Delhi High Court Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma inaugurates conference on environment

Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, Satish Chandra Sharma on Saturday inaugurated the 'Conference on Remediation of Environmental Pollution for Protection of Human Rights, held at the Delhi Judicial Academy in New Delhi..The conference was jointly organised by the Delhi Judicial Academy, Delhi State Legal Services Authority, Central Pollution Control Board and Delhi Pollution Control Committee. It was organised in furtherance of the mandate given by the National Human Rights Commission.The inaugural session was attended by judges of the Delhi High Court and heads and representatives of various government departments, judicial officers and legal aid counsels. The conference was also unique as apart from the attendees who participated physically, it also saw participation by representatives of resident welfare associations and industrial associations who had joined the conference virtually..In his address, in the inaugural session of the conference, the Chief Justice emphasised that environmental values and needs have to be an integral part of educational lifestyle, social conduct and community responsibility. He stressed on the responsibility of every individual and the enforcement of this raised consciousness by the community..An e-booklet was also released on the occasion with the aim of creating environmental awareness amongst citizens stressing the need for each and every person to act towards reducing environmental pollution.The conference was preceded by a plantation drive. Chief Justice Sharma applauded the Delhi Judicial Academy for organising the drive. He acknowledged the efforts of all the organisers of the conference to create environmental awareness about the impact of pollution on human rights.It is worth mentioning that the conference resorted to paperless registration through QR codes, using recyclable and biodegradable material and releasing an e-booklet instead of a conventional paper based one to ensure that the conference is conducted in an eco-friendly manner. The reading material for the conference was also disseminated through QR codes..Justice Vibhu Bakhru while addressing the conference stated that the first step to finding a meaningful solution is to realise the enormity of the problem and realise that it can’t be wished away. He termed the conference as a pathbreaking endeavour as it had stakeholders joining in from various fields. He also lauded the efforts of the organisers in their use of technology to reduce the use of paper in the conference..The conference also comprised of four technical sessions, each focusing on a particular facet of environmental pollution that is air, water, noise and solid waste..Many prominent environmentalists participated and spoke at the conference including Anumita Roychowdhury, the Executive Director of the Centre for Science and Environment.Among the many others who also contributed to the conference are Bharat Parashar, Member Secretary, Delhi State Legal Services Authority, Dr. Aditi Choudhary, Director (Academics) and Officiating Chairperson, Delhi Judicial Academy, Manmohan Sharma, Director (Administration) Delhi Judicial Academy, B Vinod Babu, Director, Central Pollution Control Board and Dr. KS Jayachandran, Member Secretary, Delhi Pollution Control Committee.