New Delhi, March 22 -- The standing committee of the national board for wildlife has decided that it will consider proposals for wildlife clearance for projects only after they have received forest approvals, a new protocol that officials said were aimed at avoiding conflicting decisions and to enable higher scrutiny of projects in eco-sensitive zones.
Some experts, however, warned that granting forest clearance before wildlife clearance could create a fait accompli situation, as forest clearance itself is a major screening step in eco-sensitive zones.
In a letter dated March 18, the wildlife division of the Union environment ministry told all states and Union territories that "proposals requiring recommendations/approvals of the SCNBWL (...