Maha govt hopes Lavasa's phase II will not face hurdles

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government does not foresee any major hurdle in the execution of the second phase of Lavasa Hill City project in Pune district, provided it conformed to the Centre’s guidelines, a state minister said today.

“We will examine all aspects of the project following the green clearance granted by Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. Some restrictions can be imposed, and if the Centre’s guidelines are strictly complied with, I don’t see any major hurdle in the way,” Minister of State for Environment Sachin Ahir told reporters.

The minister, who belongs to NCP, said if the government found anything wrong in the first phase that could be considered violative of the Centre’s guidelines, the Bombay High Court will be informed.

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The Union Environment Ministry today gave the nod for the first phase of the ambitious project, which is embroiled in a controversy over violation of environment protection norms.

The Ministry’s decision came after the Maharashtra government had filed a case against Lavasa promoters for alleged violations of Environment Protection Act (EPA).

Filing of the case under the EPA was one of the key pre-conditions set by the Environment Ministry for granting clearance to the first phase of the project.

PTI