Close on the heels of the Joshimath crisis, the Centre has issued a standard operating procedure asking agencies to mandatorily implement environmental safeguards in all roads and highway projects falling within 100 kilometres of the International Border or the Line of Control.
The standard operating procedure (SOP) issued by the Union Environment ministry on February 6 stresses on mandatory disaster management plans, risk assessment and eco-fragility studies and precautions during tunnelling.
The guidelines come seven months after the ministry waived the requirement for environmental clearance for highway projects up to 100 kilometres of the International Border (IB) or the Line of Control (LoC).
