National Green Tribunal and Environmental Justice in India: An Analysis

The 21st century is witnessing a noteworthy transformation towards environmental justice with the rapid growth in environmental courts and tribunals (ECTs). India, too, is stepping forward towards green justice by enacting National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 and hence providing the provision for establishment of National Green Tribunal (NGT) for effective and expeditious disposal of environment related disputes. NGT is a potential tool to bring the issues of environmental protection and development in equilibrium, by managing cases more efficiently and effectively, for supporting greater public information, participation, and access to justice, and for achieving more informed and equitable decisions. Since its establishment, the NGT has strongly influenced environmental litigation in India by providing effective judgments while resolving various environmental disputes. In this paper an attempt has been made to analyze the working of NGT in India as well as its role in maintaining environmental rule of law in the light of decisions given.