Centre Proposes New Bodies to Expedite Environmental Clearances Amid Expert Concerns

The Indian government has proposed new bodies, the Standing Authority on Environment Impact Assessment (SAEIA) and Standing Committee on Environment Impact Appraisal (SCEIA), to expedite environmental clearances when state-level bodies are non-functional. These bodies would consist of ex officio members, mainly government officials nominated centrally. Experts, including Subhrajit Goswami, express concern that this approach bypasses existing legal requirements for expert members with significant domain experience, potentially weakening project scrutiny. The draft notification aims to reduce delays caused by state-level vacancies but lacks clear eligibility criteria and conflict-of-interest safeguards.