Govt plans a unified eco clearance portal for infra projects

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has decided to put in place a unified portal, listing the status of all clearances sought by the developer of any infrastructure project, including wildlife and forest consents, and coastal zone regulation. These approvals need to be applied for and considered separately by three independent panels of the MoEFCC. The developers will have to fill one form for all clearances and submit uniform information based on which the environmental impact of the project will be assessed by the panels. Environment ministry secretary, RP Gupta, informed that the approvals shouldn't be a hindrance to any infrastructure or development project and they should be approved quickly or disapproved at the earliest. This is part of the reforms the government is bringing in for ease of doing business. The portal will be up by mid-next year and will be of great benefit to agencies and to project proponents. A policy is also being drafted to ensure the monitoring of projects that are granted clearances. The move follows the guidelines issued by the ministry last month to accelerate the grant of clearances associated with the environmental footprint of any project, attempting to speed up project implementation to counter the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy.