While no one would likely shed tears over Smriti Irani's ouster from the human resource development ministry - given that she became known more for courting controversies than for doing her job - giving Prakash Javadekar charge of that ministry is something that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should have done right at the beginning.
However, Javadekar's successor in the Ministry of Environment and Forest and Climate Change might have to answer uncomfortable questions about waiving the Rs 200-crore fine, which was imposed on Adani Port & SEZ Ltd during the second term of the United Progressive Alliance on the recommendation of an expert committee for allegedly causing environmental damage during the construction of Mundra Port.
The Congress has already made an issue out of this and will likely be joined by others in the Opposition. A senior official in the ministry has defended the action of waiving the fine on the ground that there was no legal backing for imposing it. It is claimed that more stringent provisions have been put in place to ensure environmental protection. It's time the government came clean on the issue.
S K Choudhury, Bengaluru
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