Sam Manekshaw
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Can we make it sticky threads to highlight Major decision/project which undertaken/cleared under NDA rule.
@acetophenol @Ravi Nair @SarthakGanguly @levina @sandy_3126 @sancho @Oscar
NEW DELHI: Environment clearance of national security and defence projects will be taken up on priority basis, the government has said.
As part of this exercise, environment minister Prakash Javadekar on Monday announced approval for the Karwar naval base. He, however, indicated that on issues where there is no overriding national security interest, such as conservation and preservation of the Western Ghats, the government would not rush into a decision.
The minister was of the view that only when the country is secure can the environment be secure and its people safe. "That is why I gave priority to them and started seeing files and many of them I have approved as well," Javadekar told reporters during an interaction at the Indian Women's Press Corps.
In this context, the minister said he has cleared 'Project Seabird' in Karwar. "For defence, it is a very significant project. Mumbai is a target as well. An alternative is required and that is why it is a very ambitious and a project of very strategic importance. That too was pending. We have sanctioned it," he said.
'Project Seabird', which aims to make Karwar one of the larger naval bases in the country, will be completed in two phases and will be home to various warships, including India's largest aircraft carrier, INS Vikramaditya. Javadekar clears Karwar Naval Base project
The environment minister's priority list of pending defence related projects includes a project about setting up a radar station at the Narcondam Island in the Andaman and Nicobar chain of islands.
"There is an island called the Coco Island in the Bay of Bengal which is under Myanmar. However, China has its presence on that island. There is a project pending to set up a radar on Narcondam Island, which is just opposite to the Coco Island. We are looking into the project. One radar station has to be established on that island in which 8-10 employees will be stationed. There is no other thing which will create disturbance in the natural environment there," the minister said.
A tiny remote island in the Andaman and Nicobar Island group, Narcondam is home to about 300 Narcondam hornbill, a rare bird found nowhere else in the world. Environmentalists have advocated not giving clearance to the project to protect the bird. Though Javadekar only referred to the radar station, the Indian Coast Guardhas proposed to build the radar station and a diesel power generation unit on the island.
Javadekar argued that there are overriding national security issues that need to be kept in mind. Referring to the Narcondam Island project, he said, "If China is sitting in front and is doing something and we can't even monitor, the country cannot run like that. So these kinds of projects which are of importance to country's security, we have started clearing on a priority basis."
The minister said many projects, like establishment of posts for the coast guard, had been kept pending for years, and given the need to secure the country's coastline, especially after the Mumbai terror attack, the ministry will take up clearing such projects.
The government has indicated that it will not be rushing into a decision on the roadmap to preserve and conserve the bio-diversity-rich Western Ghats. "We will be discussing with all seven state governments, peoples representatives and others. We will hear all of them out," Javadekar said.
Environment minister Prakash Javadekar clears Karwar Naval Base project - Economic Times
@acetophenol @Ravi Nair @SarthakGanguly @levina @sandy_3126 @sancho @Oscar
NEW DELHI: Environment clearance of national security and defence projects will be taken up on priority basis, the government has said.
As part of this exercise, environment minister Prakash Javadekar on Monday announced approval for the Karwar naval base. He, however, indicated that on issues where there is no overriding national security interest, such as conservation and preservation of the Western Ghats, the government would not rush into a decision.
The minister was of the view that only when the country is secure can the environment be secure and its people safe. "That is why I gave priority to them and started seeing files and many of them I have approved as well," Javadekar told reporters during an interaction at the Indian Women's Press Corps.
In this context, the minister said he has cleared 'Project Seabird' in Karwar. "For defence, it is a very significant project. Mumbai is a target as well. An alternative is required and that is why it is a very ambitious and a project of very strategic importance. That too was pending. We have sanctioned it," he said.
'Project Seabird', which aims to make Karwar one of the larger naval bases in the country, will be completed in two phases and will be home to various warships, including India's largest aircraft carrier, INS Vikramaditya. Javadekar clears Karwar Naval Base project
The environment minister's priority list of pending defence related projects includes a project about setting up a radar station at the Narcondam Island in the Andaman and Nicobar chain of islands.
"There is an island called the Coco Island in the Bay of Bengal which is under Myanmar. However, China has its presence on that island. There is a project pending to set up a radar on Narcondam Island, which is just opposite to the Coco Island. We are looking into the project. One radar station has to be established on that island in which 8-10 employees will be stationed. There is no other thing which will create disturbance in the natural environment there," the minister said.
A tiny remote island in the Andaman and Nicobar Island group, Narcondam is home to about 300 Narcondam hornbill, a rare bird found nowhere else in the world. Environmentalists have advocated not giving clearance to the project to protect the bird. Though Javadekar only referred to the radar station, the Indian Coast Guardhas proposed to build the radar station and a diesel power generation unit on the island.
Javadekar argued that there are overriding national security issues that need to be kept in mind. Referring to the Narcondam Island project, he said, "If China is sitting in front and is doing something and we can't even monitor, the country cannot run like that. So these kinds of projects which are of importance to country's security, we have started clearing on a priority basis."
The minister said many projects, like establishment of posts for the coast guard, had been kept pending for years, and given the need to secure the country's coastline, especially after the Mumbai terror attack, the ministry will take up clearing such projects.
The government has indicated that it will not be rushing into a decision on the roadmap to preserve and conserve the bio-diversity-rich Western Ghats. "We will be discussing with all seven state governments, peoples representatives and others. We will hear all of them out," Javadekar said.
Environment minister Prakash Javadekar clears Karwar Naval Base project - Economic Times
