New Delhi: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asking him to withdraw the environmental committee set up for the Sardar Sarovar project. The Environment Ministry has ordered the setting up of an environmental committee to review the steps taken under Sardar Sarovar project.
In his letter to the Prime Minister, Modi said the environment ministry's order was not in accordance with the Narmada Yojana provisions.
Decision of the Ministry of Environment and Forest taken on April 28, 2010 is not at all in accordance with the present provisions of Narmada Yojana and with the orders adjudged by the Supreme Court on October 20, 2000, says the letter handed over to the Prime Minister on Monday evening.
The Chief Minister in his letter said that Sardar Sarovar Yojana has passed through many hurdles. A positive hand from Government of India and Prime Minister has helped the Narmada project to set many benchmarks. Construction of 458 km long central canal has been completed in 2008, has delivered drinking water to more than 2.2 crore people.
To extract out all the benefits from this inter-state multipurpose project, it is imperative to take the dam's height to the level of full reservoir. He also said that as all the aspects regarding security has been tackled properly, the 48th meet of environmental sub-group of Narmada Control Authority presided by Secretary to Ministry of Environment and Forest, approved a height of 138 meter for the Sardar Sarovar Dam.
The Chief Minister has insisted that such a high level committee must be withdrawn as forming one more committee on this issue is just paradoxical to the numerous decisions taken by other central bodies in the past. He also said that the move would further perplex the situation and pass the negative impacts.
The Chief Minister pointed out that the Narmada project was given approval on environmental issues in 1988 and steps for environment protections were ensured by forming an environmental sub-group on April 15, 1987, in the presence of then Prime Minister and the concerned Chief Ministers.
Modi said that as Narmada Control Authority has a complete monitoring set-up and environmental sub-group is capable enough to take any steps related to the project, there is no need of any other independent body to take decision in this issue.
Taking all these points into consideration, order of forming one more committee in the case of Sardar Sarovar project, must be withdrawn, the Chief Minister said.