-The Hindu Environment Appraisal Committee which flagged concerns over project has now ‘recommended’ it ‘for grant of terms of reference’ for EIA studies The Environment Appraisal Committee (EAC) - Infrastructure I of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has flagged serious concerns about NITI Aayog’s ambitious project for Great Nicobar Island (‘NITI Aayog vision for Great Nicobar ignores tribal, ecological concerns’, The Hindu, March 21, 2021). The committee has,...

-India.Mongabay.com * In its latest decision, the Indian government’s ministry of environment has come out with an order to help a certain category of mining projects avoid public hearing while seeking environment clearance. * This decision is mainly for projects which were granted environment clearance under environmental impact assessment notification 1994 after a public hearing was conducted. * But experts note that public hearings should be understood as a critical tool for good...

-Article-14.com In 2018, India diluted environmental safeguards when it ‘standardised’ or made simpler permissions for industry by expert panels. Now, as the government pushes the use of dirtier domestic coal by power plants, further dilution is underway, increasing health risks and imperilling the environment New Delhi: Standardised conditions will be “monitorable”. They will bring “uniformity”. They will help in “expediting the process of environmental clearance without compromising environmental norms”. These are claims the ministry of...

-The Indian Express In keeping with her interest in climate change and vegan food habits, Disha Ravi works as a culinary experience manager with GoodMylk, a company involved with making plant-based food accessible and affordable to people. Bengaluru: In an interview last year to US author and professor Gayle Kimball, who is compiling a book on Gen Z girl climate activists, Indian climate activist Disha A Ravi, 22, weighed in on a...

-Down to Earth The EAC recommended that the coal mine be expanded to 1.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) from 1 MTPA through opencast method A central expert appraisal committee (EAC) has okayed the expansion of a Chhattisgarh coal mine, which is in violation of a National Green Tribunal (NGT) order. Gare Palma IV-4 can produce 1.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), up from 1 MTPA, through the open-cast method, recommended the EAC...