India, Nov. 19 -- 1 majority decision on Tuesday, recalled its May 16 judgment against retrospective environmental clearances, paving the way for the grant of such approvals by the Centre and other authorities to projects found violating environmental norms on payment of heavy penalties.

Numerous vital public projects will be stalled or demolished, and thousands of crores of rupees would go to waste if the May 16 verdict, which barred the Centre from granting retrospective environmental clearances (ECs) to projects, is not recalled, Chief Justice of India (CJI) BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran said in two separate and concurring judgments.

The majority verdicts effectively revive, for now, the controversial 2017 notification and a ...