Skip to main content

Environmental clearance?: Rely on corporate houses' "utmost good faith", Government of India told

By Our Representative
In an important move, the high-powered committee, headed by former cabinet secretary TSR Subramanian, appointed by the Government of India in order to “review” current environmental laws, has sought to recommend that only those protected areas and forests which have more than 70 per cent canopy would not be disturbed for setting up a project. Taking strong exception to this, environmental activists in a note under circulation says, this is “a problem”, as it means the committee has “excluded wildlife corridors, non-forest habitat types of conservation significance, wetlands, coastal areas and buffer zones.”
Prepared by Indian Community Activists Network (ICAN), the discussion note says, “While it is important to define forest, it is equally important to recognize the value of non-forest natural vegetation and habitats including desert, high mountains and what are otherwise considered wastelands. Our obsession with forests and equating tall forest and high canopy forests as the best wildlife habitat is flawed. This was a good opportunity to highlight the importance and need for conserving all natural habitats.”
The committee, whose executive summary is now available on the net, interestingly, seeks to rely heavily on the corporate sector by introducing the concept of “utmost good faith” while providing environmental clearance to those seeking to set up projects in the environmentally sensitive areas. This, it said, would be done through a “new legislation, to ensure that the applicant for clearance is responsible legally for his statements, but would be severely penalized, as prescribed, for any deliberate falsehood, misrepresentation or suppression of facts.”
This, according to the committee, “would throw the responsibility primarily on the project proponent”, even as significantly reducing “Inspector Raj.” While no suggestions have been offered on what type of strict steps would be taken against the defaulting project proponents, the committee does not stop here. It wants “delinking the project proponent from conservation area obligations after it fulfills the necessary financial commitments.”
The environmentalists' note says, “Delinking of the project proponent from compensatory afforestation once the financial obligations are met is not a good idea. It should be the responsibility of the project proponent to identify and locate the required land and also ensure that it gets afforested, and this should be strongly linked to the validity of the forest and other clearances that are granted to him.”
The committee seeks to recommend a “new project clearance mechanism, based on the single window concept” to “significantly reduce the processing time” with the help of geographical information systems (GIS) reference maps, combined with use of multilayer data captured through satellite imagery.” It says, this would be done for “speedy process of project clearance applications using available technology.”
The new mechanism, according to the committee, would be, apparently, be a recommendatory body – it calls it an “expert body” – National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) at the Centre, and State Environmental Management Authority (SEMA) in states. They would “evaluate” project clearance, using “technology and expertise, in a time-bound manner, providing for single window clearance.” The committee wants the existing Central Pollution Control Board and corresponding State agencies to be “subsumed respectively in NEMA and SEMA.”
At the same time, the committee recommends “fast track” procedure for “linear projects” which provide benefit to community at large, as also for, interestingly, power and mining projects and projects which are identified as are of “national importance.” The environmentalists' note comments, “Improvements in monitoring systems, especially with the use of technology”, does not clarify “if this is for post-clearance monitoring of projects to ensure that they are complying with the conditions that were placed while granting the required approvals.”
The note underlines, “This lack of post-approval monitoring over the life of all projects is currently a major weakness and this should have been emphasized.” Even as welcoming steps like “codifying and unifying laws” if it is aimed to “eliminate contradictions, promote transparency, accountability and efficiency in terms of enabling better protection of the environment and more democratic decision making”, the note objects to base “an approval system on utmost good faith of the corporates/developers”, calling it “being very naïve.”
The note also objects to “compensatory afforestation” mechanism, saying it can be best done it is “undertaken in non-forest land”. It says, “Opening up forest land for compensatory afforestation is not a good idea. Ecological restoration should be carried out in forest land and this involves much more than planting trees.” Other objections relate to what the note calls, “apparent attempt to make it easier for entry of pilgrims into protected areas.”

Comments

TRENDING

How community leaders overcome obstacles to protect forests and pastures in remote villages

By Bharat Dogra  Dheera Ram Kapaya grew up in such poverty that, unable to attend school himself, he would carry another boy’s heavy school bag for five kilometers just to get a scoop of daliya (porridge). When he was finally able to attend school, he had to leave after class five to join other adolescent workers. However, as soon as opportunities arose, he involved himself in community efforts—promoting forest protection, adult literacy, and other constructive initiatives. His hidden talent for writing emerged during this time, and he became known for the songs and street play scripts he created to promote forest conservation, discourage child marriages, and support other social reforms.

Workers' groups condemn Gujarat Ordinance increasing working hours, warn of statewide agitation

By A Representative   At a consultation organised today by the Asangathit Shramik Hit Rakshak Manch at Circuit House in Ahmedabad, leaders of major trade unions and labour rights organisations strongly opposed the Gujarat government’s recent ordinance amending the Factories Act and the draft rules notified under the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Code, 2020. Around 50 representatives from central trade unions, independent unions, and labour welfare organisations participated in the meeting.

Deaths in Chhattisgarh are not just numbers – they mark a deeper democratic crisis

By Sunil Kumar  For a while, I had withdrawn into a quieter life, seeking solace in nature. But the rising tide of state-sponsored violence and recurring conflict across India has compelled deeper reflection. The recent incidents of killings in central India—particularly in Chhattisgarh—are not isolated acts. They point to a larger and ongoing crisis that concerns the health of democracy and the treatment of marginalised communities.

'Bengali Muslim migrant workers face crackdown in Gurgaon': Academic raises alarm

By A Representative   Political analyst and retired Delhi University professor Shamsul Islam has raised serious concerns over the ongoing targeting and detention of Muslim migrant workers from West Bengal in Gurgaon, Haryana. In a public statement, Islam described the situation as "brutal repression" and accused law enforcement agencies of detaining migrants arbitrarily under the pretext of verifying their citizenship.

Gender violence defies stringent laws: The need for robust social capital

By Dr. Manoj Kumar Mishra*  The tragic death of Miss Soumyashree Bisi, a 20-year-old student from Fakir Mohan College, Balasore, who reportedly self-immolated due to harassment, shocked the conscience of Odisha. Even before the public could process this horrifying event, another harrowing case emerged—a 15-year-old girl from Balanga, Puri, was allegedly set ablaze by miscreants. These incidents are not isolated; they highlight a disturbing pattern of rising gender-based violence across the state and the country.

The GMO illusion: Three decades of hype, harm, and false hope

By Sridhar Radhakrishnan  Three decades of hype, billions of dollars spent, and still no miracle crop. It's time to abandon the GMO biotech fairy tale and return to the soil, the seed, and the farmer. “Trust us,” they said. “GMOs will feed the world.” Picture a world where there is plenty of food, no hunger, fields grow without chemical pesticides, children are saved from malnutrition, and people live healthily.

The myth of population decline: India’s real challenge is density, not fertility

By N.S. Venkataraman*   India’s population in 2025 stands at approximately 1.4 billion. In 1950, it was 359 million, rising sharply to 1.05 billion by 2000. The population continues to grow and is projected to reach around 1.7 billion by 2050.

Indigenous Karen activist calls for global solidarity amid continued struggles in Burma

By A Representative   At the International Festival for People’s Rights and Struggles (IFPRS), Naw Paw Pree, an Indigenous Karen activist from the Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG), shared her experiences of oppression, resilience, and hope. Organized with the support of the International Indigenous Peoples Movement for Self-Determination and Liberation (IPMSDL), the event brought together Indigenous and marginalized communities from across the globe, offering a rare safe space for shared learning, solidarity, and expression.

A matter of deep concern: The silent struggles of India's visually impaired women

By N.S. Venkataraman  Visual impairment is one of the most severe forms of physical disability that afflicts humanity, and its impact is even more acute when it affects women. The burden becomes overwhelming when visually impaired women also belong to economically weaker sections of society, with little or no financial or institutional support. Their struggle for dignity, survival, and identity is often invisible—hidden in plain sight across cities and rural corners alike. And yet, these women form a large, neglected segment of society not just in India, but around the world. In India, governmental assistance to visually impaired persons exists but remains minimal. While policies are framed with good intent, they often fall short in implementation. More importantly, no real distinction is made between the unique challenges faced by visually impaired men and women. This gender-blind approach to disability support overlooks the compounded social vulnerabilities that women face due to...