Mangaluru, May 28: Union Minister for Environment and Forests Prakash Javadekar said that the Ministry of Environment and Forest which had been perceived as a ministry of road blocks and speed breaks - had been converted into a facilitating ministry for both effective environment protection and development, under the NDA government in the past one year after coming to power.
Addressing a press conference during his visit to Mangaluru on Thursday, he told mediapersons that environment protection and development were both possible together. The ministry has made processes online to bring transparency and cleared several projects of public utility including over a hundred projects in Karnataka state. The ministry has come up with several rules for the protection of environment such as solid waste rules, e-waste rules, plastic waste rules and hazardous waste rules and the Government has started making policy-based decisions in this regard, he said, crediting the progress to the NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Speaking about the proposal to create buffer zone for wildlife sanctuaries and national parks, the minister said he had suggested the Government of Karnataka to open a new tiger sanctuary in the state. There are around 600 protected wildlife areas in the country and there was a need to create a well-defined buffer zone around these areas where the developmental activities will be regulated, not banned. More than 170 such eco-sensitive zones have been cleared by the ministry after the court passed an order in this regard, he informed, adding that all the necessary eco-sensitive zones would be cleared by the end of the year to bring more clarity.
He also said that the Western Ghats and the vast coastline of the country would be protected by the ministry, with allowance for development in a sustainable manner.
Listing the achievements made by Modi-led NDA government in the country, he said that the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana launched by Narendra Modi had set a record by achieving as many as 15 crore new bank accounts in 100 days. This is a first in India. For the first time, the poor in the country have social security after the Jeevan Suraksha insurance scheme was launched, with over 8 crore poor people having paid the premium in the first 20 days. The government is also ensuring people's participation in governance through Swacch Bharat cleanliness drive and other schemes, he said, adding that the NDA government also placed emphasis on rural and urban housing, and creation of employment for youth.
Mr Javadekar said that he had attended public meetings in Coimbatore, Palakkad, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargod in the past week and would hold four such meetings in Maharashtra in the next few days.
Dakshina Kannada MP Nalin Kumar Kateel and other BJP leaders were present on the occasion.
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