Make Polavaram project records public: CIC

The Central Information Commission has directed the Environment Ministry to place on its web site the records related to Rs 16,000-crore Polavaram dam project after the ministry told an RTI applicant that it was difficult to trace the documents as they were over a decade old.

Suresh Kumar, an environment scientist, has sought from the Ministry the details of Impact Assessment of the controversial project in Andhra Pradesh but he was informed that the records being a decade old are difficult to be located.

Kumar complained that the official web site of the Ministry does not have information as required by Section 4 (1)(b) of the RTI Act in the same manner as it was provided for other projects, prompting him to file the RTI plea.

A Ministry official, however, countered the allegations saying while most of the information about the project has been provided on the web site, some documents need to be digitised and posted on the portal.

He said delay in furnishing information was because of exigencies related to various projects, court cases before the Supreme Court, National Green Tribunal, and High Court besides Parliament related works.