Orissa is likely to keep its demand for conduct of public hearing for the controversial multipurpose Polavaram project at abeyance.
The state Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, who was vocal and unrelenting in his demand for public hearing for the project, seems to have mellowed a bit.
"The Polavaram project is sub-judice and we will wait till the Supreme Court of India gives its verdict on the project”, he told reporters.
The Chief Minister's comments on the Polavaram project comes close on the heels of the statement of the Orissa State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) which had ruled out public hearing for the project as the matter was sub-judice.
"It would not be legally prudent to hold public hearings for the Polavaram project as the matter is sub judice,” Siddhant Das, member secretary, OSPCB had stated recently.
It may be noted that the Orissa government had approached the Supreme Court of India on September 4 this year, challenging the Centre's decision to give final environmental clearance for the project.
Patnaik and his Andhra Pradesh counterpart K Rosaiah were engaged in a war of words over the issue of conducting public hearings for the Polavaram project. The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister had categorically stated that there was no need for conducting public hearings in Orissa and Chhattisgarh, as adequate measures were taken to prevent submergence of villages in the two states.
Reacting to Rosaiah's comments, Patnaik had said, “The Centre needs to take steps to ensure that public hearings are conducted for the Polavaram project. A close watch has to be kept in this connection. Our concern is that the tribal people, particularly in Malkangiri district do not suffer because of the project. They (Andhra Pradesh government) may be taking measures to prevent submergence of villages but public hearings must be conducted.”
The Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) on November 2, had asked the Andhra Pradesh government to specify the reasons for not holding public hearings for the project in Orissa and Chattisgarh even after one and a half years of issue of the letter of the ministry dated March 9 last year wherein the project proponent was requested to undertake public hearings as per the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification of 2006.
The ministry had also questioned as to why a show cause notice should not be issued formally under Section 5 of the Environment Protection Act as work on the project is continuing without getting the environment clearance amended for additional components like construction of embankments, drainage sluices and pumping arrangements.
