UN environment chief Erik Solheim has lauded India for launching a single-window hub for online submission and monitoring of proposals submitted to the Environment Ministry to seek various types of clearances, and said it is an important step in ensuring such clearances are “transparent and efficient”. Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday launched the Pro-Active and Responsive facilitation by Interactive, Virtuous and Environmental Single-window Hub (PARIVESH), a single-window hub for online submission, monitoring and management of proposals. Solheim said the launch would also ensure that “we protect the country’s tremendous natural wealth”. The prime minister launched ‘PARIVESH’ on the occasion of World Biofuel Day yesterday.

“Congratulations to @PMOIndia and @drharshvardhan! This is an important step towards ensuring that environmental clearances are transparent, efficient and that we protect the country’s tremendous natural wealth. @moefcc @UNinIndia @UNEnvironmentAP @UNEnvironment,” tweeted Solheim, the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme.

In a series of tweets, Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan had said PARIVESH automated the entire process of submitting applications and tracking the status of such proposals at each stage of processing.

He had also emphasised that with the launch of PARIVESH, the prime minister’s vision for e-governance and enhancing ease of doing responsible business is being translated into action by the ministry.

“With PARIVESH, the Environment Ministry has become more of a facilitator than a regulator. PARIVESH is a work flow-based application, based on the concept of web architecture.

“It has been rolled out for online submission, monitoring and management of proposals submitted by project proponents to the Environment Ministry as well as to the state-level Environmental Impact Assessment Authorities (SEIAA) to seek various types of clearances – environment, forest, wildlife and coastal regulation zone clearances – from central, state and district-level authorities,” he said.