Environmentalists call for scrapping of the EIA draft unveiled in March this year.

Time for public consultation on draft EIA 2020 extended until Aug 11th, as ordered by Delhi HC.

The Environmental Impact Assessment seeks to inform the decision-makers and the public of the environmental consequences of a proposed plan or project. It is meant to identity, analyse and predict the effect on the physical environment as well as the social, cultural and health impacts of a certain action. 

However, since it’s implementation, many have objected to a default bias in this system as the ultimate goal of the EIA is to obtain clearance for a project. 

In the past, several blatantly questionable projects have obtained approval either by falsifying reports, the omission of key information that could alter the project’s fate or by the use consultancies with no specialisation in the concerned field. There is also often a lack of any public hearings for the project, so there is no accountability to those who may be directly displaced or harmed by the undertaking of the project. 

However, the 2020 draft of the EIA holds several, even more detrimental, amendments to the 2006 draft:

It legalises post-facto approvals. This allows for the legitimisation of projects that started or expanded without obtaining prior environmental clearance. This undermines the National Green Tribunal which has ruled against post-facto approval. 

•The draft has also reduced the monitoring for compliance post-clearance of projects.

•Prioritises ease of doing business over the environmental sustainability of a project. In the current climate crisis, this could be a fatal blow to the continued existence of indigenous people and our natural resources.

The 2020 draft claims to expedite the clearance process and increase the efficiency of the EIA—which was often a subject of contention. The time period required for proper assessment and approval proved a deterrent for companies seeking to implement or expand their projects. However, the new draft seems to completely disregard its original, and primary purpose: to ensure the conservation of the environment and minimise the damage inflicted in the pursuit of development and urbanisation.

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Writer: Simran Shaju

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