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Jayanthi Natarajan's tenure saw unexplained delays, say ministry officials

Officials admitted on the condition of anonymity that several projects that obtained approvals from expert appraisal committee’s on environment and forests were stuck at the minister’s door step. Natarajan claimed that Rahul Gandhi sent specific inputs through his office to halt clearance for the Vedanta project in Odisha.

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Following the revelations made by former environment and forests minister Jayanthi Natarajan in her letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi which details why she held up big-ticket projects, ministry officials reaffirmed that her tenure was marked by inordinate delays and a lack of transparency.

Officials admitted on the condition of anonymity that several projects that obtained approvals from expert appraisal committee’s on environment and forests were stuck at the minister’s door step. Natarajan claimed that Rahul Gandhi sent specific inputs through his office to halt clearance for the Vedanta project in Odisha.

The letter also stated, “In fact you have yourself conveyed your concern in this regard in letters written to me. In several cases including the stalled GVK power project regarding the Dhari Devi temple in Himachal Pradesh, the Lavasa project in Maharashtra, the Nirma cement plant in Gujarat and in several other cases I was given specific input, to make my decision.

“Though the rate of project clearance was not low, there was a peculiar lack of clarity on delays in issuing clearances. Files piled up for want of mere signatures,” said an official who had also worked under Natarajan’s tenure. In the past, media had reported that almost 350 ministry files were stacked up at her residence, some approved while some were not.

“The former minister was not exactly accessible and had built around her a wall of handpicked loyalists, who had access to key project files. It won’t be incorrect to say that she was routinely incommunicado,” said another official in the know of things. 

Natarajan did not respond to phone calls or text messages, seeking a response on the story. Responding to Natarajan’s revelations, ministers of the union government called for a probe into the projects stuck under her tenure.

“The revelations made are a matter of grave concern serious and we need to review those specific files where extraneous influence has been alleged as per the letter,” said Prakash Javadekar, union minister for environment, forests and climate change. Javadekar’s senior colleague Arun Jaitely said, “The environment ministry should look into clearances granted during the UPA regime.” 

Among the many things mentioned in her letter, Natarajan said, “ A few days before I was removed as Minister, I needed to review the Adani file for some legal issues. When I sent for the file, I was told that it was “missing.” After considerable search, my officials “found” it, apparently in the washroom of the computer section, the very day on which I had been asking to resign. Clearly some officials in my then Ministry did not want to send that file back to me, for unknown reasons.”

Dna had reported in May last year, among the 45 files that had mysteriously gone missing from the environment ministry, one was on Adani group’s - Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone. 

At the time the files went missing in late April, APSEZ had not been given environmental and coastal regulation zone clearances. But within three months, in July, it received the green nod and CRZ nod for the 8,481 hectare special economic zone. 

Former non-governmental members of National Board for Wildlife said that like her predecessor Jairam Ramesh, Natarajan too cleared most of the projects during her tenure. “The forest advisory committee and NBWL had vehemently opposed the Lower Demwe hydro-power project. But Natarajan overruled us and issued clearances,” said the activist asking not to be named. 

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