Is India scientifically sound as far as the EIA's are concerned?

[Dr Munmun Sinha Deshpande]

India, rather each state in India is extensively involved in the EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment).Everyday new consultants are cropping up which promise best quality reports.

Definitely, the reports are of the best quality..no doubt over it. It is good to have the development in terms of Industrial setup but at the same time the sustenance of the ecosystem is also important.

The EIA reports in India are restricted to Government mandates.But is there real science involved in these reports which supports the ecological sustainability? Very often the project site is already pre-decorated in the project format before the EIA is given to consultants.For example, mangrove is already destroyed before any EIA is conducted for port development.Similarly, trees are already felled before the EIA is done in forests. What report can a consultant give for barren land, everyone knows there will not be any adverse effects of using that land.

How will we know the truth and even if the EIA report has quality, will it help Mother Earth to sustain the consequences?

It is a big question and we hope Indian Scientist/EIA specialists have an answer since India is still very rich in Biodiversity.

[Ratnakar Pandey]

Ok here everyone is saying that Indian EIA reports are unscientific, copy- paste, unethical…… bla… bla…… I would like to add one more thing in this debate- suppose EIA consultant worked hard, derived the 100% facts of the study area, collected, collated & analyzed the primary data with the help of state of art technology delivered out of the world class EIA report & recommended absolute safeguard, mitigation measures…...Do you think the current MoEF institutional mechanism can implement the recommendations?? So preparing only scientific, ethical… world class EIA Report & their recommendations will not work until or unless it is align with world class institutional driving & monitoring mechanism.

 

[Sanjaya Kumar Mishra]

Mrs. Deshpande....At the onset, I must congratulate you for raising such an important issue. Cropping up of new EIA consultants is a good news, but equally important is their quality, strength & ethics. However, a consultant can neither create any significant change in positive nor in negative sides, so far EIA is concerned. The Govt., legal system and individuals like you - need to come forward. Having said this, I directly question the NABET accreditation system developed by Govt. It really needs a complete revamping. Secondly, the age old system of expert appraisal committee members also need a change with the dynamics.

S K Mishra (ecomedia.co.in)