MP SEIAA Row Deepens Over 237 ‘Erroneous’ Deemed Permissions, Chairman Writes To Chief Secretary

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): A fact-finding team of the Union Environment Ministry has viewed the deemed permission given by the member secretary of the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) in 237 cases as erroneous.

Afterwards, an affidavit submitted in the Supreme Court has brought the SEIAA dispute to the fore again.

SEIAA chairman SN Singh Chouhan has written to Chief Secretary Ashok Barnwal, advising him to issue a directive to the officials to dispose of 500 cases, including 237 deemed permissions. In the letter, he demanded that Barnwal provide logistical support to the members of SEIAA.

Chouhan also wrote about the department's additional chief secretary, Aniruddha Mukherjee, who always interferes in the SEIAA functioning.

He demanded that Barnwal ask Mukherjee to stop ridiculous activities and to let SEIAA function properly.

Chouhan further wrote that because of busyness and negligence of the member secretary, enough meetings are not regularly held. Nobody uploads the minutes of the meetings on the Parivesh Portal within the time limit.

According to Chouhan's letter, the fact-finding committee of the NGT and Union Environment Ministry said giving 237 deemed permissions remained erroneous. The law does not permit deemed permission.

Other than SEIAA meetings, there is no provision for giving environment clearance (EC). Non-compliance of the NGT order by the member secretary and ACS's failure to issue him a directive to obey the NGT instructions indicate the violations of its orders.

Chouhan has also advised the CS to review the SEIAA affairs to clear the pending EC cases.