Supreme Court Nurtured Environmental Law—Is It Distancing From Legacy?

A very important judge in India gave a speech about how courts help keep nature safe.

A long time ago, India's big rulebook, called the Constitution, did not talk much about the environment.

In 1976, India added two new rules to protect nature, forests, and animals.

After a terrible gas accident in Bhopal in 1984, the top court made companies pay when their dangerous work hurts people.

The court also made rules saying polluters must pay and that damage should be stopped before it happens.

It even said people today must protect nature for children in the future.

But the judge worries that courts are not always helping when people complain about big building projects that may hurt the environment.

Another judge found that the court helps some nature cases but not others.

The first judge thinks protecting nature and building things should go together, not fight each other.

He says courts should always check that projects follow the rules to keep nature safe.