Earlier this year in March, the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change of India (MoEFCC) released the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification 2020 replacing the previous one. Since then, there has been continuous controversies and reactions to the draft. According to a report, the Union environment ministry has received nearly 1.8 million objections and suggestions on the draft.
What is EIA 2020?
EIA is a process that examines and predicts the impacts of a project on the environment as what is good for the economy may not be good for the environment. Hence, various alternatives are compared and a decision is made after a detailed processing. Before making the final approval, views and opinions from public are also taken into consideration.
History
The first Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) notification in India was issued in 1994, under the Environment (Protection) Act (EPA) of 1986. Later, it was replaced by a modified draft in 2006.
Controversy
The new draft has been triggering controversies due to certain modifications which are speculated to have serious impacts on the environment. The points that are raising the heat are as follows.
- Projects can now get clearance Post-facto. This means that even if the project is violating the Environment Protection Act (EPA), it can now apply for clearance.
- 40 different projects have been exempted from prior Environment Clearance (EP) and prior Environment Permission or Provision (EP).
- A wide range of projects have been exempted from public consultations.
- Citizens cannot report any violation. It can be only reported by a government representative or project proponent.
- The notice period for the public hearing has been reduced from 30 days to 20 days.
