Green laws passed at instance of foreign powers: NHAI in Karnataka HC

THE NATIONAL Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has landed in trouble in the Karnataka High Court for claiming in a submission that the Environment Protection Act, 1986 was “passed by Parliament not only for protection of environment but also at the instance of foreign powers” while referring to a UN conference.

The submission was made by a Deputy General Manager of NHAI in objections to a writ petition filed by the NGO, United Conservation Movement, against a 2013 notification of the Union Environment Ministry doing away with environment impact assessment reports for widening national highways of over 100 km by more than 40 metres.