GOA FOUNDATION Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) APPLICANT No. 1 is a registered society while the Applicant No. 2 is its principal convenor. They both claim to have participated in the 'Save Western Ghats March' on several occasions and in various aspects. According to them, they are responsible for certain landmark events in the environmental activism. Both these applicants have approached the Tribunal with the following prayers:

(2.) THESE prayers are founded on the premise that the Western Ghats cover States like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Nearly 44 districts fall under the eco -sensitive area of the Western Ghats. The areas of Western Ghats have subjected to a rapid erosion of natural capital with the building up of manmade capital, regrettably imposing excessive accepted unnecessary environmental damage in the process, accompanied by a degradation of social capital as well.

(3.) AS is evident from the prayers made in this application, the Applicants pray that recommendations made in the report submitted by the WGEEP (in formally called Dr. Gadgil's Report) are to be implemented to protect the Western Ghats in furtherance to its constitutional obligations emerging from Article -14 and 21 read with Article -48 and 51(A), (g) of the Constitution of India.