Plea for making environ science compulsory; SC asks Centre

The Supreme Court today asked the Centre to apprise it of steps taken to enforce its 1991 directions including making 'Environment Science' a compulsory subject in college and school curricula.
"You (University Grants Commission and Human Resources Development Ministry) take instruction on it. We will hear it again on September 23," a bench comprising Chief Justice T S Thakur and Justice A M Khanwilkar said.
The bench was hearing an interim plea of environmentalist M C Mehta alleging that the directions passed in 1991 on his PIL have not been complied with letter and spirit.
The court initially asked Mehta whether it could entertain an interim plea in an already decided and disposed of PIL.

Later, the bench asked Additional Solicitor General P S Patwalia, appearing for the Centre, to apprise it on what steps could be taken to ensure that the curricula include 'Environment Science' as compulsory subject.
During the hearing, the law officer, representing the Centre, said state boards, responsible for deciding school curriculum, functioned under the state administrations and hence cannot be forced by it to do the needful.

In the 1991 verdict, a bench headed by then Chief Justice Rangnath Misra had said "the UGC will take appropriate steps immediately to give effect to what we have said, i.E., requiring the Universities to prescribe a course on environment. They would consider the feasibility of making this a compulsory subject at every level in college education.

"So far as education up to college level is concerned, we would require every state Government and every Education Board connected with education up to matriculation or even intermediate colleges to immediately take steps to enforce compulsory education on environment in a graded way. This should be so done that in the next academic year, there would be compliance of this requirement."
Disposing of the PIL in 1991, the bench had asked the
Centre to issue appropriate directions to state governments and Union Territories to "invariably enforce as a condition of license of all cinema hails, touring cinemas and video parlours" to show slides on environment free of cost.

"The Ministry of Environment should within two months from now come out with appropriate slide material which would be brief ... To efficiently carry the message home on various aspects of environment and pollution."
It had said that the materials to be shown by exhibitors, would be given to the District Collectors, the licensing authorities for the cinema exhibition halls, for compliance.
"Failure to comply with our order should be treated as a ground for cancellation of the licence by the appropriate authorities. The material for the slides should be such that it would at once be impressive, striking and leave as impact on every one who sees the slide," it had said then.

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting should start without delay producing information films of short duration on various aspects of environment and pollution bringing out the benefits for society on the environment being protected and the hazards involved in the environment being polluted, it had said.
It had asked the then Attorney General to have a dialogue with the Ministry as to the manner the All India Radio and Doordarshan could assist this process of education.
"We accept on principle that through the medium of education awareness of the environment and its problems related to pollution should be taught as a compulsory subject," the apex court had said.

Environmentalist Mehta, in his fresh plea, alleged that the directions have not been complied with in letter and spirit even after the lapse of so many years.