Mandatory clearance by Jal ministry demanded on all TS projectson

Hyderabad/Telangana/(H.S): February 14:State BJP President Sanjay submitted a letter to Union Environmental Minister seeking intervention in Telangana State not following established norms and procedures. In his letter he stated as follows:

The State of Telangana (TS) has taken up many projects on the inter-state rivers of Godavari and Krishna. It is mandatory that the Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) of these projects once prepared by the state are to be submitted to various central government agencies for their appraisal and approval. After such approvals only, these projects can be implemented. Few of these central government clearances are hydrology, inter-state, techno-economic viability and investment clearances from Ministry of Jal Shakti (MoJS), GoI and environment clearances from your esteemed ministry that is Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), GoI. After the DPRs are appraised by MoJS and approved by them based on merit, then the state would seek Environmental and Forest clearances from MoEF&CC.

But the TS is not following the above laid out norms and procedures and is not submitting the DPRs to MoJS for appraisal. The reason for this is that the DPRs by the TRS party led Telangana Government are not being prepared for the benefit and good of the people of Telangana state. These DPRs are being prepared only to benefit the private firms and agencies who are awarded these works.

Since the approval from MoJS is advisory in nature, TS is conveniently avoiding the submission of these DPRs to MoJS, and without obtaining their approval, is directly submitting the DPRs to MoEF for environmental clearances. Since the environmental clearance is statutory in nature, they cannot avoid the submission of DPRs to MoEF. As mandated, the MoEF checks the validity of the DPRs based on environmental issues and if these issues are found in order would sanction the environmental clearance. But the check on cost escalations, techno-economic viability and the intended benefits to the people etc. are missing since these DPRs are not appraised by MoJS. Thus, huge amounts of public exchequer are being misappropriated because of the reported cost escalations in the DPRs with the connivance of the executing private firms and higher echelons in the TRS led State Government.

In view of the above, it is requested that mandatory approvals by the MoJS be built into the mandate of Expert Appraisal Committee of MoEF for considering the environmental clearances of any such projects of TS on rivers Godavari and Krishna.