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ASSIGNMENT 4 POST-GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW AND POLICY

(PGDELP) October 2015-2016

Dear Participant, Assignments are a part of your continuous evaluation process. The main purpose of assignment is to test your comprehension of the study material received from us and also to help you understand the course aspects. Participants must submit a total of five assignments, one for each theory Course. Submission of Assignment: Click on the link/copy-paste the link in address bar- http://www.wwfindia.org/about_wwf/enablers/cel/submit_document.cfm Fill in all the required particulars i.e. name, email address, enrollment number, course name and document name (as provided in drop down options). Upon completion of all required fields, you will be prompted to upload the document/your submission, only after you finish uploading the document you have to click on 'submit'. Please note that the message indicating that your submission was 'successful' is an acknowledgement of receipt of your submission. No email will be sent as an acknowledgement for your submission. Each course shall have one assignment and will carry 40% weightage while 60% weightage is given to the term-end examinations. The assignment has to be submitted within a certain time span (see time-line for details of submission dates). It is very important to submit the assignments as per indicated dates, as late submission would lead to negative marking. Your answers should be within the approximate range of the word-limit set for each question. You will find that the questions in the assignments are analytical and descriptive so that you can better understand and comprehend the concepts. All the best.

Programme Coordinators WWF-India

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ASSIGNMENT 4 COURSE 4– NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW AND POLICY

Submit before 17 May ‘16

Total Marks: 40 Answer all questions in 1000 words each. Each question carries 10 marks. (4 x 10 = 40) Q.1 “The flurry of announcements is reminiscent of events in Delhi two decades ago. In response to a large public campaign, polluting industries were relocated outside the city boundary, old diesel buses were retired, and all public transport vehicles (taxis, autorickshaws and buses) were converted to compressed natural gas. As a result of those measures, reductions in PM concentrations were observed, although those gains have since been lost. The common denominator between the measures implemented then and now is the focus on the transport sector.” Give your opinion on how policies to mitigate vehicular air pollution have affected to develop a sustainable transport policy framework – if at all? Q.2 “Mahatma Gandhi had suggested that policies should be made keeping in mind the weakest and the poorest person and asking whether they would help such a person. In this context, the rickshaw is the weakest but the most important mode of public transport on our city streets.” Cycle rickshaws have always remained at the limelight in framing the policies to control the movement of traffic. The use of cycle rickshaws is a non-polluting source of public transport; however, the custodians of law have harassed them from banning from time to time. Comment Q.3 The Forest Rights Act secures individual and common tenure over forest lands and forests. The Act recognizes territorial rights of particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PTGs), rights of pre-agricultural communities, and rights over community conservation initiatives. Since the beginning of implementation in 2008, forest communities have used the provisions under the Act to claim a wide variety of forest rights. What are these rights? Analyse how Forest Rights Act, 2006 has contributed to Conservation. Q.4 International Food Policy Research Institute’s (IFPRI) flagship Report puts into perspective the major food policy issues, developments, and decisions of 2015 and highlights challenges and opportunities for 2016. This year’s report takes a special look at how food systems can best contribute to meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Drawing on rigorous research, IFPRI researchers and other distinguished food policy experts consider a wide range of crucial questions: How can we support the critical contributions of smallholders to food security in a world facing climate change? What are the causes and costs of food loss and waste within food systems, and how can this loss be reduced? Provide your views on both the questions.