STATE’S CONSTITUTIONAL ROLE IN ENFORCING THE RIGHT TO WATER

INTRODUCTION

The Constitution of India which was enacted to safeguard the population of India by providing them basic rights which includes providing them basic necessities. Thus, the State owes a responsibility towards its citizens to provide them basic human necessities. Among many, water is the basic need of humans. At present, Earth has about 1,386 million cubic kilometers of water which sounds good but in reality, it is disturbing because only 3% of freshwater is present in earth ; the data is more shocking that humans are accessible to only a small portion of that 3%. If we look at the data of 2023, the population of India is 143.81 crores and the whole population needs water.

India has a rich history in cultural and religious practices. Since earlier times, water has been regarded as a metaphor for God Varuna. Recently, In the divine event of Mahakumbh at Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh about 66.2 crore people took holy dip in Triveni Sangam believing that it will purify their soul. It shows that the nation has always given respect to water.

BASIC NECESSITY

The expression ‘Basic Necessity’ is not defined in any law or any rulebook. However, basic necessity is included in the broader interpretation of Right to Life under Article 21. The Hon’ble Court of India has interpreted in many cases that denying anyone’s basic necessity like food, water, healthy environment, etc. is violation of Article 21. Some of the cases are given below:-

People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) v Union of India:- The Hon’ble Supreme Court held that the Right to Food is an integral part of Right to Life under Article 21.
Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra vs State:- In this case, the Hon’ble Court held that Right to Health environment falls under the ambit of Article 21.
State of Punjab and Ors vs Mohinder Singh Chawla :- The Hon’ble Supreme Court held that Right to Health is a fundamental right under Article 21.
Virender Gaur v State of Haryana:- In this case, the Hon’ble Court includes Right to Sanitation as part of Right to Life under Article 21.
Consumer Education and Research Center v Union of India:- In this case, the Hon’ble Court broadly interpreted the scope of Article 21 by adding Right to Health and Medical aid.

PROVISIONS OF CONSTITUTION

In India, there is no such expressed right like Right to Water in the constitution but impliedly it forms a part of life. Hence, the Right to Water will be included in the broader aspect of Right to Life under Article 21. Article 21 states that No person shall be deprived of his life or Liberty except according to the procedure established by law. Here, the expression ‘Life’ has been interpreted by the judiciary broadly and it covers food, health, etc. One of the interpretations of Article 21 is inclusion of the Right to Water. The right is not confined to only one provision , there are many other provisions which implicitly covers the concept of Right to Water.

Article 47 of the constitution imposes a duty upon the state to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living and to improve public health. The public health is directly impacted by water so Right to Water is included in this provision.
Article 51A(g) of the constitution provides that it is the duty of citizens of India to protect and improve the natural environment which includes forest, river, lakes, etc and to have compassion for all of them. The term ‘Natural Environment’ contains water.

JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION

The Hon’ble Court of Country has interpreted Right to Life in many cases where it was held that Right to Water is also a part of fundamental right. Let us discuss some cases:-

Bandhua Mukti Morcha v Union of India:- In this case, the Hon’ble Supreme Court held that a healthy environment is a part of fundamental right under ambit of Article 21. In the Environment Protection Act,1986 the definition of environment given in section 2(a) includes water too. Therefore, Right to Healthy Water is part of the fundamental right.
Narmada Bachao Andolan v Union of India :- Through this case, the Hon’ble Court again reaffirmed that Right to water is a fundamental right and the State owes a duty to provide healthy water to the population.
Subhash Kumar v State of Bihar :- The Hon’ble Court held that the Right of enjoyment of a healthy Environment includes enjoyment of healthy water.
P.R Subhash Chandran v Government of Andhra Pradesh:- The Supreme Court held that the state owes a responsibility to provide clean drinking water to its citizens.
M.C Mehta v Kamal Nath:- This case is famously known as Public Trust Doctrine Case. In this case it was held that the environment including air, forest, water, etc is for public use and the State has a duty to protect this and these natural resources cannot be converted into private ownership.

LAWS MADE BY PARLIAMENT

(I) The Environment Protection Act,1986:- This Act is an umbrella legislation covering the whole environment. This Act came with an objective to protect and improve the environment and reduce pollution. It aims at sustainable development. Section 2(a) provides definition of environment which includes everything from which we are surrounded. To practically implement the provisions, the Act also provides a penalty for anyone who acts in contravention of this Act.

(II) Water Prevention and Control of Pollution Act,1974 :- As the name suggests, this Act primarily focuses on prevention of water pollution and improving the standard or quality of water. To practically implement the provisions, the Central and State Pollution Control Board is established to govern all these. There is a provision that no industries can be setup without the permission of the Central Board. This was a great initiative of the Parliament to improve the quality of water by imposing a penalty on industries and anyone who polluted the environment.

(III) Indian Easements Act, 1882

This Act was passed before independence by the Britishers. This Act talks about the rights of Riparian owner and provides them duty under Section 7 of the same Act. Section 7 of the Indian Easements Act,1882 states that every Riparian owner has a right to use the water of the stream without destruction or unreasonable pollution.

NATIONAL POLICY

The Government to actually gave everyone Right to Water implemented various policies. There is a specific separate Ministry of Water known as Ministry of Jal Shakti comprising Ministry of Water Resources and Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.

Jal Jeevan Mission:- It is the target of the government to secure everyone’s Right to Life by ensuring the supply of clean water even in remote areas. This mission came with an aim to provide ‘Har Ghar Jal’.
National Water Policy:- The Water Policy of 2012 came with an aim to address the problem of water scarcity. It provides uses of water and promotes the idea of sustainable use of water.

CONCLUSION

From the above discussion it can be concluded that the government has tried to ensure that no one should be denied the Right to water. But it is also true that the government needs to give more focus on this problem as there are many people who are deprived of this right. There are areas where people cannot get even a single drop of water due to drought and there are areas where people cannot get portable water. This problem needs more concern today and hence the government has to work upon this problem.

REFERENCES

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