Pollute, Pay, and Profit: Post-Facto Penalties and the Crisis of Environmental Governance in India
Pollute, Pay, and Profit: Post-Facto Penalties and the Crisis of Environmental Governance in India Authored by Ecotopians of Alternity (EOA)⤡ under the Once in a Blue Moon Academia (OBMA) Platform ABSTRACT India’s environmental legal framework relies heavily on post-facto penalties—fines, compensation, and retrospective clearances—that fail to deter ecological crimes and often enable corporate violators to commodify the very resources they degrade in the first place. This article critiques the systemic flaws in post-facto approaches through case studies of Piramal Sarvajal (a CSR water purification venture following groundwater pollution in Digwal, Telangana) and Reliance’s Campa Cola revival under Isha Ambani Piramal (a beverage expansion exacerbating water scarcity). Linked by dynastic ties and philanthro-capitalist logic, these ventures illustrate how polluters repackage harm as opportunity, turning natural components like water into “Any Time Money” while eva...