Proof of land acquisition not needed for green clearances

Developers of non-coal mining projects will no longer have to show proof of land acquisition as a pre-requisite for environmental clearance, according to a recent change made by the Union environment ministry.

The move is aimed at fast-tracking the approval process for offshore and onshore oil exploration and production, oil and gas transportation pipelines passing through eco-sensitive areas, highway projects, and mining of minerals.

Until now, the ministry required proof of land acquisition. In an office memorandum (OM) issued in 2014, it listed tdocuments that could be offered as proof or in lieu of it: preliminary notification issued by the state government regarding acquisition of land as per the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act 2013; and in case of acquisition by private companies, a credible document showing the intent of land owners to sell their land for the proposed project.

Last February, the ministry inserted a clause stating that a confirmation from the State government, or their authorized agency indicating their intent to acquire land for the project as indicated in the EIA (enviornmental impact assessment) report of the Project, will also be considered.

On December 18 last year, the ministry changed this in another OM, saying it has received requests that consent from landowners should not be insisted upon at the time of grant of EC for non-coal mining projects and the status of land acquisition should not be linked with the grant of EC.

The December 18 OM also elaborated on the rationale for the change.

“The matter was referred to the non-coal mining Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) for consideration. After due deliberation the sectoral EAC observed that the request for delinking the consent from landowners at the time of grant of EC for noncoal mining projects, appears to be reasonable and can be accepted. Further, the EAC, inter-alia, also observed that, there are many mining projects where mining operations have started after grant of EC and land acquisition is still in progress in a phased manner based on requirement,” it said.

“The recommendations of the non-coal mining EAC were examined and comments and inputs on the applicability of the OM dated 7th October 2014, as amended, on other sectors were also sought. Based on the inputs received, it was observed that, insisting for land acquisition documents at the time of appraisal for EC, may not be practical for certain other projects...,” it added.

“The 2014 OM only required start of land acquisition via preliminary notification or a credible agreement with private landowners. By removing this requirement, prima facie, it seems that the land acquisition process will become more sequential and therefore take more time, if it starts after the EC is granted,” Chetan Agarwal, environment & forest policy analyst.