If the reports on the powerful corporates influencing the Cabinet formation were not incriminating enough, there is another shocker. The Minister of Environment Jairam Ramesh condoned Tata Steel and L&T’s violation of the Forest Conservation Act 1980 in their joint Dhamra port project in Orissa.
This shocking revelation of corporates influencing government decisions emerged from file notings recently obtained by Greenpeace through an RTI application. It is in sharp contradiction to the Ministry’s own strictures against Vedanta, Adarsh Society and the Lavasa Township.
The file noting by Jairam Ramesh (1) admits that there is a probable legal violation, but argues in favour of condoning it on the grounds that “the port itself is nearing completion. Had construction not commenced, we could have taken a decision unequivocally not to let the project proceed at the site whose “forest status” is disputed.”
Why was the Tata-led company let off when there is sufficient evidence of a violation? The nation deserves an answer to what extent the TATAs can influence government decisions, and begs the question whether there are different rules for different violators.
“This is another shocking example of the government ignoring legal transgressions by big business houses,” said Sanjiv Gopal, Oceans Campaign Manager, Greenpeace India.
“In the light of this discovery, and the scams unearthed in recent weeks, we wonder if this country is being ruled by giant corporations and the motive of profit at all costs,” he said.
The nation also needs to know, especially in the light of reports that corporate lobbyists robbed the nation to the tune of Rs 1.76 lakh crore in the 2G spectrum allocation, what factors contributed in the Dhamra projects getting a go ahead instead of being penalized.
The fait accompli logic used by the Ministry sets a dangerous precedent, and contradicts the Government’s statements on the Adarsh Society project in Mumbai, or Vedanta’s Lanjigarh refinery – both of which the MoEF has threatened to demolish/shut down for violating the law.
The note goes on to say that “…were we to consider this case today, we will have no option but to insist on clearance under FCA 1980”, before then instructing that an affidavit be filed before the Supreme Court’s Central Empowered Committee taking the position that the area is not forest land. This was preceded by a hand-written submission from B. Muthuraman, Vice Chairman of TATA Steel, to Mr. Ramesh, pleading TATA Steel’s case and asserting the TATA group’s adherence to its ‘principles’ (2).
In a public exposure of big corporations getting off the hook, Greenpeace issued an advertisement in leading papers today, raising concerns on the double standards of the government towards corporations (3).
The Dhamra port in Orissa has been the centre of controversy for years on account of its location adjacent to the Bhitarkanika National Park and Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary. Evidence of violation of the Forest Conservation Act first became public in 2009. With no action taken by the MoEF, the first phase of the port is now nearing completion, and plans are underway for a massive Phase II expansion into more dangerous cargo such as oil and naptha.
The Ministry’s file noting is silent on the Phase II expansion of the port and the additional industries proposed in the area. Ironically, earlier in the year, the Ministry had rejected clearance for a proposed power plant near Dhamra, on account of the area’s ecological significance.
“What kind of message is going out to corporate India and the country at large, if all that is needed to get an illegal project regularized is to present the government with a fait accompli?” Gopal said.
Greenpeace demands punitive measures against the project and a permanent freeze on all planned industrial activity (including further port expansion) within the buffer zone of Bhitarkanika and Gahirmatha. With over 300 ports planned across the coast of mainland India, Greenpeace is also asking for stricter measures to protect ecologically critical coastal areas from short-sighted and poorly planned port development.
Notes to Editor:
1) http://www.greenpeace.org/india/Global/india/docs/dhamra-fca-file-notings.pdf
2) http://www.greenpeace.org/india/Global/india/docs/muthuraman-letter-to-moef.pdf
3) http://www.greenpeace.org/india/Global/india/image/dhamra-ad.jpg
