-Press release by National Alliance of People’s Movements, dated 30th April, 2020 Even as the country is reeling under the impacts of the lockdown and coping with a pandemic, the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has made a time-bound call for comments on the draft Environmental Impact Assessment Notification (EIA) 2020, published on its website on 12th March, 2020. The National Alliance of People’s Movements condemns this ill-timed...

-Hindustan Times It has also exempted projects with a proposed capacity expansion up to 40% from the requirement of public consultations, with certain riders. In a move that could turn out to be a bonanza for the mining and infrastructure sectors, the environment ministry is considering a number of relaxations in the environment impact assessment (EIA) process that is carried out for development projects, including mining, before they are given the go-ahead. In...

-Livemint.com * The then TDP government had invited tenders for infrastructure development even before the World Bank loan details were finalized, said an official with the state government, requesting anonymity * According to the official, the team found numerous irregularities Hyderabad: Days after the World Bank (WB) announced backing out of Amaravati capital city project, by withdrawing its $300 million funding, officials from the Andhra Pradesh government said rampant corruption besides flouting of...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to shut down polluting industries in “critically polluted” and “severely polluted” areas across the country within three months, saying that economic development cannot take place at the cost of public health. The directions, put up on the NGT website on Tuesday, were issued on July 10 on the basis of a study carried...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Central Pollution Control Board has sent a showcause notice to National Highways Authority of India for flouting construction and demolition waste management rules at two sites — Delhi-Meerut Expressway, UP Gate to Dasna, Ghaziabad, and around the Ghazipur landfill. NHAI has been asked to explain “why the project activities, including all civil works and construction and demolition activities, should not be stopped at (the) above site”...