Learning Outcome: After completion of this lesson students will - a) be informed about the Department of Environment and its basic mandate b) learn about the powers and functions of the Director General of the DoE c) gather practical knowledge about the functioning of the DoE through case law

1. Environmental Rule of Law:
The Role of Environmental
Institutions
Preeti Kana Sikder
Assistant Professor
Department of Law & Justice
Jahangirnagar University

4. Abu Jafar Md. Nurul Islam v
Director General, DoE, BD & ors.

5. What is a Rule Nisi?
Generally, a rule nisi is an order “to
show cause” , meaning that the ruling
is absolute unless the party to whom it
applies can show cause why it should
not apply.

6. Bangladesh Environment
Conservation Act

7. The flagship legislation: initial stage
• First legislation relating to environment
pollution was the Environment Pollution
Control Ordinance, 1977
• Based on the Environment Policy 1992
and National Environmental Management
Action Plan (NEMAP) of 1995, the BECA
was enacted

8. About the Act
• In pursuance of the principles settled in the
RIO summit of 1992, the Government of
Bangladesh promulgated the BECA, 1995.
• BECA came into force repealing the earlier
Environmental Pollution Control Ordinance of
1977.
• To make this Act truly successful, amendments
were made in 2000, 2002 and lastly in 2010.

9. Exclusive factors of the Act
• Creation of a dedicated institution
• Enabling powers of the Director General
• Environmental Clearance Certificate
• Declaration of Ecologically Critical Areas
(ECAs)
• Restrictions on articles and activities
injurious to Environment
• Imposing penalties

10. Creation of a Dedicated
Environmental Institution

11. Creation of Department of Environment
The expressed concern on the continued global
environmental degradation and consequent
resolution of the Stockholm Declaration for
undertaking effective steps at the government
level toward prevention and alleviation of such
phenomena was the impetus.

12. Creation of Department of Environment
• Firstly, the Govt. of BD took up a project with a
manpower of 27 under the aegis of the
Department of Public Health Engineering
aiming at water pollution control with the
promulgation of Water Pollution Control
Ordinance, 1973.
• A 16 member Environment Pollution Control
Board was set up.

13. Creation of Department of Environment
• Department of Environment Pollution Control,
1985 under Environmental Pollution Control
project.
• In 1989, the existing department was
restructured and renomenclatured as the
Department of Environment and formalised
under BECA.

16. Dr. A.K.M. Rafique
Ahammed
Director General, DoE

17. Sections 4, 4A, 7, 8, 10, 11, 15A, 17, 18

18. The Director General
• The DG has specific functions and is
entitled to vast power for issuing
directions relating to closure, prohibition
or regulation of any industry, undertaking
or processes. (S.4)

19. The Director General
• The DG is required to send a prior notice to the
owners of the concerned industries before
issuing directions of closure or prohibition. (S.4,
sub 3)
• He is nevertheless empowered to issue
immediate directions when urgent action is
necessary. (S.4, sub 3 proviso)
• Concerned owners have the right to appeal
(S.14) and the procedures are laid down in Rules
9, 10 and 11

20. The Director General
• The law enforcing agencies along with
any other Government or statutory
authorities are bound to render
assistance to the DG for this
aforementioned purpose. (S.4A)

21. The Director General
• He has the power to enter and authorize any
person enter to into any factory, premises or
other place and thereby to collect samples of air,
water, soil or other substance for analysis or
inspection. (S. 10 & 11)
• Report of a sample collector and the report of a
laboratory which has analysed such sample can
be admissible as evidence in concerned
proceedings.

22. The Director General
• An officer intending to collect such sample has
to send a formal notice (Form 2) to the occupier
of the concerned place in accordance with Rule 6
of BECR, 1997.
• Upon application of any one the Department
shall supply analysis report of the samples of
water, liquid waste, air and sound and the data
derived from such analysis after payment of
prescribed fees. (Rule 15, Schedule 14)

23. Discussion Topics
• Rule making power under BECA (Sec 20)
• Mobile Court Mechanism in Environmental
Matters
• Exploring the remedy providing mechanism
under BECA:
▫ Sec 19
▫ Sec 7, 8 (Rule 5, Form 1)
▫ Sec 15A
▫ Sec 17
▫ Sec 18

24. Mobile Court Mechanism
• Under Sec 6 of the Mobile Court Act, 2009 all
offences enshrined under the Schedule of the Act
declared as ‘offences’ which can be brought
under the Mobile Court.
• Schedule of the Mobile Court includes offences
enshrined under Sec 15 of the Bangladesh
Environment Conservation Act to be punishable
offences under the Mobile Court Act, 2009

25. Sections 7, 8 of BECA + Rule 5
of BECR + Section 15A + Form 1

26. The Director General
• Any person can apply to the DG through
application for remedy (Form 1) provided in
BECR. (S.8)
• Such application has to be disposed within three
months of receipt. (R.5)
• In order to dispose the application the DG may
hold a public hearing and take other measures.

27. Mechanism for Providing Remedy for
Injury to Ecosystem
• If a person suffers or is likely to suffer any damage resulting from
environmental pollution he can file an application in the prescribed
form to DG for remedying the damage.
• The DG has to dispose of the matter within 3 months through public
hearing.
• The DG after making proper assessment of the environmental
damage caused by various activities, may direct the concerned
organisation to take corrective measure and ensure that such
organisation comply with such directive.
• The DG enjoys enormous power to impose compensation upon the
person found responsible for causing damage to the environment,
and also to take corrective measures.

28. Thank You