Kollywood actor Karthi Sivakumar has recorded his concerns over the draft of the Environmental Impact Assessment 2020 (EIA draft 2020). In a statement released on Tuesday, Karthi urged people to actively seek information about the proposed amendments and send in their comments to the Union government.
The statement, which was released on behalf of Karthi’s Uzhavan Foundation, said that at present our laws and environmental policies are at great pressure to keep the damage caused to the environment, human and animal habitat to a minimum and amid this already existing pressure, the proposed changes to the EIA draft 2020 has sparked several concerns in the minds of people.
“Setting up of heavy industries at the huge and irrecoverable cost of this ecological harmony cannot be construed as a measure of success and development,” the statement pointed out, taking into account the various proposals in the draft which have been pegged as a way to promote ‘ease of doing business’ in the country. These words are also in reference to the dilution in the requirement for prior environmental clearance for various development projects like inland waterways and big industrial projects. “This endeavour will be seen as an exercise to systematically dismantle a promising future of our generations to come and this should not be heralded by a democratically elected government of our nation,” the statement added.
Further pointing to the proposed changes to the norms around public hearings and public consultations, Karthi questioned how an act or law can be considered ‘fair’ if it ‘thwarts the voice and concerns of the very common man such law serves to protect?’ He also pointed out how the proposed draft has been published only in English and Hindi, thus putting millions of Indians who know nothing but their native languages at a position in which they cannot read or understand the issue.