Clearance in reverse: On top court, post facto clearances
The article critically analyzes a Supreme Court order regarding post facto environmental clearances, which reaffirms the principle of pre-project appraisal but is seen as weakening it by allowing the Centre to legalize violations through statutory notifications. It highlights the dissonance between state-level appraisal machinery and central law, where post facto clearances have become common. The Court's reasoning, comparing environmental amnesty to tax defaults, is questioned, especially in light of the Jan Vishwas amendments that removed imprisonment for environmental lapses, reducing compliance to a monetary cost. The article argues that this approach undermines the precautionary principle and calls for a repair of the clearance apparatus.
The article critically analyzes a Supreme Court order regarding post facto environmental clearances, which reaffirms the principle of pre-project appraisal but is seen as weakening it by allowing the Centre to legalize violations through statutory notifications. It highlights the dissonance between state-level appraisal machinery and central law, where post facto clearances have become common. The Court's reasoning, comparing environmental amnesty to tax defaults, is questioned, especially in light of the Jan Vishwas amendments that removed imprisonment for environmental lapses, reducing compliance to a monetary cost. The article argues that this approach undermines the precautionary principle and calls for a repair of the clearance apparatus.
Exam linkage
GS Paper III - Environment & Ecology (Environmental Impact Assessment, Environmental Law & Policy, Conservation); GS Paper II - Indian Polity & Governance (Judiciary, Government Policies, Constitutional & Statutory Bodies)
Syllabus mapping
This topic appears in Mains
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