Thiruvananthapuram: With the Project Pengerak Shopping Center in Akkulam Quotes the difficulties in taking TS channel maintenance which is one of the requirements for Environmental Permits, the Authority of the State Environmental Impact Assessment (SEIAA) has directed the Project Proponent approved by the Ministry of Union in corporate environmental responsibility (CER) .
Seiaa in the meeting held in September noted that one of the activities proposed by the project initiator under CER was the maintenance of the TS channel that the initiator did not submit a detailed action plan.
The minutes of the meeting noted that the detailed action plan was not delivered and that the project initiator reported that they had a sincere problem in taking TS canal maintenance.
EC for the project was issued in 2016.
The total project cost was Rs 613.89 Crore and one of the requirements for environmental permissions was to take CER activities for 1% of the project costs that came to 6.14 crore.
Seiaa was observed at the latest meeting that some CER activities for RS 60.55 Lakh were mentioned in the plan for environmental management and the current stage of the implementation of these activities unknown authorities because they were not mentioned in the period of semi-annual compliance available at the Seiaa office.
At the 108th meeting held in 2019, Seiaa decided to inform project initiary that both Lake TS and Akkulam were ecologically and economically important assets from the state and maximum results must be taken in maintaining / rejuvenating them.
The authority also decided to notify supporters that for Lake Rejuvenation TS Canal and Akkulam, a detailed action plan must be prepared in consultation with the Department of Irrigation / Tourism and Thiruvananthapuram Corporation.
Supporters must also consult with national highways and national water channel authorities while preparing an action plan, according to the minutes of the 108th SEIAA meeting.
In the absence of detailed action plans and project initiator increases concerns in the maintenance of TS Canal, the authority has directed that there will be a complete review of the implementation phase of CER activities that are approved in accordance with the EIA / EMP and further travel of the action.
“If there is a sincere problem in taking TS channel maintenance, as mentioned in the EC, the Project Proponent in consultation with Thiruvananthapuram Corporation / with local self-governmental institutions can propose activities listed in office memorandum issued by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
This must be done on priority because five years have been abundant, “said the committee.