The National Green Tribunal as the Forum

In one line

The forum a student writing about development and biodiversity in 2026 should be writing about, with its own jurisdiction, its own limitation periods and its own statutory principles.

In exam wording: section 14 of the National Green Tribunal Act 2010 gives the Tribunal jurisdiction over all civil cases where a substantial question relating to the environment, including the enforcement of any legal right relating to the environment, is involved, and such question arises out of the implementation of the enactments specified in Schedule I, an application being maintainable only within six months of the cause of action first arising, extendable by sixty days for sufficient cause; section 15 empowers it to provide relief and compensation to the victims of pollution and other environmental damage, restitution of property damaged and restitution of the environment, within five years extendable by sixty days; section 16 gives an appeal within thirty days against ten classes of order, including an order granting or refusing environmental clearance and any determination of benefit sharing or order made by the National Biodiversity Authority or a State Biodiversity Board under the Biological Diversity Act 2002; section 17 imposes liability to pay relief or compensation and requires the Tribunal, in the case of an accident, to apply the principle of no fault; and section 20 requires the Tribunal, while passing any order or decision or award, to apply the principles of sustainable development, the precautionary principle and the polluter pays principle.

Section 1. The Act may be called the National Green Tribunal Act 2010, and it came into force on such date as the Central Government appointed by notification.

Jurisdiction

Section 14(1). All civil cases where a substantial question relating to environment, including the enforcement of any legal right relating to environment, is involved, and the question arises out of the implementation of the enactments specified in Schedule I.

Section 14(3). Six months from the date the cause of action first arose, with a further sixty days for sufficient cause.

Section 2(1)(c). Environment includes water, air and land and the interrelationship which exists among and between water, air and land and human beings, other living creatures, plants, micro-organism and property. That definition is wide enough to carry a biodiversity claim.

Note on Schedule I. The copy of the Act used for this book carries the sections and not the Schedules, so this book does not list Schedule I. What it can state is what section 2(2) names: the Water Act 1974, the Water Cess Act 1977, the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980, the Air Act 1981, the Environment (Protection) Act 1986, the Public Liability Insurance Act 1991 and the Biological Diversity Act 2002. The Wild Life (Protection) Act 1972 is not among them, and no clause of section 16 gives an appeal against an order under that Act. A student should say so: for a wildlife matter the ordinary courts and the writ jurisdiction remain the route, unless the case can be framed under one of the Acts the Tribunal does administer.