BHUBANESWAR: JSW Utkal Steel Ltd (JUSL) on Monday received the environmental clearance (EC) from the Ministry of Environment & Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) for setting up a greenfield integrated steel plant of 13.2 million tonne per annum (MTPA) crude steel in Jagatsinghpur district.
A wholly-owned subsidiary of JSW Steel Ltd, the company has proposed to invest Rs 65,000 crore for the steel plant and another Rs 2,100 for captive jetties with handling capacity of 52 MTPA. The mega project will generate employment opportunities for 72,000 persons (direct-15,000 and indirect-57,000), said the EC report.
One of the largest steel making project in the country to be cleared by the MoEF in the recent past, the company said that the phase-wise work for the project will start once the land is handed over to the company by the State government.
The Ministry accorded the EC after successful public hearings. The project, though, had faced local opposition with residents of Dhinkia and nearby villages protesting against land acquisition.JUSL has earmarked a budget of around Rs 200 crore for social interventions under public health, education, skill development, social infrastructure, waste management, environment, drinking water and women empowerment.
Based on the environment impact assessment (EIA), the company has plans to incur capital expenditure for environment protection and mitigation measures. It has proposed an annual recurring cost of Rs 200 crore towards environment protection.The Ministry has asked the company to develop a green belt over an area of 372 hectares and complete the plantation programme in three years.
The steel maker has also been asked to give due publicity to the environmental clearance granted by the Ministry along with the environmental conditions and safeguards at the company cost within seven days and the same should be available at the company website permanently. The company will submit copies of the EC to the heads of local bodies, panchayats and municipal bodies in addition to the relevant offices of the government for its display for 30 days from the date of receipt.
Any appeal against the EC by the objectors should be filed in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) within 30 days of the notification as prescribed under Section 16 of NGT Act, 2010. The High Level Clearance Authority chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik gave its approval to the 10 mega project proposals of JSW in June 2017 and the project capacity was later revised to 13.2 MTPA.
PROJECT PLAN
The company proposes to invest Rs 65,000 crore
It has earmarked a budget of around Rs 200 crore for social interventions
The project will generate employment opportunities for 72,000
Company asked to develop a green belt over an area of 372 hectares, complete plantation in three years