TITLE

THE RISE AND FALL OF POLLUTER PAYS PRINCIPLE AND ITS EFFECT AT
NATIONAL GREEN TRIBUNAL IN INDIA

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the researcher is to analyze the rise and fall of PPP in India and to understand the
purpose of Polluter Pays Principle and its application in the National Green Tribunal in India. The
author also makes an attempt to analyze the effectiveness of government – pays principle after
examining- whether the Polluter Pays Principle creates economic repercussions for polluters and
acts as a deterrent, and compensates those harmed by environmental damage, and is able to
generate the amount necessary to restore the environment to its previous state.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. Whether the Polluter Pays Principle creates economic repercussions for polluters and acts
as a deterrent, and compensates those harmed by environmental damage, and is able to
generate the amount necessary to restore the environment to its previous state?
2. Whether the State and local governments are liable for environmental damage caused by
the polluters?
3. Whether the government – pays principle for the pollution is effective in India?

HYPOTHESIS

These reinterpretations of the polluter-pays principle hold state and local governments jointly-and-
severally liable for environmental damage caused by private parties, allowing these public bodies
to act in subrogation against the individual polluters when possible.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The research methodology followed by the author is analytical and descriptive in nature.

MODE OF CITATION

The mode of citation followed by the author is 19th Blue – Book edition.
REFERENCES

ARTICLES:

1. Atapattu, S. (2007). Emerging Principles of International Environmental Law. Pub: Brill,

476.
2. Faure, M. G. and Raja, A. V. (2010). Effectiveness of Environmental Public Interest
Litigation in India: Determining the Key Variables. Fordham International Law Review,
21, 239– 293.
3. Iyengar, S. (2016). Know the Polluter Pays Principle: Who Pays and How Much? The
Quint, January 30, 2016.
4. Schwartz, B. (1952–1953). Administrative Procedure and Natural Law. Notre Dame
Lawyer, 28(2), 169–198.

BOOKS:

1. Gurdeep Singh, Environmental Law, EBC, 2nd ed. 2016.

The author referred Part II of the book to understand role of PIL in Environmental
Protection and legal regulations.

2. P. Leelakrishnan, Environmental Law in India, LexisNexis, 4th ed.

The author referred this book to read the basics of Polluter Pays Principle.

INTRODUCTION

The polluter pays principle says that the person who damages the environment must bear the cost
of such damage. There are number of developing countries who have recently extended this
principle to create an obligation on the state to compensate the victims of environmental harm.
The Polluter pays principle says that the polluter will bear the cost of the harm suffered by others
due to pollution caused by them. The variation of the polluter-pays principle focuses at ensuring
victims’ compensation when polluters cannot be identified or are insolvent and at providing
stronger incentives for local governments’ monitoring of environmentally risky activities. The
regimes make liable the local governments primarily or jointly-and-severally liable for
environmental damage and allow them to act in subrogation against the polluters. This paper is an
attempt to study the effect of these forms of governmental liability on the polluters’ incentives and
also on aggregate levels of environmental harm. The variations of the polluter-pays regime may
be desirable in environments characterized by widespread poverty, high interest rates, judicial
delays and uncertainty in adjudication.

It is known to us that India has witnessed several infamous cases of industrial pollution on a
massive scale, the most tragic and disastrous being the Bhopal Gas Disaster in the year 1984, which
resulted into thousands of deaths and several hundred thousand injuries for over thirty years.
However, the remarkable progress over the past few decades in the expansion and enforcement of
domestic environment law has gradually broken the perception that India could be used as a
pollution haven by multinational companies. The ‘Polluter Pays Principle’ under Principle 16 of
the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, 1992 (hereinafter; Rio Declaration), has
now begun to occupy significant standing in domestic environmental disputes. The PPP principle
essentially implies that polluters must bear the costs of restoring the environment of the pollution
caused by the polluter. In our country, the Apex Court has used PPP principle in several landmark
environmental decisions; in the year 2010, the National Green Tribunal Act (NGT Act), codified
the application of the PPP by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) while deciding civil cases
involving a substantial question of the environment.

The author in this research paper will gauge the exact purpose of the PPP principle in its application
at NGT. The author makes an attempt to examine whether the PPP creates economic repercussions
for polluters and whether it acts as a deterrent, and compensates those harmed by environmental
damage, and whether PPP is able to generate the amount necessary to restore the environment to
its previous state, i.e. before pollution. The PPP is now used far too often as a compensatory tool
as opposed to other motivations and the author seeks to discuss both the benefits and limitations
of this approach. Benefits include that victims of pollution are assured some monetary relief in
harsh circumstances while the limitation includes reduced penalties upon polluters if there is a lack
of direct victimization.

TENTATIVE CHAPTERIZATION

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

This chapter will contain the introduction to the title and importance of the research.

CHAPTER 2: THE RISE AND FALL OF POLLUTER PAYS PRINCIPLE

This chapter will cover formal recommendation by OECD. The implementation of PPP by
sovereign states etc. and will analyze the rise and fall of PPP.

CHAPTER 3: RECENT DEPARTURE OF POLLUTER – PAYS PRINCIPLE

This chapter will contain the idea of PPP and compensation.

CHAPTER 4: APPROACH FROM POLLUTER – PAYS PRINCIPLE TO GOVERNMENT –

PAYS PRINCIPLE.

This chapter will explain the idea of government – pays principle also the approach towards the
same. It will also contain the liability of government.

CHAPTER 5: JUDICIARY AND PPP

This chapter will include the importance of PIL and analysis laid down by the Supreme Court
through various judgments.

CHAPTER 6: INTRODUCTION OF NGT ACT, 2010

This chapter will contain the idea of NGT Act.

CHAPTER 7: EXPERIENCES AND CRITIQUES TO PPP AT NGT

This chapter will explain PPP through case laws and also the experiences and critiques related to
PPP at NGT.

CHAPTER 8: CONCLUSION

This chapter will contain the analysis and conclusion of the research project.