Draft EIA: Delhi HC Issues Notice In Modification Plea Seeking Direction To Centre To Further Extend The Deadline For Public Comments

Delhi High Court has issued notice in a modification plea seeking a direction to be issued to the Central Government to further extend the deadline for public comments on Draft Environment Impact Assessment Policy by the period of 60 days from the date of publishing the said policy in all the languages mentioned in Schedule VIII of the Constitution. By its order dated June 30, the present court had extended the deadline for submitting public comments on Draft EIA Policy by August 11. The court had also directed the Environment Ministry to translate the draft policy in at least the languages mentioned in the VII Schedule of the Constitution, and make the same available on the website of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, as well as the respective Environment Ministries and State Pollution Control Boards of all respective states within a period of ten days. Further, the Respondent has even failed to upload the draft EIA Notification, 2020 in the English and Hindi language on the websites of the State Environment Departments and State Pollution Control Boards It is further argued by the Petition that as per the RTI reply received from the concerned Ministry, the draft policy has only been translated in 3 languages as on 30th July 2020, namely Marathi, Oriya and Nepali.