States to respond on environment regulator by month-end: Javadekar

Supreme Court will hear a plea on setting up of a green regulatory authority on November 14

The Centre has asked all states to send their response on setting up an environment regulator by the end of this month.

“We are in the process of consultation with the states. They will send their replies by the month-end,” Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said here on Friday.

The Supreme Court is to hear a plea on setting up of a green regulatory authority on November 14.

The government had formed an inter-ministerial panel in September to look into the feasibility of setting up a national green regulator. The members of the panel are Javadekar, Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister Ananth Kumar and Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goel. The four-member panel will suggest the structure of the regulator and look into other measures.

The Supreme Court had, on January 6, directed the government to appoint a national regulator under section 3(3) of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, by March 31, 2014. However, Javadekar had sought more time for an “in-depth analysis” into the matter.

The idea of setting up an autonomous body for appraising projects was mooted by the United Progressive Alliance government in 2010.

Later, the apex court suggested the setting up of such a body in a case related to stage-I forest clearance for the mining project of Lafarge Umiam Mining Private Ltd, in an order dated July 6, 2011. The SC had suggested an independent body be set up for appraising projects, enforcing environmental nod conditions and imposing a penalty on polluters.

Javadekar said Goa had submitted its “ground-truthing” report on the Western Ghats to the Union government.