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MoEF yet to get FAC report on Posco project

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Last Updated : Jan 20 2013 | 1:30 AM IST

Certain conditions of environment clearance not fulfilled for Polavaram project, says Jairam

The fate of the Rs 54,000-crore Posco project, India's biggest FDI, continues to hang in balance as the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) is yet to get the report of the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC).

The ministry is expected to take a decision soon on the mega project after getting the FAC's report.

"The MoEF is yet to get the reports of FAC and Expert Appraisal Committee. An integrated and consolidated decision will be taken after we get the reports. I cannot predict the time frame of the decision but it is certainly not going to take months to decide on the issue. The FAC is a statutory body and it has prepared its report independently without the interference of the ministry”, Union minister for environment and forests Jairam Ramesh told reporters in New Delhi.

Meanwhile, according to sources, FAC has finalized its report recommending temporary suspension of the forest clearance granted to the Posco steel project. Its recommendation followed similar demands made by the Saxena committee as well as three members of the Meena Gupta panel.

Both the committees had look into different issues pertaining to violation of forest right act, environment and CRZ (Coastal Regulation Zone) norms in the Posco project site. The FAC met on October 25 to consider their findings.

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The report submitted by the three other members of the Meena Gupta panel- Urmila Pingle, Devendra Pandey and V Suresh had called for immediate revocation of the environmental clearance granted for the steel plant and the captive port project even as the panel leader Meena Gupta in a separate report opined for allowing Posco to go ahead with the project subject to completion of a comprehensive environment impact assessment (EIA) and imposition of certain conditions.

Earlier, on August 5, the MoEF had issued a stop work order to the Orissa government on the Posco project.

Meanwhile, Ramesh has hit out at the Andhra Pradesh government in connection with the controversial Polavaram project.

"Certain conditions of the environmental clearance granted to the Polavaram project have not been fulfilled. We had issued a showcause notice to the Andhra Prasdesh government and they have given us a response. The ministry is now awaiting a detailed response from the Andhra Pradesh government”, he stated.

Ruling out any politics in the Polavaram project, the minister said, “The decision on Polavaram project will be apolitical and the laws of the land will be factored in. Our decision will be regardless of the complexion of the political party in power in the state.”

It may be noted that the Andhra Prasdesh government and the Orissa government had locked horns over the Polavaram project, with the latter demanding quashing of environmental clearance for the project.

Orissa government had filed a petition in the Supreme Court of India on September 4 this year, challenging the decision of the MoEF to give itys nod for the project without conducting public hearings.

The hearing on this project has been deferred by six weeks at the apex court.

The project involved construction of embankments on rivers Saberi and Sileru to avoid land submergence in Orissa and Chhattisgarh.

In its suit, Orissa had sought a declaration that Andhra Pradesh had no right or entitlement to undertake or proceed with the Polavaram project on the Godavari river. It has also stated that embankments were not permanent solutions to effectively contain submergence during floods.

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First Published: Nov 20 2010 | 12:14 AM IST

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