Skip to main content

No green clearance to Dholera SIR?: Gujarat govt says it doesn't have intimation of environmental nod

Proposed Dholera airport for the smart city
By Our Representative
Latest information provided by a top Gujarat government agency suggests that the Dholera Special Investment Region (DSIR), being planned on around 920 sq km area south of Ahmedabad at one of the 100 modern smart cities the Narendra Modi government wants to develop all over the country, may not have received the crucial green nod for its development. In reply to a right to information (RTI) plea to provide a letter of the copy of environmental clearance to the top state-sponsored project, the DSIR Authority, a special purpose vehicle formed to trigger the project, has said it is “not available and hence cannot be provide”.
The reply by the top state agency comes several weeks after of a report which said that while the project has been “recommended for environmental clearance by the expert appraisal committee of the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF)”, it has not received coastal regulatory zone (CRZ). The RTI application was filed by a powerful farmers’ organization which has cropped up to protest against a dozen-odd SIRs proposed across Gujarat, Jameen Adhikar Andolan Gujarat (JAAG), in alliance with Bhal Bachao Samiti, a local people’s organization of the Dholera region.
Based on the reply it received, JAAG has wondered why the Government of India has not cared for forwarding the intimation letter for environmental clearance to the state government agency. “Is this another instance of an assault on the decentralized system of governance and the federal nature of the polity? Is this good governance?”, it has JAAG asked in a statement, adding, the DSIR Authority has answered almost in the vein to other three questions which it had asked in the RTI letter.
The questions to which JAAG was told the authority did not have any intimation include were – whether environmental clearance was advertised in any newspaper, and if so, provide a copy of the same; action taken on the objections raised against the project at the environmental public hearing held in Dholera; and copy of letters written to panchayati raj institutions (village, taluka and district panchyats) intimating them of the clearance.
Proposed high-speed rail link for the Dholera smart city
To the question whether the process of getting requisite clearances from coastal regulatory zone (CRZ) and wildlife board had at all been undertaken, with a request to provide copies of letters, studies etc. if the process had begun, the DSIR Authority evasively replied, “The sought information is too voluminous to be provided, but may be perused in the DSIR Authority premises during office hours”.
The DSIR was notified in 2009 as a SIR under the Gujarat Special Investment Region Act. It was the first SIR which was proposed to be developed with the declared objective of providing establishment, operation, regulation and management of large-size investment regions and industrial areas in Gujarat. It was also meant to especially enable their development as global hubs of economic activity, supported by world class infrastructure, premium civic amenities, centers of excellence and proactive policy framework.
Agricultural activities in 22 villages are likely to be adversely affected because of the DSIR, which is part of the 1,483 km long Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) between Delhi and Mumbai. About 40 per cent of the DFC passes through Gujarat. A recent meeting of the expert appraisal committee (EAC) of the MoEF decided to recommend the proposed DSIR for environmental clearance. At the same time, the committee laid down 69 “strict conditions” to follow while implementing the project, a report said.

Comments

TRENDING

Importance of Bangladesh for India amidst 'growing might' of China in South Asia

By Samara Ashrat*  The basic key factor behind the geopolitical importance of Bangladesh is its geographical location. The country shares land borders with Myanmar and India. Due to its geographical position, Bangladesh is a natural link between South Asia and Southeast Asia.  The country is also a vital geopolitical ally to India, in that it has the potential to facilitate greater integration between Northeast India and Mainland India. Not only that, due to its open access to the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh has become significant to both China and the US.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Regional political dynamics 'leading to' institutional violence in SAARC University

By Sandeep Pandey*  South Asian University is a university set up in Delhi by member countries of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation – India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Maldives – which is open to students from all these countries. However, as SAARC is receiving little attention these days because of regional political dynamics, it appears as if SAU has lost significance too. Because of the hiatus in peace process between India and Pakistan, the Board of Governors of this University is dysfunctional.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

'BBC film shows only tip of iceberg': Sanjiv Bhatt's daughter speaks at top US press club

By Our Representative   The United States' premier journalists' organisation, the National Press Club (NPC), has come down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for recent "attacks on journalists in India." Speaking at the screening of an episode of the BBC documentary “India: The Modi Question,” banned in India, in the club premises, NPC President Eileen O’Reilly said, “Since Modi came to power we have watched with frustration and disappointment as his regime has suppressed the rights of its citizens to a free and independent news media."

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah*   The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Natural farming: Hamirpur leads the way to 'huge improvement' in nutrition, livelihood

By Bharat Dogra*  Santosh is a dedicated farmer who along with his wife Chunni Devi worked very hard in recent months to convert a small patch of unproductive land into a lush green, multi-layer vegetable garden. This has ensured year-round supply of organically grown vegetables to his family as well as fetched several thousand rupees in cash sales.

Over-stressed? As Naveen Patnaik turns frail, Odisha 'moves closer' to leadership crisis

By Sudhansu R Das  Not a single leader in Odisha is visible in the horizon who can replace Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. He has ruled Odisha for nearly two and half decades. His father, Biju Patnaik, had built Odisha; he was a daring pilot who saved the life of Indonesia’s Prime Minister Sjahrir and President Sukarno when the Dutch army blocked their exit.

Anti-Valentine's Day push: Sectarian move to 'restrict, constrict' India's cultural milieu

By Ram Puniyani*  Indian culture is diverse and plural. It has been enriching itself by accepting the diversity irrespective of religion or geographical boundaries. This gets reflected in all aspects of our life, be it food habits, clothes, art, architecture, social occasions, customs and religious traditions. This is the natural grain of any open and thriving society. With the rise of sectarianism the effort is to restrict and constrict our culture in particular. 

Hillary Clinton, Al Gore, Ban Ki-moon, others ask Bangladesh PM to 'protect' Yunus

Counterview Desk  A campaign has been launched to support Bangladesh-based economist, micro-finance guru and Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, seeking signatures from citizens across the globe in order to “protect” his work, life and safety.