SELF-RELIANT INDIA: THE ATMANIRBHAR BHARAT - Diksha Viswakarma

Author :   Diksha Vishwakarma [LL.B Hons.]
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By reading the title of this article we can proudly say "WE THE ATMANIRBHAR PEOPLE OF INDIA". With no offence to the Preamble of our constitution we will be discussing in detail the meaning, critics, etc., of the title 'Atmanirbhar Bharat'.

The concept of Atmanirbhar is inspired from the Gandhian era of 'swadeshi or khadi' use, which no doubt indicates that PM Modi is admirer of Gandhi and more often chooses events related to Gandhi's life to announce his big projects.[1]

Just like he announced his first big project "Swachhata Abhiyan" after assuming the PM office on 2nd October 2015. More often he takes personal interest in the promotion of khadi.

Gandhiji used to say that " the soul of India lives in the villages". He is very fond of the village system and this was the main reason behind proposing gram swaraj, to make the villages independent. Gandhiji's economic ideas have always been ignored by the political successors of Gandhi. Now the same ideas have been getting recognition in this COVID-19 pandemic, what an irony!

By the repeated use of the word ''atmanirbhar'' PM Modi induced a sense of positivity among those who are distressed. He mainly focused on making India a self-reliant economy with minimum, to no use of foreign goods.

ATMANIRBHAR BHARAT 

INTRODUCTION:

Atmanirbhar Bharat means a country which is reliant upon oneself and trust on one’s own power or judgment. It is a vision introduced by PM Narendra Modi on 12th May 2020. This vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat is the vision of our honourable PM Narendra Modi so that he can make India “a bigger and more important part of the global economy”.

The vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat in pursuing the policies that are efficient, competitive and resilient, being self-sustaining and self-generating. This vision focuses mainly on utilising and making local things, means the things which are made in the country itself.

To promote this Atmanirbhar Bharat there has been taken the initiative of domestic manufacturing of arms, ammunition.

INITIATIVE TAKEN TO MAKE THE VISION SUCCESSFUL:

• FIVE PILLARS OF ATMANIRBHAR BHARAT FOCUSES ON:[2]

1. ECONOMY

2. INFRASTRUCTURE

3. SYSTEM

4. VIBRANT DEMOGRAPHY AND

5. DEMAND

• THE FIVE PHASES OF ATMANIRBHAR BHARAT ARE:

1. BUSINESS INCLUDING MSMEs

2. POOR INCLUDING MIGRANTS AND FARMERS

3. AGRICULTURE

4. NEW HORIZONS OF GROWTH

5. GOVERNMENT REFORMS AND ENABLERS

• SLOGANS USED :

1. VOCAL FOR LOCAL

2. MAKE FOR THE WORLD

• MEANING OF THE SLOGAN :

1. VOCAL FOR LOCAL

Vocal for local means things which are made in our own country i.e. the domestic products especially manufacturing of arms and ammunition for the promotion Atmanirbhar Bharat.

NDA Govt. will focus on the domestic manufacturing of arms and ammunition and other security products to promote the “Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan”. Said by Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy. He also said that “Atmanirbharta” (self-reliance) is not just a dream but a well thought out roadway for a future ready India.

OEMs (Original Manufacturers Equipment) will be used for procuring the arms and ammunition.G-e-M (Government-e-Marketplace) portal will be used for the promotion of domestic products.

2. MAKE FOR THE WORLD

Make for the world means make in India for the world. Modi Ji in more emphasized way focused on the products which are manufactured in India and which will be used to export in foreign countries, which will increase the economy of our country.

As India is well known for its ‘culture and tradition’ domestic and local products will be centre of attraction for the foreign countries and will increase the exportation of the local products with traditional and cultural touch of India. India exports many products to foreign countries.

The latest available countries specific data shows that 54.8% of the products exported from India were bought by importers in United States (16.8% of the global total), United Arab Emirates (9.2%), China (5.3%), Hong Kong (3.5%), Singapore (3.3%), United Kingdom (2.7%), Netherlands (2.7%), Germany (also 2.7%), Bangladesh (2.6%), Nepal (2.2%), Belgium (2.6%) and Malaysia (1.9%).[3]

From a continental perspective 47.8% of India’s exports by value were delivered to fellow Asian countries, while 19.3% were sold to European Importers.[4]

INDIA’S TOP 10 PRODUCTS WHICH ARE IMPORTED TO DIFFERENT COUNTRIES:[5]

1. Mineral fuels including oil: US$44.1 billion (13.7% of total exports)

2. Gems, precious metals: $36.7 billion (11.4%)

3. Machinery including computers: $21.2 billion (6.6%)

4. Organic chemicals: $18.3 billion (5.7%)

5. Vehicles: $17.2 billion (5.3%)

6. Pharmaceuticals: $16.1 billion (5%)

7. Electrical machinery, equipment: $14.7 billion (4.5%)

8. Iron, steel: $9.7 billion (3%)

9. Clothing, accessories (not knit or crochet): $8.6 billion (2.7%)

10. Knit or crochet clothing, accessories: $7.9 billion (2.5%)

CRITICS OF THE VISION:

• People are criticising the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat because of the decreasing GDP rate of the country. People’s view regarding this vision is that they are thinking that this vision will take many years to settle down and increase the growth rate of the economy, till then the labourer sector will suffer a lot. They are also thinking that there will be a less of opportunities for.
• PM Modi push for self-reliance is a long time coming to revive local industries and create jobs.[6]
• Modi emphasis on self-reliance is just another costless catchphrase which will be forgotten soon.[7]

HOW DOES THE VISION AFFECTS THE GDP OF THE COUNTRY:

The Indian Economy shrank 23.9% year on year in the second quarter 2020, much worse than market forecasts of an 18.3% drop.[8] Between the year 1953-1950, the export of India fell by whooping 2\3rd from already meagre 1.4% to an almost insignificant 0.5%.[9]

The main reason behind criticising the vision is because of the decreasing economy rate the country which has decreased less than 24.4% for several decades.

HOW THIS VISION WILL WORK IN THE EYE OF THE PEOPLE OF INDIA:

This vision requires and implies a need to carry out administrative reforms and, more specifically, reform of the legal system. Prime Minister Modi had clearly mentioned “Law” as one of the pillars of his vision.

When the law and order of the country will be improved the vision will have a positive impact on the people, because now a days the increasing rate of crimes in the country have made people think and worry about the legal system.

CONCLUSION:

The Atmanirbhar Bharat have some positive as well as negative impact among the people. Firstly the word “Atmanirbhar” itself creating negative impact on the people, they are thinking that by being Atmanirbhar they have to do things by their own , there will be less opportunities, their productivity will decrease and so on, they are not thinking that “Atmanirbhar” or “self-reliance” also means a commitment to resilience at multiple levels- at a National level, an industry level, and an individual level.

People need to understand that Atmanirbhar Bharat is not just a slogan but a deep root in the intellectual tradition in India. It’s a stage to make people stand confidently in the world, rather to isolate behind the “narrow domestic walls” of the society. This vision is made to enhance the direct productivity of the materials and eliminate the mediocre. By this the farmers will get the actual value of their products without giving any extra tax to the mediocre.

People are showing their negative aspect because of the recent pandemic of this COVID-19 and due this the GDP has gone down and all the industries have suffered a huge loss.

After suffering huge loss this vision has came up with a slogan “vocal for Local” which means to enhance the local products globally, So the industries which are doing their business with foreign countries how are they supposed to enhance the local products after this huge loss in the pandemic.

SUGGESTION:

PM Modi should reconsider this vision once and give some more time until this pandemic gets over or until the vaccines are available, to the industrialists to gain their losses and continue the business with foreign countries and after gaining the losses they can enhance the local products.

REFRENCES:

[1] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/voices/pm-modis-recontextualizing-gandhi-in-21st-century/ PM Modi’s recontextualising Gandhi in the 21st century.

[2] Source; www.india.govt.in\ Building Atmanirbhar Bharat and overcoming COVID-19

[3]Source; http://www.worldstopexports.com/indias-top-10-exports/Worlds top exports

[4] ibid.

[5] ibid.

[6] Source; https://theprint.in/talk-point/vocal-for-local-can-india-afford-self-reliance-or-is-it-a-slogan-to-please-swadeshi-l obby/420667/ Ashwani Mahajan, National co-convener of Swadeshi Jagaran Manch

[7]Ibid; Arjun Jayadev, Prof. of Economics at the School of arts and science, Azim Premji University.

[8]Source; www.tradingeconomics.com \ India GDP Annual Growth Rate

[9]Source; https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explainspeaking-atmanirbhar-bharat-a-brief-and-not-so-affectionate-history-6556627/ Why Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan should not make India turn away from International trade.

The End

 This Article has been written by DIKSHA VISHWAKARMA a Student of LL.B (HONS) 10th Semester at CALC permanently affiliated to University of Lucknow.

National Green Tribunal (NGT) : An Analysis - Shruti Pandey

Author :   Shruti Pandey [Pursuing LL.B]
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• This article is about National Green Tribunal (NGT) which was established under National Green Tribunal Act, 2010. 

• It talks about the establishment, origin, structure, power & jurisdiction, principle of justice adopted by NGT, procedure of filling an application or appeal, credits, challenges and restrictions and important judgments of NGT.

• It also contains conclusion at the very end to wrap up the article. 

National Green Tribunal(NGT) : An Analysis

Introduction:

• National Green Tribunal (NGT) is a statutory body. It was brought into force on 18/10/2010 . It was established under the National Green Tribunal Act. And by doing so India became the third country in the world to set up a tribunal especially for environmental matters, after Australia and New Zealand. India is the first one among developing countries to do so.

• NGT was the need of the hour to make the active disposal of related to environment protection and lessen the burden of the court.

• It facilitates effective and expeditious disposal of case relating to environment protection and conservation of forests and other natural resources.

• NGT got its inspiration from the  Constitution Of India: Part III- Article 21, which is as follows - “Protection of life and personal liberty i.e. No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law.” Right to a healthy environment is also implicit in it.

• The tribunal is not bound by the provisions made under Civil Procedure Court 1908, instead it works on the principal of natural justice.

• NGT worked on fixed pattern of time limit where it has to dispose the application and appeals finally within 6 months of filling them.

• The main office of NGT is in New Delhi. It also does its setting in Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai.

Origin:

• In June 1992 , India participated in the summit of United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. Where India pledged to provide judicial and administrative remedies to the victims of the pollutants and other damages caused by environment.

• India’s movement with Carbon was one of the main reason behind setting up this tribunal. The tribunal would help in playing an important role in ensuring the control of emissions and maintaining the desired levels.

• NGT is the first statutory body which is needed by it’s parent statute to apply the principle of  “Polluter Pays” and the principle of sustainable development.

• The NGT bill was published on 31 July 2009 ; The committee gave it’s report on 24 November 2009.  The NGT act was enacted by Parliament Of India on 5 May 2010. The Act got assent by the President on 2 June 2010.  Thus it became  Act No. 19 of 2010.

• Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) works under the act of NGT.

Structure:

• The principal bench of NGT is established in New Delhi.  It has four regional benches in Pune (West), Bhopal (Central), Chennai (South) and Kolkata (East).

• Every bench has it’s own specified geographical jurisdiction in a region. In addition to these benches, a system of circuit benches is also available. For example, the South Zone bench, which is based in Chennai, can decide to have settings in other places like Bangalore or Hyderabad.

• The tribunal consists of a Chairperson, the Judicial Members and Expert. All the members including the Chairperson shall hold the office for 5 years. They are not eligible to be reappointed. 

• The Chairperson is a retired Judge of Supreme Court, headquartered in New Delhi. He is appointed by the Central Government in consultation with the Chief Justice of India.

• Justice Lokeshwar Singh Panta was appointed as the Chairman of NGT on 18 October 2010. Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel was the present day chairman of NGT.

• Other Judicial Members and Expert members are retired Judges of High Courts.

• Each bench of NGT consists of atleast one Judicial Member and one Expert Member.

• A person for being eligible to be an expert member should compulsorily have a professional qualification and a minimum of 15 years of experience in the field of environment/ forest conservation and related subjects.

• A selection committee shall be established by Central Government to appoint the Judicial members and Expert members.

• There should be minimum 10 and maximum 20 full time Judicial members and Expert members in the tribunal.

Powers & Jurisdiction:

• The NGT is authorized to hear all the civil cases related to environment issues, that would be include enforcement of any legal right relating to environment.

• It is a statutory adjudicatory body like courts. Besides having an original jurisdiction of filing an application it also has an appellate jurisdiction to hear the appeal as court (tribunal).

• NGT deals with the questions that are linked with the laws listed in Schedule I of the NGT Act. They are-

1. The water (Prevention and control of Pollution)  Act, 1974;

2. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977;

3. The Forest(Conservation) Act, 1980;

4. The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981;

5. The Environment Protection Act, 1986;

6. The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991;

7. The Biological Diversity Act, 2002;

8. Any violation of these laws and any order/ decree taken by the Government under them can be challenged by the NGT.

• NGT by an order, can facilitate relief and compensation to the victims of the pollution and other environmental damages (which also includes damage or injury caused by handling any hazardous substance), for restoration of property damaged, and restitution of the environment for such area or areas, as the tribunal may think important.

• Any order/ decree/ award of Tribunal is executable to the same extent as of a decree of a civil court.

• If NGT holds an opinion that a claim is false and arbitrary, it can impose costs including lost benefits due to any interim injunction.

• NGT is  authorized to provide a  procedure  for a penalty for non compliance:

1. Imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years,

2. Fine which may extend to ten crore rupees, and

3. Both fine and imprisonment.

• An appeal against order/ decision/ award of NGT lies to the Supreme Court, to be filed within ninety days from the date of communication.

Principle of Justice adopted by NGT:

• This tribunal works on the principle of Natural Justice and is not bound by the procedure laid down by the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. Besides this NGT is also not bound by the rules of evidence as enshrined in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. Thus, it makes relatively easier (as opposed to approaching a court) of the conservation groups to keep facts and issues before the NGT which can include pointing out technical loopholes in a project, or proposing alternatives that can reduce environmental damage but is generally overlooked. 

• While passing any Order/ Decree/ Award, the NGT will apply the polluter pays principle, principle of sustainable development, the precautionary principle.

Procedure of filing an application or appeal:

• Procedure to file an application in NGT seeking compensation for environment damage or an appeal against an order or decision of the Government is very easy. 

• The official language of NGT is English.

• For every appeal / application where claim for compensation is not involved, a fee of Rs. 1000/- is to be paid.

• In case where the compensation is claimed, the fee will be one percent of the amount of compensation claimed, subject to a minimum of Rs 1000/-.

• No application for grant of any compensation or relief or restitution of property or environment shall be entertained unless it is made within a period of 5 years from the date of which the cause for such compensation or relief first arose.

Credits of NGT:

• In a decade NGT has turned out to be a crucial player in Environment regulation, giving strict and important judgments on issues ranging from pollution to deforestation to waste management.

• NGT paves a way for evolution and growth of environmental jurisprudence by establishing an alternate dispute resolution mechanism.

• It helps in decreasing the load of litigation in the higher courts on issues relating to environment.

• NGT is quiet informal, pocket-friendly and a comparatively faster way of solving environment related issues.

• It plays an important role in controlling and eliminating non-environment friendly activities.

• The Chairperson and members are not subject to reappointment, hence they most likely deliver judgments independently, without being succumbed to any pressure from any quarter and without having any personal interest.

• NGT is a medium to ensure that the Environment Impact Assessment process is strictly observed.

Challenges and Restrictions:

• The NGT has not been authorized with the powers to hear any matter relating to the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, the Indian Forest Act 1927, Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 and various laws enacted by states relating to forests, tree preservation etc. This hampers the jurisdiction NGT and at times causes malfunctioning as crucial forest rights issued is linked directly to environment. 

• The decision given by NGT is challenged in various High Courts under Article 226 of the Constitution which tells the power of High Court to issue certain writs; Many assert the superiority of High Court over the NGT, mentioning that High Court is a constitutional body while NGT is a statutory body. This is one of the major drawbacks of the Act, as there is no clarity about the kind of decision that can be challenged; although according to NGT Act, it’s decision can be challenged before the Supreme Court.

• Decision of NGT have also been criticized and challenged due to their adverse effect on economic growth and development. 

• The list of criticism of the tribunal also includes the lack of a formula based mechanism to determine the compensation.

• The decision given by NGT are not fully complied by the stakeholder or the Government.

At times, decision are said not to be feasible to implement within a given or specified time frame. 

• The lack of human and economic resources has caused high pendency of cases which affects the NGT's very objective of disposal of appeals within a period of 6 months.

• The inadequacy of the number of regional benches also affects the delivery of justice.

Important judgments:

• Samir Mehta v. Union of India and Ors.^[1] –

NGT held- India’s sovereignty over the herbal sources extends to the contiguous area and different financial areas beneath the Maritime Zones Act, 1976;

The Tribunal has also held that it has the energy to supply reimbursement for the charges incurred through the Central Government to smooth the wrecks which can also additionally pose dangers to navigation and marine surroundings. 

• Save Mon Region Federation and Ors. vs. Union of India and Ors –^[2] The tribunal suspended the environment clearance granted to the project. It also focused on the safety of the birds.

• Srinagar Bandh Aapda Sangharsh Samiti & Anr. v. Alaknanda hydro Power Co. Ltd. & Ors. -^[3] The Tribunal stated that even though the 2013 Uttarakhand floods was the result of a cloud burst, the damage caused on the residential location was not the result of Act of God.

• Almitra H. Patel & Ors. vs. Union of India and Ors – ^[4]  The NGT  directed each state and UT to bring into effect the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, and bring the plan in motion in phrases within four weeks. Besides, the tribunal directed the Central Government, State Government, Local bodies and all residents to do their respective duties below the rules with no delay.

        Even though segregation has been made mandatory in waste for strength vegetation and landfills required to be used in depositing inert waste most effective and are a concern of bio-stabilization within six months.

The tribunal also ordered a restriction on open burning of waste on lands, which also include at landfills.

• In 2012, the steelmaker company POSCO signed a MoU with the Government of Odisha for setting up a steel project. NGT suspended the order and it was counted as an important step in favor of the local communities and forest.

• In 2015, the NGT ordered that all diesel vehicles over 10 years old will not be allowed to ply in Delhi-NCR.^[5] 

• In 2017, the Art of Living Festival on Yamuna Food Plain was declared violating the environmental norms, the NGT  panel also imposed a penalty of Rs. 5 Crore.

• The NGT, in 2017, imposed an interim ban on plastic bags of less than 50-micron thickness in Delhi because “they were causing animal deaths, clogging sewers and harming the environment”

Conclusion:

• Though NGT is a statutory body for the speedy disposal of the cases, it is not capable to dispose the cases quickly at constant speed. It is required to make it more autonomous and widening NGT’s scope for effective protection of environment in balance with human developmental activities is the need of the hour. 

• Despite being constituted with the aid of an Act of Parliament, the Supreme Court need to interfere from time to time to make sure that important administrative preparations have been made with the help of using diverse branches of the government for the tribunal to become functional. 

REFERENCES:

^[1] 2017 SCC OnLine NGT 1314

^[2]MANU/GT/0040/2016 ; Save Mon Region Federation and Ors. vs. Union of India and Ors. (07.04.2016 - NGT)

^[3] Srinagar Bandh Aapda Sangharsh Samiti and Ors. vs. Alaknanda Hydro Power Co. Ltd. and Ors. (19.08.2016 - NGT) : MANU/GT/0101/2016

^[4]  MANU/GT/0150/2016

^[5] 2016 SCC OnLine NGT 3897; Vardhaman Kaushik v. Union of India & Ors.

The End 

This article has been written by Shruti Pandey a Student of LL.B 4th Semester at CALC permanently affiliated to University of Lucknow. She pursued her grduation from St. Joseph's Women's College, Gorakhpur in English literature.