{"id":41353,"date":"2022-03-23T11:48:25","date_gmt":"2022-03-23T06:18:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/?p=41353"},"modified":"2025-06-23T12:41:54","modified_gmt":"2025-06-23T07:11:54","slug":"environmental-clearance-process-in-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/environmental-clearance-process-in-india\/","title":{"rendered":"Environmental Clearance Process in India: A Complete Outlook"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">Environmental Clearance (EC) for the\ncertain project has been made compulsory by the MoEF, i.e. Ministry of\nEnvironment &amp; Forests, via its notification released under the norms of\nEnvironment (Protection) Act, 1986. In view of prolonged experience in the\nEnvironmental Clearance process as well as the demands of concerned\nstakeholders, the MoEF rolled out a revised notification on the EC process in\nSep 2006 and changed it in Dec 2009. It was considered imperative by MoEF to\nmake accessible EIA direction manuals for each of the development sectors. This\nwrite-up elaborates the process of Environmental clearance in\ndetail.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title ez-toc-toggle\" style=\"cursor:pointer\">Page Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 eztoc-toggle-hide-by-default' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/environmental-clearance-process-in-india\/#Environmental_Impact_Notification_Released_on_September_2006\" >Environmental Impact Notification Released on September 2006<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/environmental-clearance-process-in-india\/#Process_of_Environmental_Clearance_in_India\" >Process of Environmental Clearance in India<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/environmental-clearance-process-in-india\/#Eligibility_Criteria_for_Environmental_Clearance\" >Eligibility Criteria for Environmental Clearance<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/environmental-clearance-process-in-india\/#Significance_of_Public_hearing_in_Environmental_Clearance\" >Significance of Public hearing in Environmental Clearance<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/environmental-clearance-process-in-india\/#Conclusion\" >Conclusion<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Environmental_Impact_Notification_Released_on_September_2006\"><\/span>Environmental Impact Notification Released on September 2006<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>Environmental\n     Impact Notification S.O.1533 (E), released on Sep 2006 under&nbsp;Environment\n     (Protection) Act 1986 has clarified that the scheduled development\n     projects should mandatorily obtain environmental clearance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>The said\n     notification has categorized projects under two major categories &#8211; \u2018A\u2019\n     &amp; \u2018B\u2019. Category A projects (including modernization and expansion of\n     prevailing projects) require clearance from MoEF and for category B from\n     SEIAA, i.e. Environmental Impact Assessment Authority, formed by\n     GOI.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Process_of_Environmental_Clearance_in_India\"><\/span>Process of Environmental Clearance in India <span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>The section below illustrates the process\nof Environmental Clearance in India <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 1: Site identification and selection <\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The project proponent pinpoints the\nplant&#8217;s location after adhering to existing underlying guidelines. If the\nproject site fails to ensure conformity with the siting guideline, the\nproponent must lookout for an alternative site for the project. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 2: Category evaluation <\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The project proponent then evaluates\nwhether the proposed project falls under the ambit of environmental Clearance\nor not. If it falls under the notification schedule, the proponent performs an\nEIA study either directly or via a third party. If the project falls under\ncategory B, it needs to be sanctioned via the state government for Clearance.\nFor this purpose, the state government categorises such projects into B1 and B2\nprojects. The preparation of the EIA report is not required for the B2 project.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 3: Submission of EIA report and Assessment by SPCB<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>After preparing the EIA report, the investor furnishes the same to the respective <a href=\"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/state-pollution-control-board-spcb-noc\"><strong>State Pollution Control Board<\/strong><\/a> and State-based Forest Department (if the location is present nearby\/within the forestland). The SPCB examines and assesses the quality and quality of effluent or pollutants likely to generate the project. The authority also evaluates the efficacy of the control measures proposed to fulfil the underlying norms. If the SPCB does not find any loophole in this context, it shall grant its approval in the form of a No-objection certificate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 4: Public hearing <\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The public hearing is a vital step in\nsecuring environmental Clearance. This facilitates a legal space for habitant\nof an area to put up their concern before the government regarding the\ncredibility or viability of the project. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The public hearing process is performed\nbefore the issuance of the NOC described above. The District Collector is the\nperson who chaired such a committee. Other key members of the committee include\nthe official from the SPCB, district development body, Department of\nEnvironment and Forest, Gram Panchayat representative and senior citizen of the\ndistrict, etc. The hearing committee evaluates the suggestions\/objections\nsubmitted by the general public. After adding certain clauses, it is passed on\nto the subsequent stage of approval (Ministry of Forest and Environment).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 5: Application submission to MoEF<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The project proponent furnishes the duly filed application for <a href=\"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/environmental-clearance\"><strong>environmental Clearance<\/strong><\/a> with the Ministry of Forest and Environment if it falls under the category of Project A or the state government if it comes under project B category. The application form is accompanied by standard documents such as the EIA report, EMP, NOC, and public hearing details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 6: Environmental appraisal<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The documents furnished are first\nexamined by a multi-disciplinary the Ministry of Environment and Forests staff.\nThe said staff may also conduct on-site inspections, contact investors, and\nconsult with experts on some issues if required. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After this, the proposals are forwarded to\nspecially constituted committees of professionals whose composition is\nmentioned in the EIA Notification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Such committees are called Environmental\nAppraisal Committees, which has been set up for each sector such as Industries,\nRiver Valley, and Mining etc. And these committees meet consistently to\nevaluate the proposals received in the Ministry. In the case of certain\nprojects, which have attracted significant public attention, the committee may\nalso arrange for public hearings to public intervention in developmental\ndecisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Proclamations for these public hearings\nshall be made thirty days before via newspapers. Based on the exercise cited\nabove, the Appraisal Committees put forward their recommendations for approval\nor rejection of particular projects. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Committees&#8217; recommendations are then\nundergone evaluation conducted by the Ministry of Environment and Forests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 7: Issuance of Clearance or rejection letter<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>When a project seeks mandatory environmental Clearance and consent under <strong>Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980<\/strong><sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Forest_Conservation_Act,_1980\"><strong>[1]<\/strong><\/a><\/sup>, the proposals for either of them are required to be facilitated simultaneously to the respective divisions of the Ministry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though individual letters may be issued,\nthe processing is undertaken concurrently for clearance\/rejection. If the\nproject does not have any requirement for forest land diversion, the case is\nprocessed for environmental Clearance only. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once all the mandatory documentation and\ndata from the concerned authorities are received, and public hearings have been\nsuccessfully held, assessment and evaluation about the project from the\nenvironment viewpoint are completed within 90 days. The Ministry&#8217;s decision\nshall be conveyed within thirty days after that. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Clearance issued shall remain valid\nfor five years from the commencement of the project&#8217;s operation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Eligibility_Criteria_for_Environmental_Clearance\"><\/span>Eligibility Criteria for Environmental Clearance<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Industrial projects from the given\nnotified ecological fragile\/sensitive areas shall require Environmental\nClearance regardless of the type of project. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>Religious\nand historical places<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Scenic\nareas<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Archaeological\nmonuments<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Beach\nresorts<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Hill\nresorts<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Coastal\nareas rich in corals, mangroves, breeding grounds of specific species<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Estuaries<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Biosphere\nreserves<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Gulf\nareas<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>National\nparks and sanctuaries<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Seismic\nzones<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>National\nlakes and swamps<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Tribal\nsettlements<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Areas\nof scientific and geological interest<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Defence\ninstallations, especially those of security importance &amp; sensitivity to\npollution<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Airports<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Border\nareas (international)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Significance_of_Public_hearing_in_Environmental_Clearance\"><\/span>Significance of Public hearing in Environmental Clearance<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>Public\ninvolvement plays a vital role in a successful EIA process. It facilitated a\nchance for those affected by the project to put forward their concerns on the\nsocial and environmental impact of the proposal and ensured transparency within\nthe environmental clearance system.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Almost\nall EIA system has underpinned a provision relating to public involvement. It\ncould happen in the form of public participation or public consultation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Most\nEIA processes are conducted via public consultation. Public consultation refers\nto a process by which the concerns of habitants relating to negative impacts\nare taken into account in the EIA study. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This\nconcept was come to effect in 1997 in the form of &#8216;public hearing&#8217;. Since then,\nthis process has been undertaken as a vital environmental clearance step for\nmost projects. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The\npublic consultation process underpins an unprejudiced and transparent\ndecision-making process resulting in optimal environmental outcomes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The\ntype of consultation, whom to take advice during EIA undertakings, when and how\nto do so and who should perform it differ considerably project-wise. This\ndepends on the requirement of the project. But, it is a vital element for all\nproject types. Public consultations mitigate the local community&#8217;s concerns and\nminimise invalid detail in the EIA report.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ideally,\npublic consultation must commence when the notion of the project is realised\nand prevail throughout the EIA phase. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The\nfive fundamental stages of public involvement in the EIA process are examining,\nscoping, impact assessment and mitigation, verifying EIA quality, and\nimplementation and follow up. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In\nIndia, the public involvement role in the environment clearance process has yet\nto gain importance within the industrial regime. This is why its scope is quite\nlimited for the time being. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Public\nconsultation comes into play post-preparation of the EIA report and when the\nproponent is ready to present it to the review committee. This implies that the\nEIA study cannot take public concerns and issues into account. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Even\nif the community&#8217;s members intimate particular concerns during the public\nhearing process, they have no surety if it actually gets attended in the last\nEIA report as it is inaccessible to them. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There\nare various pain points in the public hearing process. For the time being, it\nis merely considered as a procedure instead of a participatory forum. The new\nnotification proposes fixing such issues and rendering an edge to the entire\npublic hearing process.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>However,\nthe said notification does not ensure the large scope of improvement. It merely\nadded a new provision that provides for the omission of the public hearing\nprocess if the situation is not favourable for conducting the hearing as realised\nby the local authority. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This\nprovision can be subject to mis-utilization, thereby limiting the scope of\npublic participation. Several scenarios in the past have witnessed the failure\nof the public hearing process in ensuring public involvement. Several measures\nhave been formulated to isolate the public from the public hearing process,\nsuch as limited notice circulation, politics, etc. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Conclusion\"><\/span>Conclusion <span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Environmental Clearance seeks to curb industries and projects that supposedly hamper the environment and living species in one way or another. &nbsp;It serves as a legal consent for industries that are unfriendly to environment. It has been made mandatory under Environment Protection Act, 1986. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"text-left\"><b>Read our Article<\/b>:<mark style=\"background: #fffd03 !important\"><a href=\"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/imposition-of-environmental-compensation-under-pwm-rules\/\">Imposition of Environmental Compensation under Plastic Waste Management Rules\n<\/a><\/mark><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Environmental Clearance (EC) for the certain project has been made compulsory by the MoEF, i.e. Ministry of Environment &amp; Forests, via its notification released under the norms of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. In view of prolonged experience in the Environmental Clearance process as well as the demands of concerned stakeholders, the MoEF rolled out a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":41356,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3185],"tags":[2194],"acf":{"service_id":"215"},"authorName":"Pankaj Tyagi","authorImageUrl":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/MicrosoftTeams-image-42.jpg","authorDescription":"Pankaj has a diverse experience of writing research papers, blog, and articles during his college time. Earlier, he was working as a tax consultant in a financial firm, but his interest in writing drives him to pursue a career in the writing field.","postViews":44778,"readingTime":6,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41353"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41353"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41353\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":69549,"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41353\/revisions\/69549"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41356"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/corpbiz.io\/learning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}