Govt plans 'green' regulator

The environment ministry is working on an independent professional body which is expected to come up in a year.

The proposed entity, to be called the National Environment Protection Authority, would be modelled on telecom regulator Trai and market regulator Sebi, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said today.

Ramesh said that the ministry was suffering from an unhealthy rate of acceptance of all proposals that seek environment and forest clearance. It is not possible for the ministry to deal with the entire gamut of environment protection issues, especially the monitoring of compliance by various applicants, he added.

The pollution control boards monitor the compliance now but it is too weak, he said, adding that the national environment protection authority empowered by law will be a scientific body to regulate the process of clearance and compliance.

Meanwhile the existing environment impact assessment mechanism is being revamped and the public hearing process is also under scrutiny by the minister who today said that the process has lost all credibility.

Ramesh, who unveiled a new website for environment and forestry clearance today, said that he was unhappy with the quality of environment impact assessment and it was being changed.

The ministry had tied up with the National Quality Council of India to upgrade the quality of EIA, the minister said today.