Even as the Madras High Court’s Madurai Bench on Thursday restrained the government from commencing work on the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) until a clearance is obtained from TNPCB, there is some ambiguity about the project’s Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).

The Rs 1,500-crore project is coming up at Pottipuram in Theni district of Tamil Nadu.

While INO claims the EIA was done by the Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History (SACON), the Coimbatore-based organisation says it has given a report covering only the ecological and biological aspects of the project.

Moreover, SACON is not accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Education and Training (NABET) and Quality Council of India (QCI) as an EIA consultant, according to activists.

G. Sundarrajan of Poovulagin Nanbargal said “SACON is not accredited by NABET as an EIA consultant to conduct and give an EIA report. A proper EIA has not been done for the project.” The INO was “deliberately attempting to mislead the general public and the civil society by making an ‘ecological’ impact assessment sound like an ‘environmental’ impact assessment,” he added.

When contacted, SACON Director P.A. Azeez told The Hindu , “We have decided not to get accreditation from NABET since we don’t want to make a presentation to defend a project. We can only defend our report, which in this case, is focussed on the biological and ecological aspects of the project. We stand by our report.”

Replying to a query, Mr. Azeez said the SACON study, conducted for over three months, has not gone into the effects of the project’s tunnelling activities.

Meanwhile, according to the detailed project report, SACON had taken up the EIA study for the project and their recommendations and conclusion would form the basis for Environmental Management Plan for the project. The Ministry of Environment and Forests has given environmental clearance for the project.

A first step: Vaiko

In Madurai, MDMK general secretary Vaiko said “the interim injunction given by the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court has given an impetus to continue with the protest against the India based Neutrino Observatory research project.”

Reacting to the High Court’s interim stay, he told reporters that it was only the first legal step towards stalling the highly dangerous project that would bring about great damage not only to Theni district, but also the five southern districts.

“The interim stay meant that no work should be carried out at the site hereafter,” he said.

Mr. Vaiko accused the officials of the INO project of having deliberately suppressed the fact that Pottipuram hill, the site for the proposed INO was as close as 2.3 km from the Mathikettan Shola National Park. “No construction is allowed within the 10 km radius of any National Park, and INO had not got any clearance on this aspect,” he said.

Recalling that the UNICEF had declared Western Ghats as a Heritage Site, he said the INO project would destroy the mountain range.

The project which was initially proposed at the Nilgiris and near Suruli Falls had to be shifted following protests for its negative impact on the environment, livelihood of the people, he said.

(With additional

reporting by S. Sundar)

SACON says its report covers only ecological aspects