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IN a path-breaking judgement which will permanently alter the way environmental regulations are enforced in various states, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed all State Governments only to appoint experts and persons with deep knowledge of environmental science and regulation as Member-Secretary and members of the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB). The NGT has asked State Governments to review all existing appointments and retain only experts and remove all other ineligible persons within next three months from SPCBs. Normally, the senior IAS officers are appointed as Member-Secretary of the Pollution Control Boards while the post of Chairman goes to political appointee. However, the NGT strongly disapproved this practice and laid down detailed guidelines for all future and even present appointments asking State Governments to evaluate existing postings and take appropriate decisions in tune with this judgement. “The State Government is to ensure that the persons manning the posts of Chairman and/or Member Secretary of State Pollution Control Board are competent and eligible with requisite knowledge or practical experience in the field of environment protection and pollution control, with experience of management. The appointment as a Chairman or Member Secretary, should be of persons who are having special knowledge or practical experience or qualification in environment protection studies and not by virtue of their designation in service of the State Government like Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary, Environment Secretary or even Politician like former Speaker, Minister, M.L.A, all literary persons and non-technical persons,” the NGT ruled. Posts of Chairman/Member Secretary should be advertised, thrown open for all candidates irrespective of the fact whether they are in the Government, Academia or in private sector, so as to attract the best talent to man the said post, the NGT stated while ending monopoly of bureaucracy over these coveted posts. The NGT bench headed by Chairperson Justice (retd) Swatanter Kumar, Justice M Sasidharan Nambiar, Justice Raghuvendra S Rathore, Prof A R Yousuf and Bikram Singh Sajwan while hearing an application challenging the constitution of Uttarakhand State Pollution Control Board, had issued notices to all the state governments and after hearing them delivered a 167-page ruling while formulating broad guidelines about eligibility for appointment of Chairman, Member Secretary and members of State Pollution Control Boards. The application has challenged that persons who do not qualify in terms of Section 4 of the Water (Prevention and Control) of Pollution Act, 1974, and Section 5 of the Air (Prevention and Control) of Pollution Act, 1981, were being appointed as Chairman/Member Secretary of the Board. The applicant had first approached the High Court of Uttarakhand and later the matter was placed before NGT. Though the NGT avoided to examine individual appointments, it left the matter to wisdom of the State Governments to examine the appointment of Chairman and Member Secretary of the respective SPCBs in the light of qualification prescribed under environmental legislations and take appropriate decision in the backdrop of this judgement about removing or retaining the individual appointees. In case, the existing appointees are to be replaced, then State Government must simultaneously take steps for appointment of Chairman/ Member Secretary who are eligible to be appointed to these posts in accordance with the provision of the Act, criteria and guidelines stated in this judgement, the NGT stated. Their services should be discontinued and appropriate notification, including for new appointments, be issued in accordance with the provisions of the respective Acts by the respective governments within three months from the date of pronouncement of this judgement,” the NGT said. The NGT has favoured full tenure to such experts and stated that tenure unaffected by political and bureaucratic interference would be extremely important for the officials to function fearlessly and in accordance to the mandate of the legislation as given under relevant Environmental Protection Laws like Water Act, Air Act etc. The State Government is to develop the infrastructure in the SPCB. The State Government should have latest equipped laboratories for analysis of samples of trade effluents etc. |
