In a bid to bring in increased transparency in its consent giving functions, the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) has decided to introduce online application system very soon. Now, industries willing to set up units can file applications at the click of the mouse from anywhere in the world.
Consent to Establish and Consent of Operate, the two major permissions that the Board sanctions, can be availed online in next few months.
The Board is sensitising the industries about the online system and seeking their feedback on improving it.
The online consent will mean that industries can submit all necessary documents during the application process and then track the same.
This will dispense with physical submission of the applications which consumes time since one has to go to the Board office for the purpose.
“A major advantage of the new system is that it will save time. As soon as the application is submitted, it will be received by the Board and queries can be posted online almost immediately. This will mean that there is no time gap between application submission and receipt unlike in the manual system,” Nihar Ranjan Sahoo, Senior Environment Scientist with the SPCB said.
That apart, transparency on progress of the application is expected to improve. Sahoo said top brass of the Board such as the Chairman and Member Secretary can locate an application as and when they wish which will lead to expedited disposal. Besides, the applicant too can track the status.
The Board which has been sending its officials to different industries to train them as well as elicit their response on the new system is hopeful of formally introducing it by August.
The National Informatics Centre will host the online application and consent system.
