India's economy has failed to generate enough jobs for its large and expanding young population
Indian Supreme Court overturns Ganges-Jamuna ‘human rights’ case
The Indian Supreme Court has overturned a High Court verdict granting the Ganges and Jamuna rivers the same legal rights as living entities, the BBC reports.
Published : 8 July 2017, 09:52 AM
Updated : 8 July 2017, 09:53 AM
In March, the Uttarakhand state High Court had granted the two rivers the same legal status as human beings.
The move was an attempt to give the rivers, widely revered in India, additional protections against pollution, making such infractions similar to assault or even murder.
The state government, however, appealed the decision with the Supreme Court, arguing it was legally unsustainable.
It pointed out that claims could be brought against the two rivers in cases of flooding or drowning.
On Saturday, the Supreme Court agreed with the state’s objections and overturned the earlier ruling.
Despite the importance of the Ganges and Jamuna rivers to Indian life and culture, the waters are heavily polluted by industrial waste and sewage.
India has laws against pollution but critics say they are inadequate and poorly enforced, the BBC reports.
Two rivers in New Zealand, the Whanganui and the Te Urewara, are the first two natural resources in the world to be granted their own legal identity, with the rights, duties and liabilities of a legal person.
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