Saying that he was ?agonised? and ?anguished? by the verdict in the Bhopal gas tragedy case, environment minister Jairam Ramesh said on Tuesday that the National Green Tribunal would be set up by year-end to ensure that victims of such disasters get speedy relief.
?We need to fast-track our efforts for both the National Green Tribunal and the National Environment Protection Authority. This verdict makes clear that we need to put in place these systems quickly,? he said.
Stating that the National Green Tribunal would be a network of dedicated courts for environment issues, he said the first such court would be set up in Bhopal. ?This is deliberate. This is a decision to show sensitivity to the tragedy of Bhopal,? he said.
?These courts will decide on civil matters relating to the environment. And I can assure you, these verdicts won?t take 20 years,? he added.
His comments came a day after a Bhopal court sentenced former Union Carbide India chairman Keshub Mahindra and six others to two years imprisonment each in the gas tragedy case, nearly 26 years after the industrial disaster left thousands dead.
?We are trying to set up a National Environment Protection Authority, which will be something like a watchdog. I want to fast-track this. The Ministry is working towards bringing this to Parliament by August,? said the minister.