Ecolex Logo
Le portail au
droit de l'environnement
Résultats de la recherche » Jurisprudence

Vinod Kumar Jain vs Union Of India And Anr.

Pays/Territoire
Inde
Type de cour
Nationale - cour supérieure
Date
Aoû 7, 2008
Source
UNEP, InforMEA
Nom du tribunal
High Court of Delhi
Juge
THAKUR, T.S.
SIDDHARTH MRIDUL.
Langue
Anglais
Sujet
Déchets et substances dangereuses
Mot clé
Recyclage/réemploi Substances dangereuses
Résumé
The present writ petition has been filed in public interest. It paints a grim picture about the failure of the civic agencies in regard to the solid waste management in Delhi. In particular, it refers to the problems arising out of use of plastic bags in general which are posing major environmental hazard. The petition, therefore, prays for directions for upgrading the waste management system, effective means to curb the tendency to generate needless waste by strict legislative measures and also by educating the people at large about the hazards to environment arising out of absence of a scientific waste management programme. It prays for a mandamus directing the respondents to amend the provisions of the Delhi Plastic Bag (Manufacture, Sales and Usage) and Non-Biodegradable Garbage (Control) Act, 2000 and the Rules framed thereunder so as to ensure that the same apply and extend not only to prohibition but also to the manufacture and sale of all plastic bags in general. By an order dated 19th November, 2007 the Court had constituted a committee headed by Justice R.C. Chopra. The Committee was requested to study the issue regarding environmental hazards including health hazards arising out of use of the plastic bags in the city of Delhi. As pointed out by the Committee, the problems arising out of use of plastic bags, is on account of a failure on the part of the authorities in efficiently handling the plastic waste. The Committee had sought the use of virgin plastic in place of recycled plastic, a ban on small plastic pouches and getting plastic manufacturers to set up a state-of-the-art recycling unit. The need of the hour, therefore, has been considered to ensure proper handling of waste and not a complete ban on the use of plastic bags. The Delhi High Court tightened norms regulating use and recycling of plastic bags in the Capital to check their indiscriminate use as they pose a serious health hazard and pollute the environment. It has extended the scope of the ban on use of plastic bags to include the city’s main markets and local shopping centres. Their use was already banned in hotels, hospitals and malls. To discourage indiscriminate use of plastic bags by shopkeepers and encourage rag-pickers to pick them up for recycling, the Bench made the bags more expensive by increasing their thickness from 20 microns to 40 microns. The Bench directed the Delhi Government to notify the norms as soon as possible. To check operation of unlicensed recycling units in non-conforming zones, the Bench directed the Government and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee to ensure closure of all such units. The Bench also directed the Central Government to set up a committee to fix standards, if they are not in place, for degradable and biodegradable plastics. The Court also directed the Delhi Government to study the report of the a Committee to consider whether use of plastics is injurious to human beings and the environment and implement its recommendations which are possible to enforce.
Texte intégral
COU-156254.pdf