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The New Year starts on an optimistic note for industries seeking various environment clearances. An ambitious web-based single-window system ‘Parivesh’ will be rolled-out at state levels by January 15, bringing an end to the clearance nightmare for entrepreneurs.
A senior official from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) informed that the automated system for submission, clearance and monitoring has already been implemented at the Central level, while various States starting from Gujarat will begin to implement the scheme by January 15.
Launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in August last year on World Biofuel Day, ‘Parivesh’ (Pro-Active and Responsive facilitation by Interactive, Virtuous and Environmental Single-window Hub) is a single-window integrated environmental management system, developed under the ‘Digital India’ initiative.
Training underway
“As of now, Parivesh has been launched at the central level. Now other states will start operating it by January 15. There are certain teething troubles. To overcome that, currently training of the State officials is happening at the Central level,” said the Ministry sources.
The officials of the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (EIA) and State Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) along with the State Pollution Control Boards are undergoing training.
The web-based, role-based workflow application is developed for online submission and monitoring of the proposals submitted by the proponents for seeking Environment, Forest, Wildlife and CRZ Clearances from Central, State and district level authorities.
Reducing delays
The sharp reduction in the time taken for Terms of Reference (TOR) for a project from about the current 90 days to as low as one day is the biggest benefit of the scheme. The system requires issuance of Standard TOR within a limit of 30 days.
Due to online system, the agenda preparation is automated, hence removes manual intervention and puts the proposals on first-come-first-serve basis for agenda. Barring a few special and specific mentions of a project, the minutes of a meeting will be autogenerated by the system, and made available on the same day.
According to senior government officials, ‘Parivesh’ empowers the proponent to track real-time pendency of their proposals or applications. The system will show a bar chart about delay at each level of clearance.
Transparency
“In his 2014 Independence Day speech from Red Fort, the Prime Minister had promised for e-governance making governance easy, effective and economic governance. This is the realisation of this promise,” the official stated.
After the launch of Parivesh in August last year, the Executive Director of United Nations Environment Programme, Chief Erik Solheim had lauded the step terming is an “important step towards ensuring environmental clearance are transparent, efficient and that we protect the country's tremendous natural wealth.”
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