What is going on in 2020? Everyone including me would come up with a unique answer coronavirus.
But after reading this article, you will have another answer to the above asked question.
As an Indian citizen, we should know about this. Especially for, "Will EIA 2020 be the Reason for Future Disasters?".
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| EIA 2020 |
Make in India:
Most of us know that many countries are reverting out of China and started investing in India. In the previous week, Google and Facebook invested in India.
The Government of Tamil Nadu also signed MOU with 16 industries and attracts Rs. 5,137 crores on the previous day. The Government is making India march from developing nations to a developed nation. But the government has made some relaxation to attract the industries.
What is Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) 2020?
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a precautionary measure developed to ensure that a country's ecological resources are not compromised by industrial development projects such as mining, industry, and dams.
let me explain this with a small example: Methane extraction project
In Tamil Nadu, the central government had planned to install the project on 1.75 lakh acres of agricultural land in Thiruvarur and Thanjavur districts.
But, farmers feared that the project would drain groundwater from agricultural lands and affect other areas.
The Central Government has announced that the methane extraction project in the delta districts of Tamil Nadu has been canceled due to protests by farmers.
When EIA started?
This precautionary measure has been in place in India since 1994. Currently, the ‘Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) 2006’ is in place. In this context, the Central Government on March 12, 2020, released a new draft with changes.
What is the problem with EIA 2020?
The Environmental impact assessment (EIA) is to prevent disasters in the future. The law includes various means such as public opinion, expert report, and the study. But, the current draft abandons ecological protection and prioritizes investment, which is the foremost review of ecologists on this draft.
This draft is to make industries following certain rules before starting the industry. This includes asking public consultation before starting the industry. It has also made it easier for factories to get permits.
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| Indian people vs EIA 2020 |
Disadvantages of EIA 2020:
The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) 2006 draft sets up two committees. These committees will approve of the industry. It gave the power to two bodies - the State and the Central Committees to issue permits to start an industry.
But, under the current draft, two points of environmental permits will no longer be issued.
- One is to set up an expert panel and issue ecological approvals after conducting studies on the specific project.
- The second is to permit without any expert panel review.
The primary prosecution of ecological activists is that it is in no way conducive to public welfare or conducive to ecological conservation.
- According to the 2006 Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), every company has to submit a report on its activities once every six months.
- But the new draft EIA 2020 says that every company has to submit a report on its activities once in a year.
- According to the 2006 Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), the public has a say in whether the starting of the industry will affect their agricultural land or if it has any side effects related to the environment for 30 days. Now in this new EIA 2020 draft, the period for public opinion is only 20 days.
- The real difficulty is that the report will be only in English and has more than 1000 pages. The farmer or illiterate citizen of India can't able to read it.
They also fear that this lengthy opportunity will be enough to cover up the ecological and social implications of the project.
Projects which don't need public opinions:
This draft says that some of the below said projects don't need public opinions
- Massive building and construction projects
- Railway projects
- Defense-related projects
On the approval of the EIA 2020 draft is approved, many projects would function at ease and the people can't able to oppose it.
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| Indian Govt - EIA 2020 |
Perks to Corporate
Dry grasslands will be accounted for as barren lands by this new bill and will be opened up to the corporate industry.
Environmental Impact Assessment(EIA) 2020 is opposed by ecologists because of its anti-environmental features. The extension of the deadline for public comment on this draft is August 11.
Where to say our suggestions on EIA 2020?
We can write our suggestions for
the secretary,
MoEFCC,
Indira Paryavaran Bhawan,
Jor Bagh Road, Aliganj,
New Delhi 110003.
we can post an email toeia2020-moefcc@gov.in.
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| EIA 2020 |
2 Comments
Ban EIA
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