Government may fix environment regulator's contours by April

NEW DELHI: The government is aiming to finalise the contours of the environmental regulator by April. As part of this effort, environment minister Prakash Javadekar has written to all chief ministers asking them to send in their suggestions by February 10.Officials told ETthat the Cabinet appointed committee of ministers, which met earlier this week, is yet to decide the key issue of whether the regulator should be a separate body like the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India or the University Grants Commission, which were set up by Acts of Parliament, or whether it be should set up by an executive order under Section 3.3 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

The committee includes the environment minister, road minister Nitin Gadkari, chemicals and fertilizer minister Ananth Kumar, and water resources minister Uma Bharti.

The TSR Subramanian Committee, which was appointed by the environment ministry to review the green laws, has suggested a professionally manned body at arm's length from the government to assess, recommend and monitor clearances and projects. This suggestion is also currently under consideration.

The Subramanian Committee's design for the regulator comes close to the regulator proposed by former environment minister Jairam Ramesh, the National Environmental Assessment and Monitoring Agency.

The government maintains that the key question is to determine the design of the proposed regulator. A senior government official said the Supreme Court in its decision on the Lafarge case, which mandated the setting up of the environment regulator, "didn't direct the government to set up the regulator as an authority like the TRAI. It calls on setting up of a regulator in the fulfilment of the provision in the Environment Protection Act. The regulator as an authority was suggested by the ministry in its affidavit."

Officials indicated that the environment minister is keeping an open mind and is keen to have a system in place that will ensure greater compliance to laws.