QRant: Will The Environment Ministry Stop Playing With Lives?

The Ministry of Environment and Forests wants to change environmental laws, but the repercussions could be deadly.

Every year, people are killed when houses built on ecologically fragile zones, collapse or flood. (Image Altered by The Quint)

Every year, people are killed when houses built on ecologically fragile zones, collapse or are flooded. Chennai remembers this especially well. In 2015, 347 were killed by flooding which was exacerbated because the city is partially built on wetlands.

Laws are supposed to prevent construction in these areas, but the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has proposed changes that would have the opposite effect. Five key laws could be changed which would facilitate construction on wetlands and in coastal areas, and which could bypass the Environment Impact Assessment process. Some of these changes have already been made, while others await public comment.

Government officials say these changes are made in the public interest. But where does the public interest really lie?

Video Editor: Hitesh Singh
Camera: Shiv Kumar Maurya

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