MC Mehta is a professional lawyer and environmentalist who fought many cases in order to protect the environment. In supreme court of india, there are many cases filed by him, related to the environment protection.
These cases were filed and fought by him, that is why, known as “MC Mehta v Union of India”. He was honored with many awards including “Padmi Shri” (fourth highest civilian award of government of India) because of his dedication towards the non-polluted and healthy environment for everyone.
He was an eminent lawyer of the Apex Court who always stood against the industries and tenneries which are responsible for polluting our air, water and land. These industries or factories dump their garbage anymore and flow their chemicals into the rivers.
For this reason, he fought legal fights against many polluting industries in the Supreme Court, and happily won the majority of the cases. He has fought many cases, some of those we have examined in this article.
Who is MC Mehta?
“Shri Mahesh Chandra Mehta” oftenly known as “MC Mehta” is an eminent environmental advocate in supreme court. Born - 12th Dec. 1946, in Rajouri (Jammu & Kashmir). He is acknowledged for his contribution in environment protection. He was playing an important role to curb the environment pollution.
He passed his Post Graduation (Pol. Science) and Law degree from Jammu University. After that started his legal journey from J&K High Court. He is popular with “Green Warrior” and “Green Avenger” of India, because of his efforts to decrease the pollution.
Adv MC Mehta has considerably influenced Indian environmental jurisprudence. Mr. Mehta gives his “legal career” to “environment protection”. We can see his contribution in many landmark cases which shaped the environmental landscape of the country.
MC Mehta vs Union of India - Collection
All the important judgements related to the environment listed by Advocate MC Mehta are discussed below:
1. MC Mehta v. Union of India (1986):
Also known as - Oleum Gas Leak Case. The suit was filed because of the leakage of oleum gas in the Shriram Food and Fertilizer Industry, causality happened, industry was situated in Delhi. The supreme court took cognizance of the PIL filed by him and established the rule of “absolute liability” in this case.
Regardless of their mistakes, wrongdoers were subject to liability for any injury resulting from their conduct under this rule. SC also held the industry responsible for the loss and gave order for compensation to the victims.
2. MC Mehta v. Union of India (1988):
This case addresses the issue of Ganga River pollution due to industrial and sewage waste discharges into the rivers. The Supreme court issued certain guidelines to curb the water pollution and improve the quality of the Ganga river.
The court also emphasized the cultural and religious importance of that river. "dumping burnt corpses into the river is the main reason for water pollution and it must be stopped" the SC concluded.
3. MC Mehta v. Union of India (1996):
The Taj Trapezium Case is another name for this case. The main concern was environmental damage near the area of Taj Mahal. The SC released several guidelines that aim to reduce industrial activity and air pollution in the Taj Trapezium Zone in order to safeguard the monument. These directives included closing all stores and emporia running around the Taj property and granting workers' rights.
4. MC Mehta v. Union of India (1992):
Another name for this case is the Stone Crushing Units Case. Related to the operation of stone crushing facilities in the State of Haryana, Advocate mc mehta filed a lawsuit against the industry. The court imposed strict guidelines to regulate the air and water pollution caused by the stone crushers that were operating in violation of environmental standards and ordered their closure.
5. MC Mehta v. State of Tamil Nadu And Others (1996):
This case is often known as the Child Labor Case. Child labor in match factories and other unsafe factories, the supreme court established a committee in order to supervise child labour. The committee made a number of recommendations to stop child labor-related fatal accidents.
The committee suggested that the State of Tamil Nadu be ordered to make sure that youngsters are not working in factories that make fireworks.
Additionally, the committee suggested six hours of work, child labor limited to packing, recreational, sociability, and educational facilities, insurance, and more.
6. MC Mehta v. Kamal Nath & Ors (2002):
The SC used the Exemplary Damages Principle for the first time in this case. In order to serve as a deterrence for others to avoid causing pollution in any way, the court decided to impose exemplary damages in addition to the compensation.
In order to repair the damaged ecology and recompense the victims as well as the expense of fixing the environmental degradation, the court also used the "polluter pays principle".
The Public Trust Doctrine's significance in environmental problems was acknowledged by the SC. The court stated that the state has a duty to safeguard and conserve the natural resources of the country in order to give the benefits to the general public.
7. MC Mehta v. Union of India (2002):
The Delhi Vehicular Pollution Case (1998) is another name for it. The purpose of this litigation was to solve Delhi's growing vehicle pollution issue.
In order to lessen air pollution in the capital, the SC issued directives to improve public transportation, encourage the use of compressed natural gas (CNG), and regulate vehicle emissions.
Conclusion
Every person working or learning law everybody in this profession whether advocate, student or judge has to read about M.C. Mehta and his contribution. The syllabus of PIL (Public Interest Litigation) is not completed without his cases.
M.C. Mehta v Union of India cases are taught by the teachers to students in law colleges in order to understand the PIL and Environment Protection. He affects the environmental studies also in India. His cases are also included in the subject of environmental law. All the case laws which we have discussed above are part of the environmental law discipline.
