Green hurdles

It is unquestionable that India’s states are where dynamic policy decisions are being taken,and where innovative solutions to the country’s chronic lack of infrastructure,skills and jobs are being developed. Unfortunately,the Centre is not precisely being a supportive partner. As three different chief ministers — belonging to the Congress and the BJP — put on record at the India Economic Summit in Mumbai on Monday,environmental clearances in particular are serving as a massive roadblock to state ambitions. No project smaller than five hectares can be given a go-ahead without direct clearances from the ministry of environment and forests in Delhi,whether or not it abuts a protected zone. As Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said,this is a wholly inadequate limit,especially as getting those clearances is a near-impossible task for entrepreneurs. “We have irrigation projects stuck for nearly 20 years on account of not getting forest department clearances,” he said.

It isn’t just a question of the onerous formalities; it is also the case that the ministry of environment and forests has developed the reputation for taking its own time in getting to projects that are urgent from the point of view of states,investors and prospective beneficiaries. Both Chouhan and Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy listed projects that were suffering from unconscionable delays in the Centre’s response. Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan,who also called for a debate on devolution of some powers to states,could have added several high-profile projects in his state to those lists,if he had cared to — not just the Lavasa township,but also the crucial second airport for Mumbai,which has been held up long beyond what is a reasonable timeframe because the Centre has constantly moved the goalposts for clearing it.

While Chavan’s words of warning about the warping effect that mining money has had on state-level regulation and politics are worthy,that does not mean that we should not re-look at the red tape that has grown around environmental regulation at the Central level. States deserve a freer hand in regulating their own environment,and the environment ministry in Delhi needs to raise its game,working as a partner with the states to get entrepreneurs to comply with the law of the land. The growing sense among politicians,entrepreneurs and voters that these are obstructions to development rather than necessary regulations is one that must be addressed.