Indian Biodiversity Congress has strongly opposed the Government’s proposed move on setting up a National Investment Board.
The event here, attended by some 650 delegates from 22 States, passed a resolution endorsing the view of the Ministry of Environment and Forests, which had reportedly expressed reservations over the issue.
“Rushing through a NIB to bypass all important assessment and therefore all environment impact responsibilities is anti-constitution, anti-national....”, environmentalist Vandana Shiva said.
President of Kerala State Biodiversity Board, V S Vijayan, termed the NIB “most disastrous thing“.
Karnataka Pollution Control Board Chairman, Vaman Acharya, said there is a need to make biodiversity impact assessment study mandatory vis-a-vis development projects for which impact assessment study is a must before clearing them.
The Congress also asked the National Biodiversity Authority to spell out its stand on genetically modified crops.
In another resolution, it said the report of the Western Ghats ecology expert panel should be implemented with the involvement of state biodiversity boards and local communities.
“The heritage status of the Western Ghats to be maintained, as the status would help conservation and sustainable utilisation of biodiversity”, it said.