GS Paper II 2022 · Q1
10 marks · 150 words Constitution: evolution, features & basic structure X-Ray · Core #15“The most significant achievement of modern law in India is the constitutionalization of environmental problems by the Supreme Court.” Discuss this statement with the help of relevant case laws.
Approach · directive: “discuss / with case laws”
What it asks · Test the statement by tracing how the Supreme Court read a right to a clean environment into Article 21 and built principles through case law, then weigh its limits.
It asks 3 things — answer each
- Discuss: how the Supreme Court constitutionalised environmental problems, reading Articles 48A and 51A(g) with Article 21, with relevant case laws
- Weigh the limits of this judicial route: overreach and uneven compliance
- Judge the claim that it is the most significant achievement of modern Indian law
Open with · The Constitution of 1950 was silent on the environment; the 42nd Amendment (1976) added Articles 48A and 51A(g), which the Supreme Court read with Article 21.
Cover
- Right to life: Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra (1985, Doon Valley) and Subhash Kumar (1991) read pollution-free air and water into Article 21.
- Directive and duty: Article 48A binds the State and Article 51A(g) every citizen to protect the environment.
- Judge-made principles: absolute liability (M. C. Mehta, 1987), precautionary and polluter-pays (Vellore, 1996), public trust (Kamal Nath, 1997).
- Procedure and community: continuing mandamus in T. N. Godavarman (1996); Niyamgiri gram sabhas in Orissa Mining Corporation (2013).
- Limits: charges of overreach into policy and uneven compliance; enforcement rests on the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and regulators.
- Verdict: Parliament itself endorsed the Court's reading in the NGT Act, 2010 preamble, which also cites the Stockholm (1972) and Rio (1992) conferences.
Close with · Parliament has accepted the Court's reading of Article 21; the next step is regulators capable enough to make a healthy environment routine rather than litigated.
Add value (verified)
- Article 48A, inserted in 1976, directs the State to protect the environment, the textual base the Court combined with Article 21.The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2024), Article 48A — Legislative Department ↗“The State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wild life of the country.”
- The 42nd Amendment (1976) inserted Article 48A, so the environment entered the Constitution only in 1976.The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2024) - Legislative Department ↗“3. Ins. by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976, s. 10 (w.e.f. 3-1-1977).”
- The NGT Act, 2010 preamble records that Indian courts have construed the right to a healthy environment as part of the right to life under Article 21.The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (Act 19 of 2010), text hosted by Assam Administrative Staff College, Government of Assam ↗“AND WHEREAS in the judicial pronouncement in India, the right to healthy environment has been construed as a part of the right to life under article 21 of the Constitution”
- The NGT Act's preamble cites India's participation in the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment (June 1972).The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (Act 19 of 2010), text hosted by Assam Administrative Staff College, Government of Assam ↗“India is a party to the decisions taken at the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held at Stockholm in June, 1972”
- The preamble also cites the Rio de Janeiro Conference on Environment and Development (June 1992).The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (Act 19 of 2010), text hosted by Assam Administrative Staff College, Government of Assam ↗“decisions were taken at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development held at Rio de Janeiro in June, 1992”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2022, GS Paper II — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 3 Oct 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer· 221words · Minimalist IAS
The Constitution of 1950 was silent on the environment. The 42nd Amendment (1976) added Articles 48A and 51A(g), which the Supreme Court read with Article 21. Its case law largely bears out the claim.
How the Court constitutionalised the environment
- Right to life: Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra (1985, Doon Valley) and Subhash Kumar (1991) read pollution-free air and water into Article 21.
- Directive and duty: Article 48A binds the State, Article 51A(g) every citizen.
- Judge-made principles: absolute liability (M. C. Mehta, 1987); precautionary and polluter-pays principles (Vellore, 1996); the public trust doctrine (Kamal Nath, 1997).
- Continuing mandamus: T. N. Godavarman (1996) let the Court supervise forest governance.
- Community voice: Orissa Mining Corporation (2013) left Niyamgiri bauxite mining to the gram sabhas.
- 1976: Articles 48A, 51A(g)
- 1985: Doon Valley
- 1987: absolute liability
- 1996: Vellore
- 2010: NGT Act
Limits of the judicial route
- Overreach: judge-made rules enter executive policy.
- Uneven compliance: enforcement still rests on the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and regulators.
Why it still ranks highest
- Parliament's endorsement: the NGT Act, 2010 preamble records that courts read a healthy environment into the right to life.
- Global commitments: it also cites the Stockholm (1972) and Rio (1992) conferences.
Courts supplied the principles and Parliament wrote them into law; the next task is regulators able to make a healthy environment routine, not litigated.
Prepared by Minimalist IAS to the answer standard of Shivam Singh (mentor, 7 years) · facts checked against official sources (how we verify) · updated 3 Oct 2026. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.
