Ranchi, March 28 Supreme Court Judge, Justice B V Nagarathna, on Saturday said that courts should play a proactive role in environmental justice, as they have the capacity to ensure that ecological conservation, public accountability, and the rights of affected communities remain central to governance.
She was addressing the 'Justice S B Sinha Memorial Lecture' on 'Environmental justice and climate change: How courts can lead the way forward' at National University of Study and Research in Law (NUSRL), Ranchi.
Justice Nagarathna said, "The environment is not owned outright by living beings, but it is a trust inherited from the past and held in stewardship for the future."
"Pollution, climate change, loss of biodiversity, and resource depletion do not affect all people equally; they tend to impact the poor, the marginalized, and often those least responsible for the damage. In this sense, environmental adjudication must, of necessity, take into account equity, fairness, and justice," she said.
In recent decades, courts across jurisdictions have emerged as central actors in giving concrete meaning to the idea of environmental justice, the apex court judge said.
"Courts have the capacity to ensure that environmental protection, public accountability, and the rights of affected communities remain central to governance. Examining environmental justice through this lens allows us to appreciate how the judiciary can continue to play the proactive constitutional role," Nagarathna added.
Through constitutional interpretation, the articulation of environmental principles, and the enforcement of fundamental rights, courts have played a pivotal role in shaping environmental governance, she said.
"The judiciary's role in advancing environmental justice is particularly significant in an era marked by scientific uncertainty and accelerating ecological crises. As a result, courts have been required to rethink conventional modes of legal reasoning and to develop principles that are preventive, precautionary, and responsive to context," she added.
Justice Nagarathna said that environmental justice is a normative framework that integrates environmental protection with principles of equality, distributive fairness, and democratic participation.
In constitutional terms, environmental justice extends the meaning of the right to life beyond mere survival to encompass conditions of health, dignity, and well-being, she added.
"Courts must, in protecting the interests of those who stand before them today, not forget that they also act as custodians for the unborn and future generations," she added.
Chief Justice of Jharkhand High Court, M S Sonak, and NUSRL Vice Chancellor Ashok R Patil were also present on the occasion.