NGT issues bailable warrants against state representatives for failure to appear

The Act and Rules aim to preserve biological diversity and provide a mechanism of impartial sharing of benefits that arise out of traditional biological resources and knowledge

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Thursday issued bailable warrants of Rs 10,000 each against resident commissioners of states Gujarat, Karnataka, Manipur, Mizoram, Odisha, Punjab, and Tripura, and Union Territories Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry, for failure to appear before it despite notices.

The NGT Bench, headed by Chairperson Swatanter Kumar, had previously issued notices to the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF), the National Biodiversity Authority and the state biodiversity boards while entertaining an application seeking proper implementation of the Biological Diversity Act, 2000, (the Biodiversity Act) and National Biological Diversity Rules, 2004, (the Rules) by concerned authorities.

The Biodiversity Act (and underlying Rules) aims to preserve biological diversity in India and provides for a mechanism of equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the use of traditional biological resources and knowledge.

The present application filed by Chandra Bhal Singh alleges gross non-implementation of these biodiversity laws by authorities and highlights the lack of biodiversity management committees at local levels. The plea also underlines failures by these committees in collection of requisite fees and maintenance of People's Biodiversity Registers as mandated by the law.

The dearth of funding provided by state governments to their respective biodiversity boards have also been questioned as part of the application.

The warrants issued on Thursday under the provisions of Section 19(4)(a) of the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010, read with Order XVI Rule 10(3) and Section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, are to be executed by station house officers of the concerned areas for production of these representatives on the next date of hearing on September 29.

The served respondents have also been given three weeks to file their respective replies to the allegations made by Singh before the tribunal.