The case for a nature restoration law in India, High-Performance Buildings (HPBs), Lady Justice

(General Studies III – Environment Section -Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment.)

• India faces severe environmental challenges, with 29.7% of its land degraded, as per ISRO’s Desertification and Land Degradation Atlas.
• To address this, a Nature Restoration Law (NRL) similar to the EU’s model, could provide India with a framework for ecosystem restoration.

Key Components of a Nature Restoration Law for India –

1. Restoration Targets: India should aim to restore 20% of degraded land by 2030, similar to the EU’s NRL. This could include forests, wetlands, rivers, and urban green spaces.
2. Wetland Restoration: India could focus on restoring 30% of its degraded wetlands by 2030, such as the Sundarbans and Chilika Lake, which are crucial for biodiversity and carbon sequestration.
3. Sustainable Agriculture: India’s agriculture-dominated landscape could benefit from agroforestry and sustainable practices. Using biodiversity indicators like the butterfly index could help track progress.
4. River Restoration: Restoring rivers like the Ganga and Yamuna would reduce pollution and remove obstructions, ensuring free-flowing waterways.
5. Urban Green Spaces: Cities facing degradation, such as Bengaluru and Delhi, should prioritize urban forests to combat heat islands and improve air quality.

Benefits of a Nature Restoration Law –

1. Economic Impact: Nature restoration could contribute to an estimated $10 trillion in global economic returns annually by 2030. For India, this translates into improved agricultural productivity, enhanced water security, and millions of new jobs, especially in rural areas.
2. Climate Resilience: Restoring ecosystems would strengthen India’s carbon sinks, helping meet its commitments under the Paris Agreement while mitigating climate change impacts.
3. Socio-Economic Development: A law could help India meet SDG Goal 15, promoting the sustainable management of forests and combating desertification.

India’s environmental degradation calls for urgent action. A Nature Restoration Law, modeled after the EU’s NRL, would not only restore ecosystems but also bring socio-economic and climate benefits. Immediate steps are needed to safeguard India’s future

• The Supreme Court reaffirmed that secularism is an integral part of the Basic Structure of the Constitution while hearing petitions by Subramanian Swamy and others challenging the inclusion of the terms “socialist” and “secular” in the Preamble.
• The words were introduced in the Preamble through the 42nd Constitutional Amendment in 1976 during the Emergency.
• The petitioners argued that the inclusion of “socialist” and “secular” in the Preamble in 1976, with retrospective effect (i.e. from 26 November 1949), was improper.
• The court maintained that secularism has always been central to the Constitution, whereas socialism, in the Indian context, means equality of opportunity and fair distribution of wealth.
• The Keshavananda Bharati case (1973) upheld that the Preamble is amendable, provided the Basic Structure remains unchanged.
• The 42^nd Amendment also replaced “unity of the nation” with “unity and integrity of the nation.”

Dig Deeper: Read about the difference between the Indian form of Secularism and the Western idea of Secularism.

• HPBs are designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, energy and water usage, and operational costs.
• They improve occupant well-being along with enhanced property value, lower utility bills, and access to carbon financing.
• Globally, policies like the EU’s ‘Green Deal’ and U.S. programs like Energy Star promote energy-efficient building designs.
• India’s Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) and initiatives such as GRIHA and IGBC aim to reduce energy consumption by up to 30%, with a goal of achieving net-zero status for 30% of new buildings by 2030.
• Carbon financing, green bonds, and climate-focused funds support HPBs by converting carbon savings into financial value.
• Carbon credits and global funding initiatives help developers offset initial costs.

Dig Deeper: Read about CII’s initiative of the Indian Green Building Council to enable a sustainable built environment for all.

• A shadow fleet refers to a group of tanker ships that obscure ownership and origin of cargo to bypass international sanctions.
• These ships frequently change flags, names, and ownership, using complex structures like shell companies and registration under Flags of Convenience (FoC) to avoid regulatory oversight.
• This allows sanctioned countries, such as Russia, to export goods despite restrictions.
• Some Indian firms have been linked to shadow fleets, especially in connection with Russian oil shipments operating from Dubai.
• Flag of Convenience (FoC):
• Ships flying a flag of a country different from their owner’s country, are often used to reduce costs and bypass strict regulations.
• Shipowners benefit from lower taxes, fewer regulations, and easier registration in countries with lenient maritime laws.
• Panama, Liberia, and the Marshall Islands are popular FoC countries, allowing owners to obscure the true ownership and origin of vessels, and complicating enforcement of international laws.

Dig Deeper: Read about the Indian Register of Shipping (IRS).

• The Chief Justice of India recently unveiled a new statue of ‘lady justice’ in the Supreme Court, replacing the previous one.
• The new statue is draped in a saree, without a blindfold, holding scales in one hand and the Indian Constitution in the other, symbolizing a shift towards Indian traditions and an open-eyed approach to justice.
• The modern ‘lady justice’ originated from Justitia, the Roman goddess of justice.
• Traditionally, she holds a sword, scales, and wears a blindfold, symbolizing fairness, balance, and the authority of law.
• The blindfold, added in the Renaissance, represented impartiality.
• The new statue reflects an attempt at decolonization by shedding colonial symbols.
• The saree replaces Western attire, emphasizing Indian traditions, and the open eyes signify that justice in India must ‘see’ everyone equally, considering social diversity and discrimination.
• The Constitution replaces the sword, highlighting the supremacy of constitutional law, while the scales retain the symbol of impartial justice.

Dig Deeper: Compare the Indian Judicial System with the UK and USA in the context of Judicial Independence.

• India and China have reached an agreement on “patrolling arrangements” and resolving the military standoff at the Line of Actual Control (LAC), including friction points at Demchok and Depsang.
• This breakthrough comes ahead of Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the BRICS summit in Kazan.
• At Depsang plains, Chinese troops had blocked Indian patrols, but the recent agreement suggests patrolling will resume.
• The two sides have disengaged from five key friction points, including Galwan and Pangong Tso, since 2020. The latest breakthrough followed Corps Commander-level talks.
• Diplomatic and military discussions led to disengagement along the LAC, restoring the situation to pre-2020 conditions.
• The disengagement is considered complete, though further steps such as troop deduction and demobilization are required for full normalcy at the LAC.
• The timing suggests a potential bilateral meeting between India and China during the BRICS summit
• China has not yet made an official statement on the border agreement.

Dig Deeper: Locate friction points on the India-China border in the Eastern and Western sectors. (Refer to August and September Magazine for more)