The Supreme Court of India on 13 August 2013 directed the Union
Government of India and the Government of Uttarakhand to not grant any
environmental clearances to the hydro-electric projects in Uttarakhand.
The two-judge bench headed by Justice KS Radhakrishnan and comprising of
comprising Justice Dipak Misra passed the judgement in relation to the
Alaknanda Hydro Power Project.
The Apex Court ordered the
Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) for establishing the expert
body in order to study the environmental degradation taking place by the
power projects. Also, the court directed that the study should focus on
the recent tragedy which claimed thousands of lives in Uttarakhand. The
expert body should consist of representatives from the state government
of Uttarakhand, Central Water Commission, Central Electricity
Authority, WII (Wild Life Institute of India) as well as certain other
bodies.
The expert body to be established, in the meanwhile,
will also analyse and examine the effect of 24 new hydro-electric
projects which were proposed on biodiversity of Bhagirathi and Alaknanda
river basins.
Also, the Apex Court directed the Disaster
Management Authority of Uttarakhand to submit a detailed report on the
plan of disaster management in the state. The central as well as the
state agencies were asked to submit their detailed reports by November
2013.
Uttrakhand in the third week of June 2013 was stuck by
flash floods and landslides. During this natural disaster in the state,
thousands of people lost their life and various remained stranded.
Rescue operations by Indian Army were carried out in the state. The
worst affected region of Uttarakhand was Kedarnath, which is a popular
Hindu shrine and receives lakhs of tourists every year during June and
July.
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