Criminalization of Environmental Crimes in Pakistan and India

Environmental crime is a novel concept. Apart from climate change, which poses a threat to the natural world, environmental criminality is becoming a major source of concern. This is important because it affects the entire ecosystem. Environmental crime is seen as a major and developing international issue that poses a challenge to those responsible for addressing it. Green crime refers to state criminality, particularly regarding the State’s duty to safeguard the environment and natural resources, as well as the harm caused when governments fail to meet their obligations. In many countries in the late twentieth century, increased environmental protection was the focus of legislative and regulatory activities. Law is recognized as a legitimate device to solve environmental problems. Despite the seriousness of the harm that environmental crimes represent to the environment and people, governments and law enforcement agencies frequently fail to respond appropriately. Most states delegate major duty for reacting to environmental violations and crime to regulatory bodies. The Constitution of Pakistan and India has given a mandate to the State for preservation of the environment. This chapter provides an insight into the legislation addressing criminalization of air and noise pollution. The purpose of this chapter is to investigate the core reasons for weak enforcement of environmental criminal law in Pakistan and India. This chapter will focus on legal flaws which lead to poor environmental law enforcement addressing air and noise pollution in both nations. For this, a literature review methodology is used. The findings will be summarized in the conclusion.