THE DEFENSE RESTS

A LEGUMVOX WEEKLY
|| NOVEMBER 2020 ||

"THE EARTH IS
WHAT WE ALL
HAVE IN COMMON."
- WENDELL BERRY

ON THE RECORD:

QUINTESSENTIAL 02

LEGUM MANTRA 03

LAW JAGRAN 04

AAP CHRONOLOGY SAMJHIYE! 05

LEGUM ELIXIR 07

VOX COMIXS 08

UPCOMING EVENTS 10
|| Issue Eight || LegumVox ||
 TEAMS' LETTER

Dear Law Aficionados,

We Hope everyone is safe and well. This week we will indulge in the
environmental issues around the globe and the steps taken to combat
them by nations worldwide, we will also gain some valuable insights into
the scope and demand in the field of environmental law and policies.

Look out for this week's Legum Mantra for an inspiring journey and to
know how you can do your bit for the environment as a responsible and
vigilant citizen. A pandemic like this has made us realize life’s worth and
sustainable development is the only way to go.

With the onset of winter, this week’s Legum Elixir is the perfect
accompaniment to your hot cups of chai and coffee and will make you
contemplate about the things that actually matter.

We Hope you all enjoy your weekend.

Stay warm, stay safe and don't forget to wear your masks when stepping
out!

Team Legum Vox.

 QUINTESSENTIAL
ADV. SANJAY UPADHYAY

“It's time to move from corporate social He has also co-authored various books on this subject
responsibility to corporate environmental including National Parks and Sanctuaries in India - A
responsibility. It has to move from boardroom guide to all legal provisions and Role of the Courts and
discussions to boardroom decision making as Implications for community forestry in North-eastern
far as environmental law compliance is states.
concerned”
He has a wealth of experience in forest governance and
says Sanjay Upadhyay, one of the finest has had a number of opportunities to influence local,
environmental lawyers India is grateful for. state, national and international policies. From drafting
Upadhyay is a senior Supreme Court Advocate and the country’s first Forest Rights Act to writing a letter
Founder as well as Managing Partner of India’s first that has culminated into a guiding light enabling tribes
full-fledged environmental law firm, ‘Enviro Legal to use bamboo, the FGLG( Forest Governance Learning
Defence Firm’. Group) is making a real impact on millions of lives.

He embarked upon his journey in the fraternity as a Upadhyay firmly believes that our challenges are not
law intern with the Earth Justice Legal Defense country-specific, the struggles on forest tenure and
Fund, San Francisco. In India, his career at the World pro-poor strategies in order to reduce emissions from
Wide Fund for Nature at the Centre for REDD is a global conundrum. Something that works for
Environmental Law marks his beginning. He is another country might work for ours too and if not
revered as an Environment and Development law that, we can always learn to form their mistakes.
expert by virtue of his widely acclaimed work around
the globe. Upadhyay has served as an environmental Apart from his sterling practice, he is also a visiting
and development law expert to most well known resource person to some of the most premier
International, Multilateral, National and State environmental institutions and law schools in India
Institutions including World Bank, IUCN, FAO of such as the National Law Universities of Hyderabad,
United Nations, UNDP, AFD, DFID, ILO, SDC, IC, Bangalore, Delhi, Kolkata; Indian Institute of Forest
IIED, ODI, WWF, Green Peace, HBF, TERI, WINROCK, Management etc.
MOEF, MOPR, MOTA, MNRE, IIFM, ICFRE, IEG, WII,
IIPA, NIRD, University of Cambridge, Duke Today, when you take a look around you, a conscious
University to name a few. one, the epiphany of how far we’ve gone as humans
from thrifting and surviving to exploiting and ruining
His area of expertise ranges from Environment Law the earth that we’re mere guests of will hit you hard
to Development law and more specifically to the and leave you disconcerted. It’s high time that we mend
legal and policy dimensions of Natural Resource our twisted, selfish and destructive ideas of “Survival of
Management which includes ecotourism, the fittest” and that we do it together. Firstly, because
Ecodevelopment, Wildlife Conservation, National we owe it to mother earth and the generations to come.
Parks and Sanctuaries, Biodiversity and Forestry. Secondly, we just don’t have any other alternative.

He completed B.Sc. in electronics from Savitribai

Phule Pune University and has pursued his LL.B. from
Delhi University, India. He has been practicing
environment and development law since 1993 and
has appeared in several noteworthy cases
concerning environmental law. His practice of over
25 years is studded with several prominent cases
that have brought about crucial changes in the field.

|2| Issue Eight| LegumVox |

INTERVIEW OF
THE WEEK LEGUM MANTRA
- ADV. HEMVANTHI SHEKHAR

Q1. What made you start ENACT?

A1: My work on Human Rights and Climate Change for my
dissertation in college helped me gain a perspective about and it was a
revelation. Even 32 years after the Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change we haven’t been able to galvanise the kind of action
needed for climate change because many of us are blissfully ignorant.
It should not be seen as a distant reality. To bridge the communication
gap, ENACT- Enabling Necessary through Climate Talk was brought
about and it aims to develop the discourse on climate change and
create a Climate Literate Society.

Q2. How do you envision the future of ENACT?

A2: I wish for ENACT to be a platform of creative change. Since this
discussion has been exclusionary, I’m working on how to use art,
music, and dance to communicate about climate change. It is actually
an inclusive space which hosts and creates community for people
intending to bring change innovatively, specially people vulnerable to
climate change. I want to set up ENACT as a not-for-profit organisation
in the future. I’m working to creatively use laws in this context and
uphold rights of vulnerable communities.

Q3. Please share with us your experiences working in an NGO and

then as an Assistant Professor at a National Law University. ADV. HEMVANTHI SHEKHAR
A3: I took up my first job as a Legal Research Associate at Founder, ENACT
Environment Support Group, a non-profit trust in Bangalore. The
groundwork I did there has helped me shape my current thought
process and ability to understand. I always wanted to teach part time &
I always wanted to teach part time and as a professor the opportunities to learn are limitless. It helps create a positive
impact on young impressionable minds. Although, I have been working on ENACT for a while now; I want to go back
to teaching, at least part time, sometime soon.

Q4. Considering you pursued specialisation in subjects which are worlds apart, what is your opinion on the
same? How would you suggest law students choose theirs?
A4: I’d personally suggest law students to choose things that excite them. Unless you are not bound by financial
constraints or other issues, please work on things you are passionate about. Otherwise, you are bored easily and
burn out. I have had friends give up high-paying jobs in Tier 1 law firms and move to work that make them happy,
even if it is for lesser money. It is absolutely okay to be interested in varied subjects that don’t necessarily
complement each other. When you can be a Master of many trades, don’t settle for anything less. Keep yourself
open to learning, always.

Q5. Why do you think there is a lack of implementation of Environmental Laws in the country?
A5: This is in regard with two things- Awareness with the public and Political Will. Even though the Water Pollution
Act came into being in 1974, very few people have the knowledge about it. But when you talk about GST, which was
only introduced 3 years back, the amount of information is immense. The fact that the political will is lacking with
environmental protection, plays a major role. We still continue to follow the anthropocentric approach instead of
ecocentric approach. Another reason could be the lack of resources available with the NGT to monitor
implementation of its orders. Entire world is facing this issue.

Q6.Everyday mantra to do your bit for the environment.

A6: There are several things one can do, beyond simply planting a tree. Changing our choices as consumers will
turn things around. Industries like that of plastic thrive in the market due to high demand created by us. We should
start living consciously and reduce our ecological footprint. I buy new clothes rarely, drop my old clothes for
recycling, travel only when absolutely necessary. Start making conscious choices, especially when you can afford
them. Little everyday habits have tremendous consequences.

|3| Issue Eight| LegumVox |

ILLEGAL MINING: LET'S DIG
LAW JAGRAN
DEEPER, SHALL WE?

Mining activity when undertaken without State permission,

particularly in absence of land rights, mining licenses or permits
leads to illegal mining. It is more or less like slavery. People tend to
justify the deplorable situation with specious logic like Karl Popper
loves to explain, that "it offers livelihood and allows people to earn
daily bread & fill their stomachs" being in an absolute bliss of
ignorance of their low standards of living, meagre pay and
infringement of basic fundamental rights.

It is one of the most unbridled issues in India which requires

immediate attention and redressal by the government. It has not
only caused a substantial decline in the economy but has also
culminated into environmental degradation on a magnanimous
scale.

Multi-state illegal mining of iron and manganese ore is carried out

extensively every year, having detrimental ill-effects on good Image Credits: Shivalika Verma
governance, public functionaries and the economy, further giving
a boost to the corruption in the public service sphere.

The Plight of North-easterners

The onslaught of the pandemic has crushed the economy owing to which the govt. recently proposed some
structural reforms in the mining sector by amending the Mines and Mineral (Development and Regulation)
Act, 1957. It aims at reviving the economy, increasing the participation of the private sector in mineral
exploration and most importantly putting forth a clear demarcation between legal and illegal mining and is a
ray of hope and light into the audit of the dark and sequestered universe of mining.

Whether it be Illegal coal mining in Assam’s Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary or the 2018 case of miners
trapped in rat-hole coal mines in the state of Meghalaya, the circumstances seem to be only getting worse. The
Meghalaya HC lately passed an interim order stating a complete ban on unauthorised sand mining and other
polluting activities near all the rivers of Manipur. Consequently, quarry workers and transporters stopped the
supplies of stones & sand for the govt. and private construction. Ergo, this decision was later on overturned by
the state govt. In Assam, the SC banned mining activities in Kaziranga National Park & the state govt. also asked
the DGP to constitute teams of forest, transport and revenue officials to ensure strict compliance of the same.
Although the Meghalaya Government took notice of pervasive mining in the state and emphasised on the
regulation of sand mining, it wasn't in favour of a blanket ban.

We're digging too deep now! stop, Maybe?

Incessant mining spanning over long years has ensued atrophy to a point that restoration seems like a far cry.
Mining exercises have led to the loss of biodiversity, upsurge in diseases like fibrosis, Pneumoconiosis and
silicosis in labourers as well as local residents due to its endemic nature. Water from streams and waterways,
such as Meghalaya's Kopili stream and Damodar waterway in mining territories have turned acidic and ill-
suited for drinking, resulting in water contamination. Issue of defiled air with high particulates is also
significant in these areas.

A way upward and out!

Steps such as campaigning for judicious use of mineral assets, rigid execution of mining-related principles,
particularly with respect to the restriction on Rodent Opening and informal mining to forestall mine-related
mishaps would aid in resolving the current issue. Future policy development of innovation for a superior
method of mineral investigation and observation frameworks; appropriate restoration of the dislodged
populace; and ancestral rights should be as per the law.

Appropriate natural effect evaluation and social effect appraisal (SIA) must be done prior to allotting the
ventures. Legitimate administrative structure for the execution of the NGT rules would help ensure backwoods
and minimal harm to the climate. Embracing worldwide sustainable practices and guaranteeing safe working
conditions for labourers should be the State's goal. Life is not worth giving up for Metal.

|4| Issue Eight| LegumVox |

AAP CHRONOLOGY

SAMJHIYE!

TAX RISES FOR HIGH-POLLUTING CARS IN FRANCE-

HIGH-POLLUTING CARS, SUCH AS SUVS, ARE NOW SUBJECT TO HIGHER LEVIES. UNTIL
NOW, OWNERS HAD TO PAY AN ADDITIONAL $14,000 ON VEHICLES THAT BREACH
EMISSION LIMITS OF 184G/KM CO2, WHICH HAS NOW RISEN TO $22,240.

FOCUS ON PLASTIC IN THAILAND-

THE THAILAND GOVERNMENT HAS ANNOUNCED THAT BY THE END OF THE YEAR, THREE
TYPES OF PLASTIC NAMELY- MICROBEADS, CAP SEALS AND OXO-DEGRADABLE PLASTICS
WILL BE BANNED. IT IS DISCONCERTING THAT CONSUMERS GENERATE ALMOST 2 MILLION
2
TONNES OF PLASTIC WASTE EACH YEAR. AROUND 43 RETAILERS, INCLUDING
DEPARTMENTAL STORES AND CONVENIENCE STORE NETWORKS, HAVE CONCURRED TO
STOP GIVING OUT FREE PLASTIC BAGS.

FRANCE TO PHASE OUT SINGLE-USE PLASTICS-

FRANCE HAS BANNED A RANGE OF PRODUCTS MADE FROM SINGLE-USE PLASTICS,
INCLUDING PLATES, CUPS, COTTON BUDS AND DRINKS BOTTLES WHICH IS USED IN
SCHOOL CANTEENS AND CATERING SERVICES. NEXT YEAR BY THIS TIME, CUTLERY AND
STRAWS WILL GO THE SAME WAY, ALONG WITH STYROFOAM CUPS & CONTAINERS, DRINK
STIRRERS AND CONFETTI. CURRENTLY, THERE ARE EXEMPTIONS IN PLACES COVERING
COMPOSTABLE PRODUCTS MADE FROM AT LEAST 50% ORGANIC MATERIAL. CUTLERY USED
IN HOSPITALS AND PRISONS, OR ON PLANES AND TRAINS, IS ALSO EXEMPTED, ALTHOUGH
ALL THESE EXEMPTIONS ARE DUE TO END IN JULY 2021.

WAVE OF PLASTIC BAGS BAN EXPAND ACROSS US-

IN ALBUQUERQUE & NEW MEXICO, SINGLE-USE PLASTIC BAGS WHICH ARE LESS THAN 2.25 MM
THICK HAVE BEEN BANNED. THICKER BAGS OR PAPER BAGS ARE BEING OFFERED INSTEAD.
THERE ARE SOME EXCEPTIONS WHICH INCLUDE RESTAURANTS, BAKERIES, AND DRY CLEANING
SERVICES. THE STATE OF OREGON HAS ENACTED SIMILAR LAWS WITH RETAIL STORES AND
RESTAURANTS WHO ARE NO LONGER ALLOWED TO PROVIDE SINGLE-USE CHECKOUT BAGS.
UNDER THE NEW LAW, PREMISES MUST CHARGE 5 CENTS FOR PAPER BAGS AND REUSABLE
PLASTIC WHICH IS MORE THAN 4 MM THICK. THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL
CONSERVATION HAS LAUNCHED THE "BRING YOUR OWN BAG" IN NEW YORK TO TACKLE THE
SITUATION.

|5| Issue Eight| LegumVox |

AAP CHRONOLOGY

SAMJHIYE!

TOXIC SUNSCREEN PUT IN THE SHADE IN PALAU-

THE TINY PACIFIC NATION OF PALAU HAS BANNED CERTAIN KINDS OF SUNSCREEN AS
PART OF A SERIES OF MEASURES TO PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT. OXYBENZONE IS
COMMONLY USED IN MANY SUNSCREENS SINCE IT ABSORBS ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT. BUT
ACCORDING TO THE US NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION, IT
CAN HARM CORAL REEFS AND OTHER MARINE LIFE AND CAUSE BLEACHING AND LEAVE
THE CORAL LESS RESILIENT TO CLIMATE CHANGE.

OVER THE PAST 25 YEARS, THE GREAT BARRIER REEF HAS LOST HALF OF ITS CORAL.
S02 EMISSION HAS DROPPED BY 6% BUT INDIA STILL TOPS THE POLLUTER LIST.
2
IN A MAJOR MOVE, CHINA HAS SET 2060 AS A GOAL TO GO CARBON NEUTRAL.
#GOALS

WEF STUDY CLAIMED THAT DELHI MAY HAVE 8 MONTHS OF 32°C AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE BY 2100.
CLIMATE CRISIS IS LIKELY TO DISPLACE 1.2 BILLION PEOPLE BY 2050.
GLACIERS IN NANDA DEVI BIOSPHERE RESERVE’S RISHIKESH CATCHMENT HAVE
REDUCED BY 10% IN THE PAST 37 YEARS.

CLIMATE CHANGE IS LIKELY TO CAUSE 26% HABITAT LOSS BY 2070 FOR SNOW TROUT,
THE ICONIC COLD WATER FISH SPECIES IN HIMALAYAN RIVERS, THE WILDLIFE
INSTITUTE OF INDIA ASSERTED.
BY THE END OF 2020 OR BEGINNING OF 2021, INDIA IS SET TO GET ITS NATIONAL
BUTTERFLY.
THE UN HAS CLAIMED THAT THE WORLD IS LIKELY TO HIT A 1.5 DEGREE WARMING
THRESHOLD IN 5 YEARS.
NGO GLOBAL WITNESS HAS SUGGESTED A WHOPPING 212 DEATHS OF
ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVISTS IN 2019.

|6| Issue Eight| LegumVox |

 MOVIE & BOOK
REVIEW LEGUM ELIXIR

KADWI HAWA
- Directed By Nila Madhab Panda SILENT SPRING
- By Rachel Carson

Contradictory to the usual bollywood cinema that

romanticizes snow capped hills and clear blue seas that will
soon become only a tale we'll tell, a few filmmakers like Nila
Panda are sensitized towards the environment and are
looking to bring about a change through their work since
cinema in India is a strong and highly influential medium for Carson is not only a knowledgeable scientist but a
it. Kadvi Hawa stars an exceptional set of actors including gifted author too. She knows how to make a point
Sanjai Mishra, Tillotama Shome and Ranvir Shorey that steal through emphatically vivid and sometimes
the show with their effortless work. disconcerting examples, detailing case after case of
poisonings, in animals and humans. She substantiates
It deals with non-repayment of loans culminating into them with scientific explanations showing how the
farmers' suicides and portrays a darkly humorous and heart- poisons spread through the environment, are
wrenching imagery of environmental degradation and absorbed into the body and consequently disrupt the
Climate change that has rendered the Village of Mahua natural processes. She knew that the chemical
scorched and infertile. industry would lock horns with her which is why she
leaves no stones unturned in her research.
The film brings controversial headlines we read in the papers
to life and tells an articulate and skin deep story that stays The point of focus for Carson in the book is not just
with you unlike the headlines we have gotten acclimitized to. the environment but she emphasizes time and again
The film is searingly thought provoking and makes you how these pesticides can enter foods, can kill
wonder how we've managed to made such a huge mess of livestock, desolate fish and can enter the skin through
things leaving the poor to clean it up for us. The name Kadvi commercial lawn product thus painting a bigger
Hawa translates to (bitter wind) because the wind in mahua picture for us, of how something so ostensibly
does not bring along life giving rain and sweet fragrances unrelated can actually cause a good deal of damage.
anymore. It's turned as bitter as poison for the farmers and
only kills. Her book taps into our conscience and makes one
thing absolutely clear, it starts with us and it will end
with us too. Rather, it will be our end if anything at all.

|7| Issue Eight| LegumVox |

 DOCUMENTARY
REVIEW LEGUM ELIXIR

A LIFE ON OUR
PLANET
- Directed By David Attenborough

This documentary is a reflection of our actions and how we have damaged the
biodiversity of the planet, knowingly and unknowingly. In the first half of the
documentary, you will witness the demolition of nature by humans and the
deplorable conditions it is in right now.

It also depicts how we have broken loose owing to the elimination of our predators
and as there is nobody bigger to pull our reignwe have to stop ourselves from
indulging in this irreversible destruction. It brings into focus Chernobyl and how the
event changed numerous lives. As it progresses it takes us on a journey through time
with instances of our neglect and lack of care for the world we live in.

It wonderfully portrays how trivial everyday actions contribute to Global warming

INTERESTING
and what a huge threat it us for life on earth. Quoting David, " A sixth mass extinction
is on its way" and we are only facilitating it if anything. The best part about this
FACTS!
documentary is that David not only points out the issues but also offers solutions to In France, shooting migratory
birds is illegal.
them. The second half gives you Hope, the only thing we are riding on.
Species staring at the abyss of
extinction are protected, right?
However, we fail to realise that this hope needs to be paired with positive action and a But in the states of Idaho and
Montana, the gray wolves -- an
conscious everyday behaviour. It puts forth the exemplary solutions adopted by Japan
endangered species -- can be
and Netherlands and how we must find our own versions of the same if we wish to gunned down if they dare to stray
outside of official wilderness areas.
retain life on earth for the coming generations.
Biodiversity is important, right?
But in Canada, native fish
species that don't have

VOX COMIX!! economic or recreational value

don't get any legal protection
from serious harm.

|8| Issue Eight| LegumVox |

CONTRIBUTORS OF MEET OUR
THE WEEK
TEAM!!

Quintessential : Nisha Dharod

Legum Mantra : Deeksha Agrawal
Law Jagran : Anshika Gubrele & Sakshi Arya
Legal Updates : Shivalika & Deeksha
Legum Elixir : Aman Mishra & Ashwini Patil
Fun Facts : Shivalika Verma
Vox Comix : Deeksha Agrawal
Designer : Antima Tiwari
Asst. Editor : Mukti Heliwal
Editor : Ashwini Patil

ASHWINI PATIL NISHA DHAROD SHIVALIKA VERMA SAKSHI ARYA DEEKSHA AGRAWAL

MUKTI HELIWAL ANSHIKA GUBRELE ANTIMA TIWARI AMAN MISHRA

(Co-founder LegumVox)
NEW AT UPCOMING

LV!! EVENTS

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|10| Issue Eight| LegumVox |