Environmentalists urge Modi to reform green clearance processes

CSE has also called for immediately strengthening pollution control boards and raised the issue of cleaning Ganga

Strongly pitching for "drastic" reforms in green clearance processes, an environmental think tank today urged the Modi government to set up an independent body for such approvals and a task force so that enforcement and penalties for non-compliance can be strengthened.

The Centre for Science and Environment which released its "Environment and Development Agenda" addressed to the new government also prescribed implementation of Forests Rights Act (FRA) in letter and spirit and its inclusion in government's key development agenda.

It has also called for immediately strengthening pollution control boards and raised the issue of cleaning Ganga saying, "reinventing the strategy for river pollution control is the agenda, not cleaning rivers in the business as usual mode".

"The new government must reform and strengthen the environment management systems and green clearance processes to safeguard people's concerns," said Chandra Bhushan, CSE deputy director general.

He urged the government to consolidate all green clearances - environment, forests, coastal and wildlife -- so that decisions can be taken understanding the overall impact of projects apart from calling for setting up an independent body for granting green clearances instead of several regulators.

CSE has also urged the government to strengthen the process of public hearings and public participation in green clearances and make it more transparent and accountable while it has called for setting up of a urgent task force so that enforcement and penalties for environmental non-compliance can be vastly strengthened.

"The new government must implement FRA in letter and spirit and include it in its key development agenda," CSE said.

The green body also asked the Modi government to implement the next phase of FRA focusing on community forest rights and forest regeneration with people and urged the centre to introduce minimum support price for all minor forest produce and to bring livelihood benefits of forests to people.

"On the eve of this World Environment Day, we are presenting our agenda for urgent action that we hope the new government will take on.

"We need to move beyond the rhetoric of environmental protection to implementing a tough action plan for change and this is what we want the government to do," said Sunita Narain, CSE director general adding that the agenda will give an inclusive and sustainable growth.

The CSE also urged the government to focus on project monitoring and not just project clearance and stressed on building capacity and reform institutions for better implementation of regulations.

Noting that the strategy of river cleaning by building sewage treatment plants was "inadequate", the CSE said that the Ganga revival programme will only work if pollution control is done differently.

In this sector, CSE has urged the government to make ecological flow mandatory in all stretches of a river and ensure treated effluent is reused or discharged directly into rivers for dilution.

The green body has also called for learning that controlling industrial pollution demands effective enforcement of laws and appropriate technologies for small-scale industries and asked for aggressively implementing the national sanitation programme and make it a top governmental priority.

"Make it clear that toilets are more important than temples," said CSE.

Noting that India was sitting on a "ticking time bomb" and 13 out of the 20 worst polluted cities across the world are in India as per the recent WHO study, CSE has called for implementation of a favourable taxation policy for promoting clean fuels like CNG and introduction of a tax on diesel vehicles in the 2014 budget.