot be quantified

and traced back to E-waste, landfilling does not appear to be an environmentally

sound treatment method for substances, which are volatile and not biologically

degradable (Cd, Hg, CFC), persistent (PCB) or with unknown behaviour in a

landfill site (brominated flame retardants). As a consequence of the complex

material mixture in E-waste, it is not possible to exclude environmental (long-

term) risks even in secured landfilling.

Advantage of incineration of E-waste is the reduction of waste volume andthe utilization of the energy content of combustible materials. By incineration

some environmentally hazardous organic substances are converted into less

hazardous compounds. Disadvantage of incineration are the emission to air of

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gas cleaning and combustion (Guidelines for Environmentally Sound

Management of E-waste, 2008).

Waste incineration plants contribute significantly to the annual emissions of

cadmium and mercury. The assessment of E-waste recycling sector in India

indicates that E-waste trade starts from formal dismantling sector and moves

to informal recycling sector (Guidelines for Environmentally Sound Management

of E-waste, 2008). The entire E-waste treatment is being carried out in an

unregulated environment, where there is no control on emissions. There are

two E-waste dismantling facilities in formal sector in India. These facilities are

M/s. Trishiraya Recycling facilities, Chennai and M/s E-Parisara, Bangalore.

Policy level initiatives in India

In view of the ill-effects of hazardous wastes to both environment and health,

several countries exhorted the need for a global agreement to address the

problems and challenges posed by hazardous waste. However, the policy level

initiatives regarding E-waste in India is quite rudimentary and needs immediate

attention.

Following are some of the policy level initiatives in India regarding E-waste.

1. The Hazardous Wastes (Management and Handling) Amendment Rules,

2003: Under Schedule 3, E-waste is be defined as ‘Waste Electrical and

Electronic Equipment including all components, sub-assemblies and their

fractions except batteries falling under these rules’. The definition provided

here is similar to that of Basal Convention. E-waste is only briefly included

in the rules with no detail description.

2. Guidelines for Environmentally Sound Management of E-waste, 2008:This guideline was a Government of India initiative and was approved by

Ministry of Environment and Forest and Central Pollution Control Board.

It classified the E-waste according to its various components and

compositions and mainly emphasises on the management and treatment

practices of E-waste. The guideline incorporated concepts such as ‘Extended

Producer Responsibility’.

3. The e-waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011: This is the very

recent initiative and the only attempt in India meant solely for addressing

the issues related to E-waste. These rules are not implemented in India as

yet and will only come into practice from 1st May, 2012. According to

this regulation, ‘electrical and electronic equipment’ means equipment

which is dependent on electric currents or electro-magnetic fields to be

fully functional and ‘e-waste’ means waste electrical and electronic

equipment, whole or in part or rejects from their manufacturing and repair

process, which are intended to be discarded.

These rules are meant to be applied to every producer, consumer or bulk

consumer involved in manufacturing, sale purchase and processing of electrical

and electronic equipment, collection centres, dismantlers and recyclers of e-

waste. Responsibilities of producers, collection centres, consumers, dismantlers,

recyclers etc. are defined and incorporated in these rules.

Major challenges

In India, the amount of E-waste generated is rising rapidly. With the increasing

dependence on electronic and electrical equipment, the rise of E-waste generation

is well expected in the country. However, the management of the same is a



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as advisory and coordination role. The two organizations (CPCB and SPCBs)

are linked to output performance without having inbuilt functional relationship.

• Functioning issues

The CPCB is performing various functions. To execute these schemes, CPCBhas drawn detailed organizational structure comprising of various divisions.

The schemes are executed through inhouse technical manpower or by out

sourcing some of the components to the Government and Private Consultants.

The different divisions which have been created in the CPCB are presently

based on the nature of functions being performed by the organization as evolved

over a period of time. Ideally, these divisions should be reorganized based on

broad components of pollution control management, in general and specific

mandate and key objectives of the CPCB, in particular.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee has observed that, ‘although pollution

in some form or the other has spread its tentacles throughout the length and breadth

of the country, CPCB has failed in making its presence felt, as an effective controller,

even after 33 years of its existence mainly because of the number of its Zonal offices

being grossly inadequate and insufficient. It may not be feasible for a zonal office to

cover three to eight states especially when the number of industries, vehicular load etc.,

has multiplied manifold in course of time. The Committee, 7 therefore, recommends

that one zonal office should be established in each State so that CPCB in close

coordination with State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) is able to keep a close watch

on the extent of pollution and take strict action against violations of pollution norms.

This will also help state Pollution Control Boards to derive full benefits of the Central

Pollution Control Boards’ expertise.’

• Issues related to design of Governing body

The Governing board of CPCB comprises of The Chairman, Member Secretary

and other members not exceeding 15. All are nominated by the Central,

concerned State governments. Sub-clauses (1) and (2) of clause 3 of ‘The

Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 provide that to exercise

its powers and discharge its functions, The Act does not prescribe any time

limit within which the vacancy of Chairman or other Members has to be filled

up.

The Parliamentary Committee observed that composition of ‘CPCB is dominated

by Government representatives and constituted by central Government’ , in such asituation, ‘CPCB can not be expected to act as a watchdog of environmental

protection.’ The Committee expressed ‘its displeasure over the fact that no

qualifications or criteria have been fixed for Members of such an important technical

and scientific body. The eligibility criteria for Chairman prescribing a person having

special knowledge or practical experience in respect of matters relating to environmental

protection or a person having knowledge and experience in administering institution

dealing with the matters aforesaid are too general and vague as to accommodate anyone

who is even distantly related with environment.’

The Committee recorded that ‘key posts in CPCB and SPCBs are being manned

by officers of Indian Administrative Service or bureaucrats who neither possess the necessary capabilities and expertise in properly managing and planning pollution control

activities nor have enough time to pay attention to these activities for obvious reasons.

This trend has led to virtual relegation and replacement of technically capable persons

to the place of exile from the key posts.



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The CPCB has to deal with very strong lobbies in the industry and other

sectoral ministries. The Chairman and Member secretary have to be fully

competent, knowledgeable, upright people capable of fulfilling their duties

without fear and favour. Their duties further require that the technical and the

scientific personnel have deep knowledge about the nuances of the industrialprocesses and the other environmental factors. In the words of Rajya Sabha

Committee Report ‘Chairman and Members of the Board should be persons

who have rendered remarkable and distinguished service to the cause of

Environment. They should be persons of repute and widely acclaimed. They

should be appointed for a fixed tenure and the sword of removal or termination

should not be hanging on their heads. Members like Chairman should be full

time’

• Issues related to functioning of Zonal council

CPCB has established 6 zonal offices catering to various States. ZOs are field

offices of CPCB and all the schemes are prepared at HO are executed bythem. ZO undertake field investigation; send reports like reports on Water

Quality Monitoring, Air Quality Monitoring, Industrial Inspection and other

such related activities to the HO for further action.

There are only 6 zonal offices, each one catering to such large number of

states. Given the large area under each zonal office, it is difficult to have close

coordination with SPCBs. As a result, SPCBs are not able to derive benefits

of CPCB expertise.

Presently there is no internal sanctioned document or guideline for placement

of staff in each division. There is no sanctioned staff strength for Zonal

offices. However, an in house effort has been made by the PCP division towork out requirement of staff strength as well as setting targets for Zonal

Offices. There are no guidelines for rotation of scientific and technical staff

within the division at head office. As a result some of the scientific and

engineering staff has developed themselves as specific subject experts by virtue

of their experience.

Further there is acute shortage of staff particularly in Zonal Offices. ZOs have

to undertake frequent field investigation. Thus, the scientific and engineers

hardly get the time to concentrate and develop state specific issues on abatement

of pollution.

• Issues related to Human resource

Training is essential for human resource development of any organisation.

Environmental awareness among the masses and educating the officers working

in the pollution control board are essential steps to have a sound environmental

management in the country. The water Act of 1974 and the Air Act of 1981

also emphasise, imparting training is one of the major functions of CPCB.

Training in various aspects of prevention, abatement and control of pollution

to the identified target groups is important. The target groups include officials

dealing with planning, funding and implementation of programmes for

prevention and control of pollution in the Central and State Governments,

SPCBs, the local bodies, operators of industrial and municipal wastewater treatment plants and NGO’s engaged in management of pollution control

programmes.

But there are few staffs. Without sufficient staff, it would not be possible to

provide quality training to the concerned entities. Other issues are:



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a) It lacks proper work environment.

b) Delay in receiving nominations from SPCB/PCC.

c) Last moment cancellations of nominations without intimation to CPCB

or organizers.

d) Sometimes participants are called back in-between training.

e) Without receiving confirmation from the organizing institutes, SPCB

nominate participants and send for training.

f) Delay in receipt of utilization certificate (UC) and statement of expenditure

(SoE) from training institutes for full and final settlement of accounts.

g) Delay in approval of MoEF for international training/visit.

• Issues in Pollution Assessment, Monitoring & Survey

According to the section 16 (i) of Water and Air Act, CPCB should promote

cleanliness of streams and wells in different areas of the states and to improve

the quality of air and to prevent, control or abate air pollution in the country.

The major function of PAMS Division is to coordinate, collect and compile

nation-wide data on various sponsored monitoring programs (entrusted to SPCBs

/ PCCs / Universities) and its documentation besides preparation of nationwide

industrial inventory with status on the installation and type of pollution control

devices etc.

For data on monitoring, it has to depend on SPCBs. But, some SPCBs cannot

enter data on EDB or delays to provide data. Some SPCBs do not provide new

stations with respect to water & air.

Sampling location with respect to water quality monitoring sometimes get

redundant or changes due to non-availability of water No data on major point

sources both water & air, thus no cause-effect relationship could be established–

leads to delay of action plan Response to questionnaire survey is poor, SPCB

do not take much interest in it.

Sometimes Quantity data is not easily available, needs dialogue with CWC.

Absence of proper software delays data processing, payment & report. Working

space and second line of permanent staff are needed. No composite training

program.

• Issues in Water and Air quality management

The CPCB & State Boards are mainly concentrating on control and abatement

of trade effluents from industry. Hardly any attention is being paid to treatment

of sewage and storm water emanating from the urban areas. The percentage

of cities having sewage treatment plants is very small. Many STPs have been

installed, such as under Ganga Action Plan and Yamuna Action Plan but most

of them are not working, the rest are not complying with prescribed standards.

Similarly the effluent treatment plants whether individual or common are not

operating most of the time; even where they are operating they may not meet

the prescribed standards

Hence unless and until proper and fool proof arrangements and adequate

facilities for STPs and ETPs are put in place it should be ensured that these

are not allowed to be discharged into rivers especially where they do not have



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enough water for dilution. There is need to introduce the idea of zero liquid

discharge (ZLD) into surface water even if it is achieved in phased manner.

The sewage and effluents could be used on land for irrigation and even

recirculated where ever and as much as is possible. CPCB and State Boards

need to identify the industries which could adopt recirculation (ZLD) even

with a lead time of up to ten years.

The MoEF and CPCB should interact with sectoral ministries like ministry of

urban development, ministry of local authorities, ministry of small scale

industries and ministry of industry and ministry of health for better coordination

to achieve the targets of water and air pollution control as well as treatment

and disposal of wastes through cross sectoral approach.

There is need for much more aggressive strategies with problems of water and

air pollution as 35 years have already passed since passage of Water Act, 1974

and significant effects are still not visible.

The water and air quality monitoring data need to be properly documented and

analyzed. CPCB should then plan the prevention, control and abatement

strategies based on this data. The data should also be made available to the

state governments and State Boards for planning their actions.

The most important issue of all is the awareness programs about the status of

environment, pollution of water, air and soil and its effects on human health,

flora and fauna. These need to be conducted at a much higher scale so as to

make the public, (the impacted), the polluter and the regulator fully aware of

the implications of pollution.

• Challenges in the Handling of Wastes

The State Boards all over the country have identified 35655 units generating

6208 MT hazardous annually wastes. It has been observed that 48.90% is

recyclable, 44.44% is land fill able and 6.66% is incinerable (burnable). All

over the country 64 sites have identified for Treatment, Storage and Disposal

Facilities (TSDF), out of these 35 have been notifiedwhereas at 25 sites TSDF

is in operation and at 9 sites are under construction.

Hence there is a need that more number of TSDF to be set-up (at least one

in each State). State generating less than 5000 TPA of incinerable hazardous

wastes should be allowed to send the hazardous wastes for treatment and

disposal facility located in neighbouring state TSDF.

Recycling and reuse of Hazardous waste to be promoted. Incinerable waste up

to a certain time and quantity only should be allowed for storage at TSDF site.

Thus CPCB has been given the responsibility for abatement and control of air

and water pollution in the country by generating relevant data, providing

scientific information, rendering technical inputs for formation of national

policies, training and development of manpower and organizing activities for

promoting awareness at different levels of the government and public at large.

Its role in compliance and enforcement has been mostly indirect through SPCBs.

But CPCB and SPCB have not been able to perform up to the mark because

they do not have sufficient teeth for controlling the pollution through directcompliance and enforcement.

There is a need for closer coordination with other Ministries and organizations

which are directly or indirectly related to pollution control. CPCB has to create



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its own space in the whole arena of pollution control. Let it not be too much

dependent on MoEF directions.

CPCB should work more closely with local communities and NGOs for creating

awareness and knowledge about pollution abatement and control.

CPCB should also have strong data base related to its activities and the same

should be put in the public domain. Presently, the maintenance of data related

to its functioning is not in a proper shape. To bring the transparency, MoEF

should coordinate and facilitate computerization of state boards on top priority.

CPCB should also disclose it achievements with clear benchmarking of the

same achieved by the similar organizations across the different countries.

Sand mining and its impact

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock

and mineral particles. River sand has the ability to replenish itself.

The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources

and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental

settings and non-tropical coastal settings is silica (silicon dioxide, or SiO2),

usually in the form of quartz which because of its chemical inertness and

considerable hardness, is the most common mineral resistant to weathering.

Sand is an important economic resource and also a source of silica for making

sodium silicate, a chemical compound used for manufacture of both common

and optical glasses. Sand is an ingredient in plaster and concrete and is added

to clays to reduce shrinkage and cracking in the manufacture of bricks. Sand

in the river channel and floodplains constitutes an important raw material in

the construction industry and has a variety of uses in this sector. River sandis used along with cement, gravel, water and steel for making reinforced concrete.

Along with cement and water, it is used as mortar for joint filling and plastering.

The economic aspects of sands are not confined to its value as raw material

and its various uses. Sand production, movement and deposition are of great

concern to the engineering geologist and to the geo-morphologist; especially

those concerned with river basin management, shore erosion and harbour

development.

Besides its economic importance, sand also constitutes an important abiotic

component in aquatic ecosystems like rivers. It provides suitable substrate for

many benthic organisms. It is an unavoidable component for psammophile(sand loving or shallow sandy water creature) fishes as it provides breeding,

spawning, feeding and hiding grounds. Inter-beds of sand within floodplain

deposits act as aquifer systems storing large quantities of ground water. In

addition to this, sand acts as an efficient filter for various pollutants and thus

maintains the quality of water in rivers and other aquatic ecosystems. In earlier

days, mining of sand did not create any problem to river ecosystem as the

quantity of mining was well within the replenishment limits. However, increase

in population and the rise in economic and industrial developments during the

past few decades have aggravated mining of river sand many folds higher than

natural replenishments which really made a host of damages to river ecosystems

in the world.

Sand Mining and impact on environment

Sand Mining is an activity referring to the process of the actual removal of

sand from the foreshore including rivers, streams and lakes. Sand is mined



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from beaches and inland dunes and dredged from ocean beds and river beds.

A related process is the mining of mineral sands, such as mineral deposits like

diamond, gold and silver. These minerals typically occur combined with ordinary

sand. The sand is dug up, the valuable minerals are separated in water by using

their different density, and the remaining ordinary sand is re-deposited.

Excessive in-stream sand-and-gravel mining causes the degradation of rivers.

In-stream mining lowers the stream bottom, which may lead to bank erosion.

Depletion of sand in the streambed and along coastal areas causes the deepening

of rivers and estuaries, and the enlargement of river mouths and coastal inlets.

It may also lead to saline-water intrusion from the nearby sea. The effect of

mining is compounded by the effect of sea level rise. Any volume of sand

exported from streambeds and coastal areas is a loss to the system.

Excessive in-stream sand mining is a threat to bridges, river banks and nearby

structures. Sand mining also affects the adjoining groundwater system and the

uses that local people make of the river.

In-stream sand mining results in the destruction of aquatic and riparian habitat

through large changes in the channel morphology. Impacts include bed

degradation, bed coarsening, lowered water tables near the streambed, and

channel instability. These physical impacts cause degradation of riparian and

aquatic biota and may lead to the undermining of bridges and other structures.

Continued extraction may also cause the entire streambed to degrade to the

depth of excavation.

Sand mining generates extra vehicle traffic, which negatively impairs the

environment. Where access roads cross riparian areas, the local environment

may be impacted.

In-stream mining can have other costly effects such as many hectares of fertile

streamside land are lost annually, as well as valuable timber resources and

wildlife habitats in the riparian areas. Degraded stream habitats result in loss

of fisheries productivity, biodiversity, and recreational potential. Severely

degraded channels may lower land and aesthetic values.

Further all species require specific habitat conditions to ensure long-term

survival. Native species in streams are uniquely adapted to the habitat conditions

that existed before humans began large-scale alterations. These have caused

major habitat disruptions that favoured some species over others and caused

overall declines in biological diversity and productivity. In most streams andrivers, habitat quality is strongly linked to the stability of channel bed and

banks. Unstable stream channels are inhospitable to most aquatic species.

Factors that increase or decrease sediment supplies often destabilize bed and

banks and result in dramatic channel readjustments. For example, human

activities that accelerate stream bank erosion, such as riparian forest clearing

or in-stream mining, cause stream banks to become net sources of sediment

that often have severe consequences for aquatic species. Anthropogenic activities

that artificially lower stream bed elevation cause bed instabilities that result in

a net release of sediment in the local vicinity. Unstable sediments simplify

and, therefore, degrade stream habitats for many aquatic species. Few species

benefit from these effects.

The most important effects of in-stream sand mining on aquatic habitats are

bed degradation and sedimentation, which can have substantial negative effects

on aquatic life. The stability of sand-bed and gravel-bed streams depends on



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a delicate balance between stream flow, sediment supplied from the watershed,

and channel form. Mining-induced changes in sediment supply and channel

form disrupt channel and habitat development processes. Furthermore,

movement of unstable substrates results in downstream sedimentation of

habitats. The affected distance depends on the intensity of mining, particlessizes, stream flows, and channel morphology.

The complete removal of vegetation and destruction of the soil profile destroys

habitat above and below the ground as well as within the aquatic ecosystem,

resulting in the reduction in faunal populations.

Also, Channel widening causes shallowing of the streambed, producing braided

flow or subsurface inter-gravel flow in riffle areas, hindering movement of

fishes between pools. Channel reaches become more uniformly shallow as

deep pools fill with gravel and other sediments, reducing habitat complexity,

riffle-pool structure, and numbers of large predatory fishes.

Apart from it, sand mining transforms the riverbeds into large and deep pits;

as a result, the groundwater table drops leaving the drinking water wells on the

embankments of these rivers dry. Bed degradation from in-stream mining lowers

the elevation of stream flow and the floodplain water table which in turn can

eliminate water table-dependent woody vegetation in riparian areas, and decrease

wetted periods in riparian wetlands. For locations close to the sea, saline water

may intrude into the fresh water body.

In-stream sand mining activities will have an impact upon the river’s water

quality. Impacts include increased short-term turbidity at the mining site due

to resuspension of sediment, sedimentation due to stockpiling and dumping of

excess mining materials and organic particulate matter, and oil spills or leakagefrom excavation machinery and transportation vehicles.

Increased riverbed and bank erosion increases suspended solids in the water at

the excavation site and downstream. Suspended solids may adversely affect

water users and aquatic ecosystems. The impact is particularly significant if

water users downstream of the site are abstracting water for domestic use.

Suspended solids can significantly increase water treatment costs.

Example:

Illegal sand mining is posing the biggest threat to the last of the wild and

breeding ghariyals left. Found in maximum strength in National Chambal

Sanctuary running across three states- UP, MP and Rajasthan, ghariyals are

losing out to human interference.

Mining of sand banks is destructive for ghariyal population as sand banks are

essential for nesting and basking.

Ghariyals lay their eggs under sand beds, but illegal sand mining destroys their

nests. The complaint submitted to NGT reads, ‘Sand is extracted for construction

works. Local inhabitants are cultivating river banks immediately adjacent to

the river and this is causing considerable disturbance to the natural habitat of

ghariyals. Villagers residing along the river are flattening ravines present in the

sanctuary for farming.’

The 425 km stretch of the Chambal River was declared a protected area in

1979. The river originates from Kota in Rajasthan, runs through sandy ravines

and ends at Bhare in Etawah, where it merges with the Yamuna. UP has 150

km of the river sanctuary running along Bah (Agra) and Etawah.



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Ghariyals are the major wildlife attractions of the sanctuary.

Illegal fishing is another threat to ghariyals as they get entangled in fishing nets

and drown. Many a time, ghariyals injured by fishing hooks starve to death as

they can neither hunt nor eat.

According to the 2012-13 census, UP stretch of the sanctuary had 785 ghariyals

which is a remarkable increase. There were 307 ghariyals in 2008-09 and the

number rose to 674 in 2011-12.

• Ghariyals were found historically in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh,

Bhutan and Myanmar

• Apart from small population in Nepal, maximum wild population exists

in three Indian rivers - Son, Geruwa and Chambal

• Chambal sanctuary is a tri-state protected area running along MP, UP and

Rajasthan• UP stretch of the sanctuary has 785 ghariyals as per 2012-13 census

Steps taken by GOI

Corruption was found to be widely prevalent in every aspect of the trade.

Some of the findings were:

1. Sand was being dredged illegally and operations were claimed to be carried

out non-stop 24 hours a day all the year round including during monsoons.

2. Round-the-clock operations were facilitated by mechanical dredgers and

suction pumps which were deemed to be illegal.

3. The constant noise of the mechanical dredgers was said to hamper sleep

and normal operations of schools in the area.

4. Several mangrove forests had been destroyed by illegal construction of

storage docks, roads and other infrastructure to facilitate easy removal,

storage and transfer of sand from the river. This made Mumbai and the

neighbouring regions more vulnerable to floods.

5. Local people were denied a voice in the matter. Despite opposition from

several Panchayats (local governments), dredging operations were still carried

out with impunity because a mafia controlled the trade and many involved

were either close relatives or friends of local politicians.

6. The livelihoods of local fishermen were being threatened by the sand

barges which often destroyed their nets. Yet the fishermen claimed that no

one was willing to register an official complaint. They were instead

threatened and intimidated against making a fuss about such incidents.

7. Many institutional processes to promote consultation with various

stakeholders were short circuited when consultations were sometimes

deliberately scheduled at times that were inconvenient to the villagers. For

e.g. in a village, that was predominantly Muslim, consultation meetings

were scheduled on Friday afternoons. Since religious commitments took

precedence, most villagers could not attend the consultations. This wasthen construed to be a lack of participation and decisions were made on

their behalf.

8. Reporters, activists and anyone who threatened to disrupt status-quo were

subject to physical assault, violence and intimidation. Such intimidation



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tactics were personally experienced by the author when the car was stopped

for five minutes on a bridge in order to survey and photograph themountains of sand stocks on the river bank. The car was immediately

approached by a youth on a motorcycle who relayed the vehicle number

to a third party on his mobile phone and stood within hearing distanceassessing threat to dredging operations.

9. Back in the city of Mumbai, the building contractors interviewed admitted

to being aware that it was routine practice to dredge several sites even if

permits were specifically obtained for one site or dredge for several meters below the specified depth/several kilometres beyond the specified area.

10. The contractors also admitted in confidence that were obliged to purchase

sand from specific sources in the area. Any attempts to source sand from

elsewhere failed because the sand-laden trucks were not allowed into the

city unless they also paid a commission to the controlling mafia in addition

to the cost of the sand. This made it economically infeasible and thereforethey were forced to purchase sand at the rates dictated by the mafia.

According to the Geological Survey of India (GSI), riverbed mining causes

several alterations to the physical characteristics of both a river and riverbed.

These can severely impact the ecological equilibrium of a river and damage

plants, animals and riparian habitats. The GSI has issued guidelines to address

the massive damage that riverbed mining can cause, including lowering the

groundwater table in a floodplain. Excessive pumping out of groundwater during sand mining, especially in abandoned channels, generally results in

depletion of groundwater resources causing severe scarcity and affecting

irrigation and potable water availability.

In February 2012, the Supreme Court of India ruled that approval under the

2006 Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) notification is needed for all

sand mining and gravel collection activities, even if the area being mined is less

than 5 hectares (12.5 acres). It also made some critical observations related to

environmental impacts of sand mining. Then in May of 2012, the Ministry of

Environment and Forests (MoEF) issued an order mandating compliance with

the Supreme Court’s February 2012 judgment and directing that permissions be sought for all mining activities. These permissions must come from the

respective State Environment Impact Assessment Authorities (SEIAA)constituted under the 2006 EIA notification.

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) issued a restraint order against all sandmining activity being carried out across the country without environmental

clearance. The order was passed in the light of the recent controversy surrounding

the suspension of IAS officer posted as sub divisional magistrate (SDM) in

Greater Noida in Gautam Buddh Nagar in Uttar Pradesh after she cracked

down on the mining mafia. While passing the order, NGT reaffirmed the

Supreme Court’s order last year which banned any kind of mining of minor

minerals, including sand, without environmental clearance from the Union

Ministry of Environment and Forests.

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