Times of India: Vadodara: Saturday, 19 July 2014.
Sardar
Sarovar Nigam Limited (SSNL) has said that it is not necessary to obtain
environmental clearance for the proposed Statue of Unity at Kevadia. It has
further stated that hence environmental and social impact assessment of the
project and its contribution to the cumulative impact of all the projects and
activities in the area has not been carried out.
The SSNL has
said this in response to an application filed by Right to Information (RTI)
activist Rohit Prajapati. He said that he filed the RTI application on June 3
this year with the state government, SSNL and Sardar Vallabhai Patel Rashtriya
Ekta Trust (SVPRET) after his letters to the government went unanswered.
"The
project involves construction in Narmada riverbed and the proposed reservoir of
Garudeshwar veer, which is close to eco-sensitive zone. The project will have
serious impact on ecology and environment so we sought EIA report and EC report
for the project," he said.
He had also
sought copies of all the correspondence with departments and authorities
concerned for the foundation stone installation held on October 31, 2013 for
the project.
"The
reply shows that there has been no official correspondence about the project
between the government departments. The SSNL also replied that expenditure for
the foundation stone programme was just Rs 11,383. How is it possible to
organize a function attended by the then Gujarat CM Narendra Modi in such
miniscule amount?" questioned Prajapati.
He has now
written a letter to Prakash Javdekar, minister of environment and forests to
seek detailed environment scrutiny of the project and stop all activities.
.JPG)
.JPG)
