Judicial Guardianship Of Natural Resources: A Comparative Study Of The Public Trust Doctrine In India And Beyond
- IJLLR Journal
- Feb 15
- 2 min read
Varshini Smitha, School of Law, Christ University (Deemed to be University)
ABSTRACT
The Public Trust Doctrine (PTD) is a foundational principle of environmental jurisprudence that traces its lineage to Roman and English law and requires the State to act as trustee of natural resources for the benefit of the public and future generations. In India, PTD was formally recognized in M.C. Mehta v. Kamal Nath (1997) and subsequently reinforced in M.I. Builders v. Radhey Shyam Sahu, Intellectuals Forum v. State of Andhra Pradesh, and T.N. Godavarman v. Union of India. These cases tied PTD to constitutional provisions under Articles 21, 48A, and 51A(g), embedding it within the right to life and situating it as a mechanism for intergenerational equity and sustainable development. Despite this doctrinal strength, PTD in India continues to suffer from serious limitations, including the absence of statutory codification, inconsistency in judicial application, weak administrative follow-through, and expansive interpretations of “public purpose” that allow the diversion of forests, wetlands, rivers, and coasts for industrial and commercial projects. This neglect disproportionately impacts marginalized groups such as Adivasis, fisherfolk, pastoralists, and the urban poor, for whom access to commons forms the basis of survival. A comparative analysis reveals that other jurisdictions have integrated PTD more systematically: the United States expanded it to water rights and ecological services through state-level innovation; South Africa entrenched it in its Constitution and statutes; the Philippines linked it with the constitutional right to a balanced ecology; and Ecuador gave it a radical form by granting rights to nature itself. These examples highlight the potential pathways India could adopt to transform PTD from a judge-made principle into a robust governance framework. The study argues that codification, integration into policy and planning, and participatory inclusion of local communities are essential for PTD to realize its transformative promise as a tool of inclusive and sustainable environmental governance.
Keywords: Public Trust, Article 21, Sustainable Development; Intergenerational Equity, Judicial Environmentalism.
