“The scanning centres and hospitals in the city are generating a lot of radioactive waste and sorting out of such issues remains a serious challenge,” he said.

Dr K Karthikeyan was speaking at the inauguration of ‘Pro-bono enviro’, the seventh national moot court competition of the Tamil Nadu Dr Ambedkar University, here on Friday. Turning his attention to high emission levels, he rued that sulphur di-oxide levels in Indian cities were higher than that of developed countries. He attributed it to problems in phasing out old vehicles.

“An evolved legal framework can make an immensely positive contribution,” he said, adding that such events helped in cultivating the mind set among young law graduates.

Striking a chord with Karthikeyan, Justice R Mala, Madras High Court Judge, said environment was a public resource that needed protection. Referring to the exploitation of environment, she articulated various legislations that had been conceived for its protection and sustenance. She lauded the event’s focus on issues pertinent to environment such as climate change, over-population and sea pollution.