Senior Congress general secretary and former union environment minister Jairam Ramesh accused the central administration on Sunday of systematically disempowering the National Green Tribunal through bureaucratic restructuring and chronic vacancy backlogs. Ramesh claimed that persistent delays in appointing expert judicial members have severely diluted the specialized tribunal’s capability to deliver timely injunctions against environmental degradation.
The veteran parliamentarian argued that recent legislative amendments governing statutory environmental impact assessments have curtailed the tribunal’s sovereign jurisdiction over corporate mining and infrastructure clearances. He contended that administrative mechanisms now routinely prioritize accelerated commercial approvals over ecologically sensitive forest conservation covenants and coastal ecosystem safeguards.
Legal scholars and conservation scientists voiced supporting concerns, noting that judicial benches in several regional tribunal zonal chapters remain crippled due to unfilled judicial positions. Environmental activist networks called on the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance of administrative vacancies to preserve the tribunal’s constitutional mandate as an independent guardian of environmental rights.
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Sources:
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/national-green-tribunal-emasculated-by-modi-government-says-jairam-ramesh/article71488301.ece