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Environmental clearance by States: SEIAA, SEAC and the EIA Notification, 2006

By CAShorts DeskPublished Sources: MoEFCC (EIA Notification 2006 as amended to July 2026; S.O. 134(E); Annual Report 2024-25); PARIVESH; Supreme Court; Free Press Journal; Dainik Jagran; North Block South Block

Why in news: Madhya Pradesh's SEIAA chairman wrote to the Chief Secretary in October 2026 seeking action over 237 'deemed' clearances he says bypassed the authority.

Environmental clearance by States: SEIAA, SEAC and the EIA Notification, 2006
Illustration (AI-generated)

Under the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification, 2006, issued under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, Category A projects need prior environmental clearance from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and Category B projects from a State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA). Madhya Pradesh's SEIAA chairman has questioned 237 clearances issued as 'deemed' permissions.

Syllabus: Prelims · Environment & Ecology; GS2 · Statutory & Regulatory Bodies; GS3 · Environment & Conservation

Why this matters for UPSC

GS3 (environmental impact assessment) and GS2 (statutory bodies): Prelims can ask who clears Category A and B projects, what B1 and B2 mean and how a SEIAA is constituted; Mains, whether State-level clearance balances speed with scrutiny.

In short

Environmental clearance is the prior approval listed projects need under the EIA Notification, 2006; State authorities (SEIAAs) decide Category B cases, balancing speed against scrutiny.

Category B clearance, stepby stepScreeninginto B1 andB2Scopingfixes Termsof ReferencePublichearing bypollution boardAppraisal bythe SEACSEIAAdecideswithin 45 days

State-level clearance works only if SEIAAs are staffed on time and decide on record; deadlines should speed scrutiny, never replace it.

Why it matters

A family living beside a proposed stone quarry and a builder planning a housing complex both depend on a SEIAA. For the family, the State authority and its expert committee are where the project's dust, water use and traffic are examined, and where a public hearing may give them a say. For the builder, an authority without members, or one caught in a dispute, means months of waiting, while a missed deadline can let a project go ahead on the committee's word alone. When an authority's chair and the State officers who run its office fall out, honest applicants wait and doubtful ones may slip through. The larger question is how India keeps environmental checks strict while keeping them quick.

Prelims pointers

  • Legal basis: the EIA Notification, 2006 was issued under sections 3(1) and 3(2)(v) of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986; SEIAAs are constituted under section 3(3).
  • General Condition: a Category B project within 5 km of a Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 protected area, critically polluted area, eco-sensitive area or inter-State boundary is appraised centrally.
  • B2 projects need no EIA report, no scoping and no public consultation; the SEAC decides B1 or B2 at screening, following MoEFCC's guidelines.
  • Public hearing: held at or near the site by the State Pollution Control Board or UT Pollution Control Committee, which sends the proceedings to the regulator within 45 days.
  • SEIAA membership: a chairman and one member, both experts meeting Appendix VI criteria, and a member-secretary who is a serving State officer familiar with environmental laws.
  • SEAC: composed like the Central Expert Appraisal Committee, with at most 15 members; meets at least monthly; one SEAC may serve several States with their concurrence.
  • PARIVESH: launched in August 2018 and rolled out to all States and UTs in 2019; it auto-generates appraisal agendas on a first-come, first-served basis.
  • Ex post facto clearance: since Vanashakti (2026), only a narrowly tailored notification under section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 may allow it; Article 142 relief stays open.

Practise a UPSC-style question

With reference to the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification, 2006, consider the following statements:

1. Category A projects need prior environmental clearance from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on an Expert Appraisal Committee's recommendation.

2. Category B projects are cleared by the State Pollution Control Board on the recommendation of the State Level Expert Appraisal Committee.

3. The screening stage, which sorts projects into B1 and B2, applies to Category B projects.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. (a) 1 and 2 only
  2. (b) 2 and 3 only
  3. (c) 1 and 3 only
  4. (d) 1, 2 and 3
Show the answer

Answer: (c) 1 and 3 only

Answer: (c) 1 and 3 only. The State authority, not the pollution control board, clears Category B projects.

Statement 1: correct. Category A projects are cleared by the Centre in MoEFCC on the recommendation of an Expert Appraisal Committee that the Centre constitutes.

Statement 2: incorrect. Category B projects are cleared by the State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA), deciding on the SEAC's recommendation; in this process the State Pollution Control Board runs the public hearing.

Statement 3: correct. Screening is the first stage for Category B projects: the SEAC decides whether a project needs an EIA report (B1) or not (B2).

Eliminate: Be sure of statement 2 first: the SEIAA, not the State Pollution Control Board, grants Category B clearance. Out: (a), (b), (d).

Trap: Swapped attribution. The State Pollution Control Board does have a role in clearance, as it holds the public hearing, so pinning the final decision on it sounds plausible.

Remember: Category A: MoEFCC on EAC advice. Category B: SEIAA on SEAC advice. Screening into B1 and B2 is for Category B.

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