In naming his cabinet, Modi renamed the "Ministry of Environment and Forests" the "Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change." In the first budget of the government, the money allotted to this ministry was reduced by more than 50%. The new ministry also removed or diluted a number of laws related to environmental protection. These included no longer requiring clearance from the National Board for Wildlife for projects close to protected areas, and allowing certain projects to proceed before environmental clearance was received. The government also tried to reconstitute the Wildlife board such that it no longer had representatives from non-governmental organisations: however, this move was prevented by the Supreme Court.
Environmental policy
Narendra Modi
Narendra Modi | Environmental policy
Cancelled the Requirement of clearance  from NBA for projects close to wildlife, rRelaxed or Abolished regulations related to Industrial Activity & Modi lifted a moratorium on new industrial activity in the most polluted areas in the countries. The new ministry removed or diluted a number of laws related to environmental protection; these included no longer requiring clearance from the National Board for Wildlife for projects close to protected areas, and allowing certain projects to proceed before environmental clearance was received He relaxed or abolished a number of other environmental regulations, particularly those related to industrial activity. Other changes included reducing ministry oversight on small mining projects, and no longer requiring approval from tribal councils for projects inside forested areas. In addition, he lifted a moratorium on new industrial activity in the most polluted areas in the countries. He renamed the "Ministry of Environment and Forests" the "Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change"; the money allotted to this ministry was reduced by more than 50%; also removed or diluted a number of laws related to environmental protection.
full name of current prime minister of india
user
Narendra Damodardas Modi
assistant
when did he become the prime minister?
user
In 2014
assistant
what has been his policies towards the environment?
user
In naming his cabinet, Modi renamed the "Ministry of Environment and Forests" the "Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change." In the first budget of the government, the money allotted to this ministry was reduced by more than 50%. The new ministry also removed or diluted a number of laws related to environmental protection. These included no longer requiring clearance from the National Board for Wildlife for projects close to protected areas, and allowing certain projects to proceed before environmental clearance was received. The government also tried to reconstitute the Wildlife board such that it no longer had representatives from non-governmental organisations: however, this move was prevented by the Supreme Court.
Narendra Modi | Environmental policy
In naming his cabinet, Modi renamed the "Ministry of Environment and Forests" the "Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change." In the first budget of the government, the money allotted to this ministry was reduced by more than 50%. The new ministry also removed or diluted a number of laws related to environmental protection. These included no longer requiring clearance from the National Board for Wildlife for projects close to protected areas, and allowing certain projects to proceed before environmental clearance was received. The government also tried to reconstitute the Wildlife board such that it no longer had representatives from non-governmental organisations: however, this move was prevented by the Supreme court.
Premiership of Narendra Modi | Environmental policies
Modi also relaxed or abolished a number of other environmental regulations, particularly those related to industrial activity. A government committee stated that the existing system only served to create corruption, and that the government should instead rely on the owners of industries to voluntarily inform the government about the pollution they were creating. Other changes included reducing ministry oversight on small mining projects, and no longer requiring approval from tribal councils for projects inside forested areas. In addition, Modi lifted a moratorium on new industrial activity in the most polluted areas in the countries. The changes were welcomed by businesspeople, but criticised by environmentalists.
Narendra Modi | Environmental policy
Modi also relaxed or abolished a number of other environmental regulations, particularly those related to industrial activity. A government committee stated that the existing system only served to create corruption, and that the government should instead rely on the owners of industries to voluntarily inform the government about the pollution they were creating. The changes were made with the aim of accelerating approval for industrial projects. Other changes included reducing ministry oversight on small mining projects, and no longer requiring approval from tribal councils for projects inside forested areas. In addition, Modi lifted a moratorium on new industrial activity in the most polluted areas in the countries.
Premiership of Narendra Modi | Environmental policies
In 1982, he became the Secretary of the newly created Department of Environment in Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's cabinet with the responsibility of developing a pro-active environmental policy for the country. In 1985, he joined TERI as a Distinguished Fellow and contributed to public policy discussions at national as well as international forums.
Triloki Nath Khoshoo | Government posts
Environment policies of the Government of India includes legislations related to environment. In the Directive Principles of State Policy, Article 48 says "the state shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country"; Article 51-A states that "it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures." India is one of the parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) treaty. Prior to the CBD, India had different laws to govern the environment.
Environmental policy of India | Introduction
The changes were welcomed by business people, but were criticized by environmentalists. Under the UPA government that preceded Modi's administration, field trials of Genetically Modified crops had essentially put on hold, after protests from farmers fearing for their livelihoods. Under the Modi government these restrictions were gradually lifted. The government received some criticism for freezing the bank accounts of environmental group Greenpeace, citing financial irregularities, although a leaked government report said that the freeze had to do with Greenpeace's opposition to GM crops.
Premiership of Narendra Modi | Environmental policies
Environmental debates were first introduced into the national political agenda during Indira Gandhi's first term as Prime Minister of India. The 4th Five-Year Plan (1969–74), for example, proclaimed "harmonious development [...] on the basis of a comprehensive appraisal of environmental issues." In 1977 (during the Emergency) Gandhi added Article 48A to the constitution stating that: "The State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country." The same decree transferred wildlife and forests from state list to concurrent list of the constitution, thus giving the central government the power to overrule state decisions on that matter.
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change | History
Convinced on the need to protect the environment for the survival and sustenance of living beings, Kisan Mehta has assiduously worked for bringing about change in the country's legal structure as well as for assuring accountability and transparency in delivery of service to citizens. The Maharashtra Urban Areas Preservation and Protection of Trees Act, 1975 came about due to his initiative. Following his working, the Central Government constituted for the first time the Ministry of Environment and Forests in 1978 and enacted the Environment Protection Act in 1981.
Kisan Mehta | Strengthening environmental policies
In 1976, the Constitution of India was amended to reflect environmental priorities, motivated in part by the potential threat of natural resource depletion to economic growth:"The State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife." (Art. 48A)"It shall be the duty of every citizen of India [...] to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and to have compassion for living creatures." (Art. 51A)However, in India, as in China, the implementation of written environmental policies, laws, and amendments has proven challenging. Official legislation by the central government (see a partial list at Environmental policy of the Government of India) is often more symbolic than practical.
Environmental politics | India
Under the UPA government that preceded Modi's administration, field trials of Genetically Modified (GM) crops had essentially been put on hold, after protests from farmers fearing for their livelihoods. Under the Modi government these restrictions were gradually lifted. The government received some criticism for freezing the bank accounts of environmental group Greenpeace, citing financial irregularities, although a leaked government report said that the freeze had to do with Greenpeace's opposition to GM crops.
Narendra Modi | Environmental policy
The Ministry of Environment and Forests was established in 1985, but corruption within bureaucratic agencies, namely the influence of wealthy industry leaders, limited any attempts at enforcement of the policies put in place.
Environmental politics | India
Upon independence from Britain, India adopted a constitution and numerous British-enacted laws, without any specific constitutional provision on protecting the environment. India amended its constitution in 1976. Article 48(A) of Part IV of the amended constitution, read: The State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country. Article 51 A (g) imposed additional environmental mandates on the Indian state. Other Indian laws from recent history include the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act of 1974, the Forest (Conservation) Act of 1980, and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act of 1981.
Environmental issues in India | Law and policies
The Indian Wildlife Protection Act 1972 protected the biodiversity. It was amended later multiple times. The 1988 National Forest Policy had conservation as its fundamental principle. In addition to these acts, the government passed the Environment (Protection) Act 1986 and Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act 1992 for control of biodiversity.
Environmental policy of India | Introduction
In the Directive Principles of State Policy, Article 48 says "the state shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country"; Article 51-A states that "it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures." India is one of the parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) treaty. Prior to the CBD, India had different laws to govern the environment. The Indian Wildlife Protection Act 1972 protected the biodiversity. In addition to this act, the government passed the Environment (Protection) Act 1986 and Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act 1992 for control of biodiversity.
Environment of India | Policy and law
Anil Madhav Dave (6 July 1956 – 18 May 2017) was an Indian environmentalist and politician. A member of the Bharatiya Janata Party, he served as the Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the Narendra Modi ministry from July 2016 till the time of his death in May 2017.
Anil Madhav Dave | Introduction
The Air Act was inspired by the decisions made at Stockholm Conference. The Bhopal gas tragedy triggered the Government of India to enact the Environment (Protection) Act of 1986. India has also enacted a set of Noise Pollution (Regulation & Control) Rules in 2000.
Environmental issues in India | Law and policies
In the same year, the National Committee for Environmental Protection and Control was formed; in 1980, a department for Environment and finally five years later the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change was formed. The environmentalist movement in India began with these incidents. Historian Ramachandra Guha calls Medha Patkar as "the most celebrated environmental activist in contemporary India". New age India is concerned about the air and water quality, several civil society groups such as Environmentalist Foundation of India have forged a successful community based conservation model to revive lakes across the country.
Environment of India | Environmentalism
Since about the late 1980s, the Supreme Court of India has been pro-actively engaged in India's environmental issues. In most countries, it is the executive and the legislative branches of the government that plan, implement and address environmental issues; the Indian experience is different. The Supreme Court of India has been engaged in interpreting and introducing new changes in the environmental jurisprudence directly. The Court has laid down new principles to protect the environment, re-interpreted environmental laws, created new institutions and structures, and conferred additional powers on the existing ones through a series of directions and judgments. The Court's directions on environmental issues goes beyond the general questions of law, as is usually expected from the highest Court of a democratic country.
Environmental policy of India | Statutes
The Constitution of India has a number of provisions demarcating the responsibility of the Central and State governments towards Environmental Protection. The state's responsibility with regard to environmental protection has been laid down under article 48-A of our constitution which stated that " The states shall endeavor to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forest and wildlife of the country". Environmental protection has been made a fundamental duty of every citizen of India under Article 51-A (g) of the constitution which says "It shall be the duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers, and wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures".
Environmental protection | India
Several of Gandhi's followers developed a theory of environmentalism. Kumarappa took the lead in a number of relevant books in the 1930s and 1940s. He and Mirabehn argued against large-scale dam-and-irrigation projects, saying that small projects were more efficacious, that organic manure was better and less dangerous than man-made chemicals, and that forests should be managed with the goal of water conservation rather than revenue maximisation. The British and the Nehru governments paid them little attention. Historian Ramachandra Guha calls Kumarappa, "The Green Gandhian," portraying him as the founder of modern environmentalism in India.
J. C. Kumarappa | Environmentalism
The environment of India comprises some of the world's most biodiverse ecozones. The Deccan Traps, Gangetic Plains and the Himalayas are the major geographical features. The country faces different forms of pollution as its major environmental issue and is more vulnerable to the effects of climate change being a developing nation. India has laws protecting the environment and is one of the countries that signed the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) treaty. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and each particular state forest departments plan and implement environmental policies throughout the country.
Environment of India | Introduction
In October 2014, the Modi government deregulated diesel prices, and later increased taxes on diesel and petrol. In July 2014, Modi refused to sign a trade agreement that would permit the World Trade Organization to implement a deal agreed in Bali, citing a lack of protection to Indian farmers and the needs of food security. The addition to Indian airports grew by 23 percent in 2016 while the airfares dropped by over 25 percent. In September 2014, Modi introduced the Make in India initiative to encourage foreign companies to manufacture products in India, with the goal of turning India into a global manufacturing hub.
Premiership of Narendra Modi | Economic policies
In February 2018, Agrawal sent an open letter to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to stop environmentally unfriendly projects and to ensure what he calls 'aviral' flow of the river in the upper stretches of river Ganga. He reminded the prime minister that "It will be four years in May when the Central government will complete four years in office but nothing has been done so far for the cause of Ganga". Agrawal's letter to PM made some specific demands. These were: Agrawal had mentioned in the letter that if no action is taken by Ganga Dussehra (22 June 2018), he will go on fast-unto-death.
G. D. Agrawal | 2018
Over the years, he came to Vrindavan from time to time until fifteen years later he became deeply involved in environmental work there. Partly, it was because he saw "the divine homeland of Krishna being so dilapidated". At the same time, back in England he started working professionally with environmentalists, particularly with World Wildlife Fund on education programs working with religious networks all over the world of different faiths, how to draw on their own traditional teachings about nature. According to Ranchor Prime "All religions contain powerful traditions and teachings about how to live in this world in a way that is sympathetic to nature because it is part of God's creation.
Ranchor Prime | Environmental work in India
This has prompted civil society groups to file public interest complaints with the Courts, particularly the Supreme Court, for suitable remedies.
Environmental policy of India | Statutes
In Hinduism, practitioners and scholars find traditional approaches to the natural environment in such concepts as dharmic ethics or prakrti (material creation), the development of ayurveda, and readings of vedic literature. Hindu environmental activism also may be inspired by Gandhian philosophy and practical struggles, such as the Bishnoi community in Rajasthan and Chipko resistance to forestry policies in Uttar Pradesh, India. Mahatma Gandhi played a major role in Indian environmentalism, and has been called the "father of Indian environmentalism". Gandhi's environmental thought parallels his social thoughts in that environmental sustainability and social inequalities should be managed in similar fashions. His non-violent teachings left a lasting impact, even agriculturally.
Religion and environmentalism | Hinduism
His views on environment focus on the principles of Deep Ecology while simultaneously trying to create a balance between development and environmental protection. His two significant contributions to environmental protection are the Delhi Greens Blog and the concept of Urban Ecotourism. The Delhi Greens Blog won the Indian Bloggers Award 2013 under the Social/Environment Blog Category and was subsequently indexed as a Momentum for Change, Lighthouse Activity by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. In 2016, Govind Singh became the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Innovation for Inclusive Development (JIID) published from IP College.
Govind Singh (academic) | Introduction
Several of Gandhi's followers developed a theory of environmentalism. J. C. Kumarappa was the first, writing a number of relevant books in the 1930s and 1940s. He and Mira Behan argued against large-scale dam-and-irrigation projects, saying that small projects were more efficacious, that organic manure was better and less dangerous than man-made chemicals, and that forests should be managed with the goal of water conservation rather than revenue maximization. The Raj and the Nehru governments paid them little attention. Guha calls Kumarappa, "The Green Gandhian," portraying him as the founder of modern environmentalism in India.
Gandhian economics | Environmentalism
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change through its Department of Environment and the particular state forest departments plan and implement environmental policy in each state. Some national-level environmental organisations (governmental and non-governmental) include: There are at least 85 widely diversified environmental organisations involved with environmental conservation and environmental education in Tamil Nadu.
Environment of India | Organisations
The program was launched by Telangana Chief Minister Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao on 3 July 2015. It is one of the Telangana Flagship programmes to rejuvenate degraded forests, protecting these forests from threats such as smuggling, encroachment, fire and grazing. It adopted intensive soil and moisture conservation measures based on a watershed approach. In the areas outside the existing forest, massive planting activities were to be taken up in areas such as; road-side avenues, river and canal banks, barren hills and foreshore areas, institutional premises, religious places, housing colonies, community lands, municipalities and industrial parks. The National Forest Policy of India envisages a minimum of 33% of the total geographical area under forest cover to maintain environmental stability and ecological balance, which is vital for the sustenance of all life-forms, be it human, animal or
Telangana Ku Haritha Hāram | History
Sharif included environmentalism in his government platform, and established the Environmental Protection Agency in 1997.
Nawaz Sharif | Conservative policies
In the mining communities of India, the population is at risk of respiratory illness and malaria. Those who live closer to the mines reported higher incidences of these illnesses. This has influenced environmental policy because mining is a profitable business that can be privatized, but with adverse effects on health they have been required to balance human and ecological health. India has also seen difficulty providing access to drinking water and sanitation services in rural areas. Community demand-driven programmes have been implemented since 2004 which required improvements in water supply, sanitation, and hygiene. This was an effort to improve children's health, and reduce diarrhoea and water-related illnesses.
Environmental health policy | India
In the light of the campaign, the Central and the State Government have taken some initiatives as well. The Union Minister of State for Environment and Forest Prakash Javadekar vowed to hold tougher pollution laws soon, including the Centre rolling out air index in 11 cities of the nation. Along with this, there is a ban on diesel vehicles older than 10 years in the national capital. The office of the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi gave a nod to the cycling policy for the city. The effort was taken one step ahead when the Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself initiated a plantation drive followed by an appeal by the Delhi Government to all the MLAs to plant 2,000 saplings each in their constituencies.
Clean Air India Movement | 2015
Following this, Manmohan Singh, the Prime Minister (in office 2004-14) and the prime architect of the economic liberalisation of the early 1990s, hurried to reassure investors that the new government would strive to create a business-friendly climate.
2004 Indian general election | Impact
He also pledged to have a "strong" foreign policy, which includes trading with China. He asked the External Affairs Ministry to focus more on trade deals than other geopolitical initiatives. Modi's first foreign policy outlook was revealed during the run-up for the Prime Ministerial candidate in his party in 2013 when he was in a Network 18 program called "Think India, dialogue forum". He mentioned the following points: Modi responded to the congratulatory messages and phone calls from most world leaders that he had received in the aftermath of his victory.
Foreign policy of the Narendra Modi government | 2014 general election
There are many environmental issues in India. Air pollution, water pollution, garbage domestically prohibited goods and pollution of the natural environment are all challenges for India. Nature is also causing some drastic effects on India. The situation was worse between 1947 through 1995. According to data collection and environment assessment studies of World Bank experts, between 1995 through 2010, India has made some of the fastest progress in addressing its environmental issues and improving its environmental quality in the world. Still, India has a long way to go to reach environmental quality similar to those enjoyed in developed economies. Pollution remains a major challenge and opportunity for India.
Environmental issues in India | Introduction
Indian environmental law concerns the law and policy of India concerning the protection of the environment, measures taken to reverse climate change and achieve a zero carbon economy.
Indian environmental law | Introduction
In August 2019 Ministry of Environment released the Draft National Resource Efficiency Policy. It is a set of guidelines which envisions a future with environmentally sustainable and equitable economic growth. The policy is guided by principle of reduction in primary resource consumption; creation of higher value with less material through resource efficient circular approach; waste minimization; material security and creation of employment opportunities and business model beneficial to cause of environment protection and restoration.It was based on the report of NITI Aayog and European Union titled, "The strategy on resource efficiency". The policy seeks to set up a National Resource Efficiency Authority with core working group housed in the Ministry.
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change | Initiatives
Every religious tradition has that..." Once he started getting involved in that, he began to think more deeply about the Krishna tradition's relationship with nature. As a result, he embarked on writing a book on Hinduism and ecology, and that brought him to Vrindavan "with a completely fresh pair of eyes". "Instead of just thinking, well, this must be the way it is and there's nothing I can do, I began thinking, well, why has it become dilapidated, why is it not being looked after, and what could possibly change things? And I looked for people to talk to, people who lived here, had lived here all their lives, who perhaps may have also been thinking in that way".
Ranchor Prime | Environmental work in India
Major environmental issues are forests and agricultural degradation of land, resource depletion (such as water, mineral, forest, sand, and rocks), environmental degradation, public health, loss of biodiversity, loss of resilience in ecosystems, livelihood security for the poor. The major sources of pollution in India include the rapid burning of fuelwood and biomass such as dried waste from livestock as the primary source of energy, lack of organised garbage and waste removal services, lack of sewage treatment operations, lack of flood control and monsoon water drainage system, diversion of consumer waste into rivers, cremation practices near major rivers, government mandated protection of highly polluting old public transport, and continued operation by Indian government of government-owned, high emission plants built between 1950 and 1980.
Environmental issues in India | Major issues
The constituents of the Sangh Parivar have been known for their demands for steps to "protect the environment, natural-ecology and agro-economy" and for establishment of a "self-reliant village-oriented economy". They have been vocal in their demand against the use of Chemical fertilizers and have supported preservation and development of Organic farming in India. Many of these views are seen to mirror the concerns of the Green party. The Bharatiya Janata Party, a constituent of Sangh Parivar included the concerns on global warming in its election manifesto for the National Elections of 2009. The manifesto promised prioritising "Combating climate change and global warming", "programmes to arrest the melting of Himalayan glaciers", "afforestation" and emphasis on "protecting India's biodiversity".
Sangh Parivar | Ecology
This case related to the protection and preservation of the environment free from pollution and maintenance of the ecological balance emphasising the principle of sustainable development. The Supreme Court placed reliance on Article 21 of the Constitution of India but also on the Directive Principles in India in Article 48A and the fundamental duty in Article 51A (g) of every citizen in the Constitution of India. The court was guided by the need to educate people in the doctrine of trust and intergenerational equity that it is the duty of every generation to preserve natural resources for the next generation.
J. S. Verma | "T N Godavarman Thirumulkpad Vs. Union of India & Ors"
Air pollution, poor management of waste, growing water scarcity, falling groundwater tables, water pollution, preservation and quality of forests, biodiversity loss, and land/soil degradation are some of the major environmental issues India faces today.
Environmental issues in India | Major issues
As Chief Minister, Modi favoured privatisation and small government, which was at odds with the philosophy of the RSS, usually described as anti-privatisation and anti-globalisation. His policies during his second term have been credited with reducing corruption in the state. He established financial and technology parks in Gujarat and during the 2007 Vibrant Gujarat summit, real-estate investment deals worth 6.6 trillion were signed. The governments led by Patel and Modi supported NGOs and communities in the creation of groundwater-conservation projects. By December 2008, 500,000 structures had been built, of which 113,738 were check dams, which helped recharge the aquifers beneath them.
Narendra Modi | Development projects
The central government has pledged to reduce the emission intensity of Gross Domestic Product by 20-25%, relative to 2005 levels, by 2020. India has also made major pledges to expand its renewable energy supply, enhance energy efficiency, build mass transit and other measures to reduce its emissions. There is evidence that many of these climate actions could generate substantial benefits in addition to reducing India's carbon footprint. Many low-carbon measures are economically attractive, including more efficient air conditioners, parking demand management, gasification and vehicle performance standards. Others offer social benefits: for example, Indian cities might see substantial improvements in air quality if the country were to promote renewable energy technologies instead of fossil fuels and walking/cycling/public transport instead of private vehicles.
Environment of India | Climate change
Only 21% of the rural population was using a private tap, the other percentage commuted to obtain water. Only 12% used private toilets, the others travelled to a main sanitation site. The implemented program was able to increase access to filtered water, private toilets, and increased hygiene.
Environmental health policy | India
He advocated for natural farming against use of use of genetically modified seeds.
Anil Madhav Dave | As environmentalist
His administration launched several wildlife conservation initiatives. This included stopping commercial logging in rain forests such as Sinharaja Forest Reserve which was designated a World Biosphere Reserve in 1978 and a World Heritage Site in 1988. After the 1977 riots, the government made one concession to the Tamils; it lifted the policy of standardization for university admission that had driven many Tamil youths into militancy. The concession was regarded by the militants as too little and too late, and violent attacks continued.
J. R. Jayewardene | Conservation
Many teachings in Hinduism are intertwined with the ethics of ecospirituality in their stress on environmental wellbeing. The Hindu text called the "Taittariya Upanishad" refers to creation as offspring of the Supreme Power, "paramatman". Thus, the environment is related to something that is divine and therefore deserves respect. Since the late 1980s when the negative effects of mass industrialization were becoming popularized, India instituted administrative policies to deal with environmental conservation. These policies were rooted in the ways that the Hindu religion is tied to the land. In the Hindu text "Yajurveda" (32.10), God is described as being present in all living things, further reinforcing the need to show respect for creation.
Ecospirituality | Ecospirituality and Hinduism
The world's first minister of the environment was the British Politician Peter Walker from the Conservative Party in 1970. The German "Benzinbleigesetz" reduced Tetraethyllead since 1972. In the European Union, the very first Environmental Action Programme was adopted by national government representatives in July 1973 during the first meeting of the Council of Environmental Ministers. Since then an increasingly dense network of legislation has developed, which now extends to all areas of environmental protection including air pollution control, water protection and waste policy but also nature conservation and the control of chemicals, biotechnology and other industrial risks. EU environmental policy has thus become a core area of European politics.
Environmental policy | History
Many of the above have been officially notified and gazetted by himself as the Joint Secretary to the Government in Environment & Forest Department. He was also a key member of the Assam Forest Policy Drafting Committee. His writings in the 1980s also resulted in shelving of a railway project through the southern edge of world-famous Kaziranga National Park and World Heritage Site.
Anwaruddin Choudhury | Conservation results
The Supreme Court of India, in its order, includes executive actions and technical details of environmental actions to be implemented. Indeed, some critics of India's Supreme Court describe the Court as the "Lords of Green Bench" or "Garbage Supervisor". Supporters of India's Supreme Court term these orders and the Indian bench as pioneering, both in terms of laying down new principles of law, and in delivering environmental justice. The reasons for the increasing interjection of India's Supreme Court in governance arenas are, experts claim, complex. A key factor has been the failure of government agencies and the state owned enterprises in discharging their Constitutional and Statutory duties.
Environmental policy of India | Statutes
Pollution is one of the main environmental issues in India.
Environment of India | Issues
The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, a constituent of the Sangh Parivar, stated that the reforms would hurt laborers by making it easier for corporations to exploit them. In his first budget, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley promised to gradually reduce the budgetary deficit from 4.1% to 3% over two years, and to divest from shares in public banks. Over Modi's first year in office, the Indian GDP grew at a rate of 7.5%, making it the fastest growing large economy. For this the basis was a revised formula introduced a year after he took office, which surprised a lot of economists. However, this rate of growth had fallen significantly to 6.1%, even by the revised metric, by his third year in office.
Premiership of Narendra Modi | Economic policies
The campaign was announced on the anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi's birthday, and was planned to achieve these aims in five years, or in time for the 150th anniversary of his birth. As part of the programme, the Indian government began the construction of millions toilets in rural areas, as well as efforts to encourage people to use them. The government also announced plans to build new sewage treatment plants. The administration plans to construct 60 million toilets by 2019. The construction projects have faced allegations of corruption, and have faced severe difficulty in getting people to use the toilets constructed for them.
Premiership of Narendra Modi | Health and sanitation policies
Roy was involved in progressive politics in his student life. He joined 'Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal', a political wing of the BNP in 1978. After the 5th parliamentary election in 1991, the BNP formed the government and Roy was made State minister for Environment and Forest (now Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change) under the technocrat quota. Later, he was appointed as one of the joint secretary generals of BNP and then member of the Standing Committee.
Gayeshwar Chandra Roy | Career
Justice Chandrachud noted that all the industries in question had made significant infrastructural investments. In this backdrop, he imposed a fine of Rs 10 crores each for the purpose of restitution and restoration of the environment. He held:Requirements such as conducting a public hearing, screening, scoping and appraisal are components of the decision-making process which ensure that the likely impacts of the industrial activity or the expansion of an existing industrial activity are considered in the decision-making calculus. Allowing for an ex post facto clearance would essentially condone the operation of industrial activities without the grant of an EC. In the absence of an EC, there would be no conditions that would safeguard the environment.
Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud | Environment
He became a Cabinet Minister of Health in Nitish Kumar's government from November 2015 till July 2017. In December 2015, as the Environment Minister of Bihar, he promoted horse-riding as an initiative to curb pollution in the state.
Tej Pratap Yadav | Political career
Even former union environment minister Jairam Ramesh had admitted in Lok Sabha that the Ganges and Yamuna were not clean as they were 20 years ago despite investment of Rs 17 billion.
G. D. Agrawal | Lifestyle
Left a lasting imprint in areas like: Environment Clearances
Suresh Prabhu | Union Minister For Environment and Forests
Anil Kumar Agarwal (23 November 1947– 2 January 2002) was an Indian environmentalist, trained as a mechanical engineer at IIT Kanpur, worked as a science correspondent for the "Hindustan Times". He was the founder of the Centre for Science and Environment, a Delhi-based research institute currently led by Sunita Narain. In 1987, the United Nations Environment Programme elected him to its Global 500 Roll of Honour for his work in the national and international arena. The Indian Government also honoured him with Padma Shri (1986) and Padma Bhushan (2002) for his work in environment and development.
Anil Agarwal (environmentalist) | Introduction
The economic policies of Modi's government focused on privatisation and liberalisation of the economy, based on a neoliberal framework. Modi liberalised India's foreign direct investment policies, allowing more foreign investment in several industries, including in defence and the railways. Other proposed reforms included making it harder for workers to form unions and easier for employers to hire and fire them; some of these proposals were dropped after protests. The reforms drew strong opposition from unions: on 2 September 2015, eleven of the country's largest unions went on strike, including one affiliated with the BJP. The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, a constituent of the Sangh Parivar, stated that the underlying motivation of labour reforms favoured corporations over labourers.
Narendra Modi | Economic policy
In September 2014, Modi introduced the Make in India initiative to encourage foreign companies to manufacture products in India, with the goal of turning the country into a global manufacturing hub. Supporters of economic liberalisation supported the initiative, while critics argued it would allow foreign corporations to capture a greater share of the Indian market. Modi's administration passed a land-reform bill that allowed it to acquire private agricultural land without conducting a social impact assessment, and without the consent of the farmers who owned it. The bill was passed via an executive order after it faced opposition in parliament, but was eventually allowed to lapse.
Narendra Modi | Economic policy
In 2014 Modi did not make any major foreign policy speeches during the general election campaign, but he called out China's potential aggression along the border with India. He also focused on "illegal immigration" from Bangladesh, particularly during the later part of his campaign in the Eastern States, including Assam and West Bengal, and asserted that Hindus outside the country would be able to seek asylum in India if they required it. He acknowledged the fact that he was going to be the first Prime Minister of India to be born after independence and that it would be natural to expect a shift in world view from his predecessors'.
Foreign policy of the Narendra Modi government | 2014 general election
Jayanthi Natarajan (born 7 June 1954) is an Indian lawyer and politician. She was a member of the Indian National Congress and has been thrice elected Member of Parliament representing the state of Tamil Nadu in the Rajya Sabha. From July 2011 to December 2013, she was the Minister of Forests and Environment (Independent Charge). She resigned as Minister of Environment and Forest on 21 December 2013. On 30 January 2015, she announced in a press conference at Chennai that she would be resigning from the Congress party alleging that "specific requests" by Rahul Gandhi were the basis of whether industrial projects were given clearances by her ministry, and that he shifted from a pro-environmental position to corporate-friendly stand for the elections in 2014.
Jayanthi Natarajan | Introduction
Khosla identified and prepared the first three major environmental impact assessments in India: industrial pollution threats to the Taj Mahal, environmental impact of development projects at Chilka Lake, and impact assessment of a World Bank funded fertilizer plant in Nhava Sheva, Bombay (1973–1975). He Formulated a detailed environmental management plan for the State of Jammu & Kashmir (1976) and guidelines for its implementation and established primary funding programmes for the Indian Government to support environmental research, environmental awareness and environmental action in India (1975–1976) He promoted a large network of NGOs and community based organizations interested in environmental issues, particularly in rural India and was responsible for introducing many key environmental issues relevant to the third world to an international community playing a key role in expanding the scope of interest and action for international organizations, as well as introducing them to various tools with which to address these issues.
Ashok Khosla | Achievements
Ashish Kothari is an Indian environmentalist working on development, environment interface, biodiversity policy, and alternatives. He is one of founders of Kalpavriksh, a Non-Profit Organisation in India which deals with environmental and development issues. He has been associated with peoples' movements like Narmada Bachao Andolan and Beej Bachao Andolan. Kothari has also been a teacher of environment at Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi. He has also been a guest faculty at several universities and institutes and Mellon Fellow at Bowdoin College, USA. Ashish Kothari has been a member of Steering Committees of the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) and IUCN Commission on Environmental, Economic, and Social Policy (CEESP) from 1998 to 2008 .He has also been a co-chair IUCN Inter-commission Strategic Direction on Governance, Equity, and Livelihoods in Relation to Protected Areas (TILCEPA) from 1998 to 2008.
Ashish Kothari | Introduction
In 2012 Nagahama was appointed the Minister of the Environment
Hiroyuki Nagahama | Introduction
In October 2018, Modi received UN's highest environmental award, the 'Champions of the Earth', for policy leadership by "pioneering work in championing" the International Solar Alliance and "new areas of levels of cooperation on environmental action". He was conferred the 2018 Seoul Peace Prize in recognition of his dedication to improving international co-operation, raising global economic growth, accelerating the Human Development of the people of India by fostering economic growth and furthering the development of democracy through anti-corruption and social integration efforts. He is the first Indian to win the award. In January 2019, "PM Narendra Modi", a biographic film starring Vivek Oberoi as Modi, was announced.
Narendra Modi | Awards and recognition
Krishnan was an ecological patriot in that he opposed the introduction of exotic trees. He was once asked to speak at the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore and in late February, the "Tabebuia" trees were ablaze in flowers. Asked about his opinion on the flowers, he declared it as 'Disgraceful' and suggested that "... you should uproot all those foreign trees, and plant some of our own." Krishnan was responsible for the declaration of Vedanthangal as a bird sanctuary. He was aware that he was different from most conservationists of his time – who were either European or were from the Indian aristocracy of Muslims and Rajputs often former hunters – in being a vegetarian.
Madhaviah Krishnan | Natural history
The global premier of his first factual film titled "Denied – This Bit of Truth" took place at The London School of Economics in October 2007 and was quickly followed by a premier at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government in November 2007. The factual film has also been featured on BBC World Service's "Outlook". He created an environmental initiative in association with United Nations Environment Programme for which he cycled for 4800 kilometres from Kanyakumari, the southernmost tip of India to Kashmir – India's northernmost state. Along his journey, he gathered pledges for planting trees to spread environmental awareness about offsetting the effects of global warming.
Shrenik Rao | Films
Prakash Keshav Javadekar (born 30 January 1951) is an Indian politician. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and currently serving as the Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises. He was elected to the upper house Rajya Sabha as a Member of Parliament from Maharashtra in 2008, and re-elected from Madhya Pradesh in 2014. Following the victory of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the 2014 Indian General Election, he was appointed Minister State (Independent Charge) for Environment, Forests and Climate Change by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Prakash Javadekar | Introduction
Due to the mounted controversy surrounding the Clean Air Act, there were reports according to the Canadian Press that Ambrose would be relieved of her duties as Environment Minister and replaced by Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice in a future cabinet shuffle. However, on January 4, 2007, Ambrose was replaced by the President of the Treasury Board John Baird Kumi Naidoo, Greenpeace's international executive director, has said, "I don’t think Prime Minister Stephen Harper has provided leadership on the climate question at all. If anything, he has held it back."
Environmental policy of Canada | Critics
Kisan Mehta resigned from active politics, Municipal Councillorship and all elected posts as well as retired from personal private business in 1977 and devotes time, resources and energies to issues of environment protection, natural resource conservation, equity to all to natural resources of the earth, civil rights, gender equality to provide hope and self-confidence to the shunned and the shunted. Kisan Mehta endeavours to live a simple life demanding the minimum on the Earth's natural resources. He has been one of the key proponents of Urban Agriculture in India.
Kisan Mehta | Environmental activism and social service
He has completed his Doctoral Degree on Environmental Philosophy in the University of Kelaniya. The topic of his Doctoral thesis was A Philosophical Analysis on the Concept of Conservation in the field of Environmental Ethics- The Case of Environmental Impact Assessments in Sri Lanka. Herath was appointed as the Chairman of the Central Environment Authority in May 2010 and served as till 12 July 2012. He served as the Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Mass Media and Information 2013 to 2015 and 2018.
Charitha Herath | Professional career
The role of forests in the national economy and in ecology was further emphasized in the 1988 National Forest Policy, which focused on ensuring environmental stability, restoring the ecological balance, and preserving the remaining forests. Other objectives of the policy were meeting the need for fuelwood, fodder, and small timber for rural and tribal people while recognising the need to actively involve local people in the management of forest resources. Also in 1988, the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 was amended to facilitate stricter conservation measures. A new target was to increase the forest cover to 33% of India's land area from the then-official estimate of 23%.
Forestry in India | Conservation
These goals include but are not limited to: covering one third of the country with forests and trees, increasing renewable energy supply to 6% of total energy mix by 2022, and the further maintenance of disaster management. All of the actions work to improve the resiliency of the country as a whole, and this proves to be important because India has an economy closely tied to its natural resource base and climate-sensitive sectors such as agriculture, water, and forestry.
Climate resilience | India
The economic policies of Modi's government focused on privatisation and liberalisation of the economy, based on a neoliberal framework. Modi liberalised India's foreign direct investment policies, allowing more foreign investment in several industries, including in defence and the railways. Other reforms included removing many of the country's labor laws, to make it harder for workers to form unions and easier for employers to hire and fire them. These reforms met with support from institutions such as the World Bank, but opposition from scholars within the country. The labour laws also drew strong opposition from unions: on 2 September 2015, eleven of the country's largest unions went on strike, including one affiliated with the BJP.
Premiership of Narendra Modi | Economic policies
During this period, he assisted the efforts to establish the first biosphere reserve in the country at the Nilgiris in 1986. In 1998, he was appointed the chairman of the "Science and Technology Advisory Panel of Global Environment Facility", an agency under the United Nations. He held the chair till 2002. He also served as a member of the environmental education panel of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) and as a member of the National Advisory Council. He is a member of the National Tiger Conservation Authority and is the chairman of the committee proposing "Environmental Education Curriculum" at School level.
Madhav Gadgil | Return to India
Stalin had written a letter to Sanjay Gandhi National Park alleging hills in Dindoshi which were in the vicinity of SGNP were being flattened based on satellite images of the area and requested the authorities to take necessary steps to prevent further deforestation. In 2015, in a petition filed by Vanashakti, it sought to demarcate “Critical Wildlife Areas” in order protect the various species from extinction inside forests and sanctuaries. In January 2016, the Ministry of Environment and Forests in an affidavit in the National Green Tribunal that they were in the final stages of setting up an eco-sensitive zone around Sanjay Gandhi National Park.
Vanashakti | Sanjay Gandhi National Park
For the diesel-ignited engines, according to his opinion diesel mixed with 25% of bio-diesel made from vegetable oil extracted from palas, mahua, and other seeds had immense impact on the petroleum reserve and the environment, while also utilizing more than four lakh hectares of waste, low-quality land currently not under cultivation. During the NDA regime his rural development policies were widely acclaimed by every one. Prime minister A B Vajpayee praised Patil's work and had given him every support from the government.
Annasaheb M. K. Patil | Strategist
Every year, 5 June is observed as World Environment Day to raise awareness and increase government action on the pressing issue. In 2018, India was host to the 43rd World Environment Day and the theme was "Beat Plastic Pollution", with a focus on single-use or disposable plastic. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change of India invited people to take care of their social responsibility and urged them to take up green good deeds in everyday life. Several states presented plans to ban plastic or drastically reduce thei use.
Plastic pollution | World Environment Day
His concept of "Gross Environmental Product" has since been adopted by the State Government. Joshi has launched several social programmes, based on resource-based rural development, such as "Women Technology Park", "Technology Intervention for Mountain-Eco System", "Ecological Food Mission in Mountain" and "Women's Initiative for Self Employment" (WISE) and has been reported to be successful in providing the villages with water mills, composting pits, toilets, plan-based drugs and herbal pesticides and rainwater harvesting techniques. Finding uses for a local shrub, "Kurri", which had been considered a weed, by utilising it for making furniture, incense sticks and using the left-overs as fodder was one initiative developed by Joshi.
Anil Prakash Joshi | Biography
15 national health programs, including those aimed at controlling tobacco use and supporting healthcare for the elderly, were merged with the National Health Mission, and received less funds than in previous years. Modi initially appointed Harsh Vardhan, a doctor and an advocate of tobacco control, minister of health. However, Vardhan was removed in November 2015. The government also proposed introducing stricter packaging laws for tobacco, but this effort was postponed because of the efforts of the tobacco lobby. On 2 October 2014, Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan ("Clean India") campaign. The states goals of the campaign included eliminating open defecation, eliminating manual scavenging, and improving waste management practices.
Premiership of Narendra Modi | Health and sanitation policies
Later he became secretary of the Ministry of Environment and Forests from 1985 to 1988. He opposed the Tehri dam and Sardar Sarovar dam on Narmada river during his stint but was overruled. He was later given additional position of secretary of Internal Security which he served until 1989. In 1988, he served secretary of the Ministry of Defence for ten months. He was appointed 18th Cabinet Secretary, the senior most position in the Indian civil service hierarchy, in 1989 and later served as a member of Planning Commission.
T. N. Seshan | Career
During the 2014 election campaign, Modi and the BJP pledged to revisit India's nuclear weapons doctrine, and in particular India's historical policy of no-first-use. The pressure to revise the doctrine came from a desire for assertiveness among Indian government and defence officials. Soon after being sworn in as Prime Minister, Modi said that no revision would take place in the immediate future. The election manifesto of the BJP had also promised to deal with illegal immigration into India in the Northeast, as well as to be more firm in its handling of insurgent groups. During the election campaign, Modi said that he would be willing to accommodate Hindu migrants who were being persecuted in Bangladesh, but those that came with "political objectives" would have to be sent back to Bangladesh.
Premiership of Narendra Modi | Defence policy
On 24 August 2018, the cabinet decided to commence a major tree plantation project. A task force was created to launch a cleanliness drive in the country. Climate change adviser Malik Amin Aslam informed about first phase launch of 10-billion tree tsunami drive, and announced that 1.5 million saplings will be planted on 2 September 2018 for which 190 plant collection stations will be set up around the country from where public will be able to collect saplings for plantation. On 2 September 2018, Khan arrived in Haripur and planted a sapling to commence the Plant for Pakistan drive. Under the campaign, the government aimed to plant at least 1.5 million saplings initially, and achieve 'ten billion' tree plantations by the end of its term, as part of its "tree tsunami" and green environment policy to tackle climate change and air pollution.
First 100 days of Imran Khan's prime ministership | Environmental initiatives
However, since the surge in foreign direct investment inflow, pollution emission and resource depletion has been increasing at alarming rates due to greater economic activity (such as the cement, transportation and paper industries). There is hope that as income growth increase, there would be a positive long run effect on the environment as consumer demand shifts towards relatively cleaner goods - this shift would cause pollution-intensive goods to fall, potentially reducing pollution emissions. India, as well as many developing countries, have been experiencing rapid economic development once adopting more liberal economic policies.
Foreign direct investment and the environment | India
One of the major policy initiatives taken by the Modi government is to focus back on its immediate neighbors in South Asia. Gujral doctrine was an important approach where India made its relation with its neighborhood which stands on five important principles. Even before becoming the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi hinted that his foreign policy will actively focus on improving ties with India's immediate neighbours which is being termed "neighborhood first: policy in the media" and he started well by inviting all heads of state/heads of government of South Asian countries in his inauguration and on the second day on the office he held bilateral talks with all of them individually which was dubbed as a mini SAARC summit by the media.
Foreign policy of the Narendra Modi government | Neighbourhood first policy
Jha was appointed as the Union Environment, Forests and Climate Change Secretary by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) in April 2016, he assumed the office of secretary on 1 May 2016, and demitted it on 10 October 2017.
Ajay Narayan Jha | Environment, Forests and Climate Change Secretary
Thatcher, a trained chemist, became publicly concerned with environmental issues in the late 1980s. In 1988, she made a major speech accepting the problems of global warming, ozone depletion, and acid rain. In 1990, she opened the Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research. In her book "Statecraft" (2002), she described her later regret in supporting the concept of human-induced global warming, outlining the negative effects she perceived it had upon the policy-making process. "Whatever international action we agree upon to deal with environmental problems, we must enable our economies to grow and develop, because without growth you cannot generate the wealth required to pay for the protection of the environment".
Premiership of Margaret Thatcher | Environment
The Court noted the “patent contradiction” in disclosing the existence of forest land to be diverted for the project connecting Tumkur Road to Hosur Road. In a section titled ‘Courts and the Environment’, he highlighted the importance of a broad-based approach to the protection of the environment in the following terms:The protection of the environment is premised not only on the active role of courts, but also on robust institutional frameworks within which every stakeholder complies with its duty to ensure sustainable development. A framework of environmental governance committed to the rule of law requires a regime which has effective, accountable and transparent institutions.
Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud | Environment
The Ministry of Environmental Affairs is led by State Minister Nazira Farah Sarkis. It was established in 1991, and is responsible for national policy making and for coordinating environmental activities and the adoption of environmental legislation and regulations. The Ministry of Environmental Affairs has made numerous efforts to reverse the environmental issues that were inflected prior to the war such as Law No. 50 created in 2002. It was the Environmental Protection Law which was to protect the environment sector such as forestry, agriculture, water, fisheries. However, the Assad government may have funded these plans too late for the Ministry of Environment to make major improvements.
Environmental issues in Syria | Ministry of Environmental Affairs
Himanshu shaped India’s energy policy by writing the Renewable Energy Chapter in its National Five Year Plan 2012–2017 ( Five-Year Plans of India). He worked with United States Department of Energy, Government of the United Kingdom, Confederation of Indian Industry and several other organizations to implement the first Energy Sustainability Pathways project in India. He helped manage India’s National Clean Energy fund from 2011 to 2013.
Himansu Gupta | Policy work
He has conducted work on environmental pollution especially in relation to iron-ore industries, steel and aluminium industries. Dash was a former Member, National Expert Committee for EIA & EMP of Mining Projects (1995–1997 – 3 years), of the Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India, New Delhi.
Madhab Chandra Dash | Contributions
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) is an Indian government ministry. The ministry portfolio is currently held by Prakash Javadekar, Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. The ministry is responsible for planning, promoting, coordinating, and overseeing the implementation of environmental and forestry programmes in the country. The main activities undertaken by the ministry include conservation and survey of the flora of India and fauna of India, forests and other wilderness areas; prevention and control of pollution; afforestation, and land degradation mitigation. It is responsible for the administration of the 1947 national parks of India. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change is the cadre controlling authority of the Indian Forest Service (IFS), one of the three All India Services.
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change | Introduction
He did not stand for parliamentary elections in 2004 and in 2009 acted as an advisor to the Minister of Environment and Tourism.
Sharavyn Gungaadorj | Life
In the 2006 Policy Address, Mr Tsang mentioned different kinds of environmental problems and decided to introduce different policies to tackle these problems such as air pollution. However, the Green Student Council thought that the new conservation policies were not holistic enough. The suggested policies failed to address major problems such as solid wastes, conservation of energy, urban planning and the excessive use of plastic bags. The Green Student Council felt especially disappointed about the policy address having no concrete proposal and timetable for the levy of plastic bags, tyres, and electronic device.
Green Student Council | Opinions towards the conservation policies stated in the 2006 Policy Address
In India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in 2014 with a commitment to implement neoliberal economic policies. This commitment would shape national politics and foreign affairs, and put India in a race with China and Japan for economic supremacy in East Asia.
Neoliberalism | India