Public Accounts Committee 2013-2014
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97 PERFORMANCE OF MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND FORESTS [Action Taken by the Government on the Observations/ Recommendations of the Committee contained in their Fifty-seventh Report (15th Lok Sabha] MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND FORESTS PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE 2013-2014 NINETY FOURTH REPORT FIFTEENTH LOK SABHA LOK SABHA SECRETARIAT NEW DELHI NINETY-SEVENTH REPORT PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE (2013-2014) (FIFTEENTH LOK SABHA) PERFORMANCE OF MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND FORESTS [Action Taken by the Government on the Observations/ Recommendations of the Committee contained in their Fifty-seventh Report (15th Lok Sabha)] MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND FORESTS Presented to Lok Sabha on 6 February, 2014 Laid in Rajya Sabha on 6 February, 2014 LOK SABHA SECRETARIAT NEW DELHI February, 2014/Magha, 1935 (Saka) PAC No. 2024 Price: ` 110.00 © 2014 BY LOK SABHA SECRETARIAT Published under Rule 382 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha (Fourteenth Edition) and Printed by the General Manager, Government of India Press, Minto Road, New Delhi-110 002. CONTENTS PAGE COMPOSITION OF THE PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE (2013-14)........................... (iii) INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................ (V) CHAPTER I Report . 1 CHAPTER II Observations/Recommendations which have been accepted by the Government . 8 CHAPTER III Observations/Recommendations which the Committee do not desire to pursue in view of the replies received from the Government . 88 CHAPTER IV Observations/Recommendations in respect of which replies of the Government have not been accepted by the Committee and which require reiteration . 89 CHAPTER V Observations/Recommendations in respect of which the Government have furnished interim replies . 101 APPENDICES I. Minutes of the Sixteenth Sitting of the Public Accounts Committee (2013-14) held on 30.01.2014 . 102 II. Analysis of the Action Taken by the Government on the Observations/Recommendations of the Public Accounts Committee contained in their Fifty-seventh Report (Fifteenth Lok Sabha) . 104 COMPOSITION OF THE PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE (2013-14) Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi — Chairman MEMBERS Lok Sabha 2. Shri Anandrao Adsul 3. Dr. Baliram 4. Shri Ramen Deka 5. Shri Sandeep Dikshit 6. Dr. M. Thambi Durai 7. Shri T.K.S. Elangovan 8. Shri Jayaprakash Hegde 9. Dr. Sanjay Jaiswal 10. Shri Bhartruhari Mahtab 11. Shri Abhijit Mukherjee 12. Shri Sanjay Brijkishorlal Nirupam 13. Shri Ashok Tanwar *14. Shri Ajay Maken 15. Shri Dharmendra Yadav Rajya Sabha 16. Shri Prasanta Chatterjee 17. Shri Prakash Javadekar †18. Shri Ashwani Kumar 19. Shri Satish Chandra Misra ‡20. Dr. V. Maitreyan 21. Shri N.K. Singh 22. Smt. Ambika Soni SECRETARIAT Shri Devender Singh — Joint Secretary * Elected w.e.f. 14th August, 2013 vice Dr. Girija Vyas appointed as Minister of Housing, Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation w.e.f. 17th June, 2013. † Elected w.e.f. 3rd September, 2013 vice Dr. V. Maitreyan ceased to be a Member upon his retirement as a Member of Rajya Sabha w.e.f. 24th July, 2013. ‡ Elected w.e.f. 3rd September, 2013 vice Dr. E.M. Sudarsana Natchiappan appointed as Minister of State for Commerce and Industry w.e.f. 17th June, 2013. (iii) INTRODUCTION I, the Chairman, Public Accounts Committee (2013-14), having been authorized by the Committee, do present this Ninety-seventh Report (Fifteenth Lok Sabha) on Action Taken by Government on the Observations/Recommendations of the Committee contained in their Fifty-seventh Report (Fifteenth Lok Sabha) on "Performance of Environment and Forests" relating to the Ministry of Environment and Forests. 2. The Fifty-seventh Report was presented to Lok Sabha on 27th April, 2012 Replies of the Government to the Observations/Recommendations contained in the report were received on 24th May, 2013. The Public Accounts Committee considered and adopted this Report at the sitting held on 30 January, 2014. Minutes of the sitting are given at Appendix-I. 3. For facility of reference and convenience, the Observations and Recommendations of the Committee have been printed in thick type in the body of the Report. 4. The Committee place on record their appreciation of the assistance rendered to them in the matter by the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. 5. An analysis of the action taken by the Government on the Observations/ Recommendations contained in the Fifty-seventh Report (Fifteenth Lok Sabha) is given at Appendix II. NEW DELHI; DR. MURLI MANOHAR JOSHI 31 January, 2014 Chairman, Public Accounts Committee. 11 Magha, 1935 (Saka) (v) CHAPTER I REPORT This Report of the Public Accounts Committee deals with the Action Taken by the Government on the Observations and Recommendations of the Committee contained in their Fifty-seventh Report (Fifteenth Lok Sabha) on ‘Performance of the Ministry of Environment and Forests’ based on C&AG Report No. 17 of 2010-11, Union Government (Scientific Departments) relating to Ministry of Environment and Forests. 2. The Fifty-seventh Report (Fifteenth Lok Sabha), which was presented to the Lok Sabha and laid in Rajya Sabha on 27 April, 2012. The Report contained twelve Observations/Recommendations. Action Taken Notes in respect of all the Observations/Recommendations have been received from the Ministry of Environment and Forests and categorized as under:— (i) Observations/Recommendations which have been accepted by the Government: Para Nos. 1 to 6 and 8 to 10 Total: 09 Chapter -II (ii) Observations/Recommendations which the Committee do not desire to pursue in view of the replies received from the Government: -NIL- Total: Nil Chapter-III (iii) Observations/Recommendations in respect of which replies of Government have not been accepted by the Committee and which require reiteration: Para Nos. 7 and 11 Total: 02 Chapter -IV (iv) Observations/Recommendations in respect of which Government have furnished interim replies: Para No. 12 Total: 01 Chapter- V 3. The Committee desire that the Ministry of Environment and Forests furnish within three months of the presentation of this report the final/conclusive Action Taken Note on the Observation/Recommendation Number 12 of their Fifty-seventh 2 Report (Fifteenth Lok Sabha) in respect of which Ministry have furnished interim reply. 4. The Action Taken Notes furnished by the Ministry of Environment and Forests on the Observations/Recommendations of the Committee contained in their Fifty-seventh Report (Fifteenth Lok Sabha) have been reproduced in the relevant Chapters of this Report. In the succeeding paragraphs, the Committee have dealt with the Action Taken by the Government on some of their Observations/ Recommendations made in the original Report which either need reiteration or merit comments. Observation/Recommendations (Para No. 7) 5. In the Fifty-seventh Report (Fifteenth Lok Sabha), the Committee observed that the objectives of Botanical Survey of India (BSI) were remodeled to meet the provisions of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Since only a few surveys and explorations were carried out to identify and document the protected areas and fragile ecosystems, the BSI was not effective in meeting its remodeled objectives due to gross inadequacy in identification/documentation and monitoring of plant species. The Committee noted that the Red Data Book was updated in 1990 and last updated version was printed in 2003. The Committee deplored that no further identification of different ethnic groups associated with usage of plant species for different purposes was done after 1990. Admittedly, the BSI is also hamstrung by serious financial shortages, infrastructure and dearth of manpower especially taxonomists. The Committee regretted to note that BSI miserably failed to fulfil its objectives and assigned role in meeting India's commitments to CBD due to want of necessary infrastructure and requisite manpower with the BSI for conservation of bio-diversity. The Committee therefore recommended that:— (i) Necessary resources/infrastructure be made available to the BSI for effective and speedy conservation of India's precious bio-diversity and to meet its commitment on the Convention on Biological Diversity; (ii) The ethnobotanically important plant species be inventorised and a suitable publication brought out periodically for sustainable utilization of bio-resources; (iii) The Red Data Book showing the status of threatened, rare, endangered, endemic, vulnerable species, extinct species be updated urgently to give necessary spurt to conservation efforts to these threatened and vanishing species; (iv) Comprehensive survey and documentation may be done of bio-diversity hotspots, fragile ecosystems and sacred groves for their proper conservation; (v) The monitoring mechanism for ex-situ and in-situ conservation be strengthened to conserve India's great biological diversity; (vi) The causes of environmental degradation due to developmental activities be studied closely and suitable corrective measures taken; 3 (vii) The format of tour reports of the visiting Scientists/Researchers be suitable devised so as to make them all encompassing and result- oriented; and (viii) The education programme need to be revisited with specific changes in the curricula for creating interest in the students about bio-diversity and its importance in our life. 6. In its Action Taken Notes, the Ministry of Environment and Forests has stated as under :— “Recommendations encapsulated in subsequent items (i) to (viii) of Para 7 of the Report are