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Environment Ministry Resumes Appraisal of Post-Facto EC Proposals After Supreme Court Ruling
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News18•02-10-2026, 21:45
Environment Ministry Resumes Appraisal of Post-Facto EC Proposals After Supreme Court Ruling
- •The environment ministry has instructed expert panels to restart processing "post-facto" environmental clearance (EC) proposals.
- •Post-facto ECs are for projects that began work or expansion without prior environmental clearance.
- •This decision follows a July Supreme Court ruling allowing the Centre to finalize pending post-facto EC proposals.
- •The Supreme Court recognized the Centre's power to grant post-facto ECs, but only through a valid statutory notification, not an Office Memorandum (OM).
- •The ministry's directive on September 30 allows processing of existing proposals but prohibits accepting new ones.
Key Questions Answered
The environment ministry took this action following a Supreme Court ruling in July that allowed the Centre to bring pending, dismissed, or returned post-facto environmental clearance proposals to their logical conclusion.
A post-facto environmental clearance is granted to projects that began work, expansion, or modernisation without receiving prior environmental clearance as mandated by law.
The 2017 notification provided a six-month window for non-compliant projects to apply for clearances, whereas the 2021 office memorandum introduced an administrative standard operating procedure without the force of law.
