"It is a myth to believe that the government always works for the benefit of the people," Rajinder Singh, from the Alwar-based NGO Tarun Bharat Sangh, said at a workshop on public participation in environmental decision making. The two-day workshop was organised by the Centre for Science and Environment, in collaboration with the Washington-based Environmental Law Institute.

Several villages in Rajasthan no longer depend on the government for their water supply, thanks to pioneering work done by the Tarun Bharat Sangh in promoting rainwater harvesting systems created and managed by people. The only contribution government’s can make to these community-based efforts, said Singh, is "not to interfere". He cited examples where the government had reappeared to reap the benefits once people had revived rivers and forests through their efforts, quoting laws which gave them (the government) rights over the resources – water, fishes or forests. Indian law places the government as caretaker of these resources, usually taking away the right of people to manage them sustainably in the process.

The workshop addressed four areas – people’s access to justice, their right to information and to natural resources such as forests and water, and the role of civil society in promoting public participation. CSE director Anil Agarwal emphasised the need for civil society, including the lawyers and environmental activists who participated in the two-day workshop, to build their capacity to deal with technical and legal information, and their ability to share the information with the public.

Addressing means of increasing public participation in the environmental law-making process, Chennai-based advocate Sriram Panchu suggested that all forms of decision-making and standard setting should be preceded by public hearings. Participants called for a system of evaluation of precedent-setting judgements. Retired Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India, J S Verma, chair of the inaugural session on access to justice, said that one way of reducing the sensitivity of judges to such evaluations is by increasing their frequency. "Regular exposure to criticism will make them less sensitive," he said.

The group of over 40 participants from across India suggested that judges should induce people’s participation in the process of their hearings. Commissions set up to advice the court should not include parties who have a vested interest in the issue. The group emphasised the need for increased public participation in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process. They quoted examples where EIA documents were not made available for the public hearings, which are mandatory for EIAs. The results of such hearings are seldom heeded. Grassroot groups from across the country had resorted to recording the hearings, to produce as proof in cases where the people’s opinion was not taken into account.

For more information contact Anju Sharma and/or Nikhat Jamal Qaiyum at 6981110/1124/3394/6399 fax at 6985879 or send us an e-mail at anju@cseindia.org or nikhat@cseindia.org

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