Wildlife conservation monitoring
The Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (SC-NBWL) – India’s largest wildlife conservation watchdog – has approved 96.5% of the proposed industrial and infrastructure projects on protected forest lands that it has evaluated over the past decade, according to an analysis of official records, with activists accusing the body of rubber-stamping permits with little scrutiny.
An examination of meeting minutes data available online since 2016 shows that across the 52 meetings held in this period, 2,448 development proposals were presented to the Committee: 572 were postponed, and of the 1,876 proposals considered, 1,810 were approved and 66 were rejected.
The work of both the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and its standing committee has been criticized by experts, with a recent petition filed in the Delhi High Court by 10 environmentalists and activists last week alleging that the NBWL was “recklessly clearing projects” with a high approval rate.
Acting on the petition, the Delhi High Commission pulled out the Center on Wednesday “to treat every statutory body as an extension of the arm of the government”.
A bench of Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia sought a response from the government within four weeks. “…If what he (petitioners’ counsel) says is true…check the composition of the council…officers at the highest level in the country are members, and if (the provisions of the Wildlife Act) state that the standing committee will be constituted by the council, and not the government, cannot you simply distinguish between the statutory council and the functions of the government?” said CJ Upadhyaya.
The decisions of the Standing Committee carry great weight. It is the primary body through which projects seeking land within national parks, reserves and tiger reserves are cleared, and with the full board rarely meeting, its approvals are virtually final.
The SC-NBWL exercises fully delegated powers and is responsible for evaluating projects requiring wildlife permits. Before its last meeting in 2025, the NBWL met in 2012, according to publicly available records, though it is mandated to meet at least once a year.
The NBWL is chaired by the Prime Minister and includes members of Parliament, representatives of state governments, central ministries, government research institutions, five representatives of NGOs and 10 eminent conservationists and environmentalists nominated by the Centre.
The SC-NBWL is headed by the Union Environment Minister, with the Additional Director General of Forests (Wildlife) as Member Secretary, and also comprises the Secretary, Environment, Director General of Forests and Special Secretary (DGF&SS), among other members and experts.
A decade-long data evaluation shows consistently high approval rates. In 2018, 2021 and the first meeting in 2026, every proposal considered was approved, and none were rejected. Even in 2020, when the committee recorded its lowest approval rate, it approved 82 of the 92 projects under consideration — an approval rate of about 89%.
Of the two meetings held in 2026, the data evaluated cover only one meeting – held in March 2026, where 70 proposals were submitted; Nine were postponed and the remaining 61 were liquidated. The last 91st SC-NBWL meeting was held in Coimbatore on July 9. More than 100 proposals were considered, although meeting minutes are not yet available.
According to the agenda, 118 proposals were included for evaluation, including 24 projects in the defense sector, 23 projects related to roads and bridges, and 12 energy transmission lines.
“The standing committee considered more than 100 proposals across the country relating to activities such as roads, bridges, defense infrastructure, drinking water supply, telecom towers… The proposals were evaluated on the basis of their environmental impacts, importance to public welfare and national development and adequacy of mitigation measures to ensure the conservation of wildlife and their habitats,” a statement issued by the government on Thursday said.
Experts said the National Water Bank and its standing committee should not be judged on the basis of approval or rejection rates, but rather on the time spent approving each project.
“Even at the recent Coimbatore meeting, more than 100 proposals were considered in just over an hour or so. The message that came out was that approving these projects was almost a matter of pride,” said environment lawyer Ritwik Dutta, who is also part of the Legal Initiative for Forests and Environment (LIFE). “We have no problem in approving a project, if it is done with due consideration and all checks and balances are followed. However, at present, this does not seem to be done. In meetings, more than 100 to 150 projects are heard and approved within an hour or two. How are appropriate scientific and legal minds applied in such a short period?” He added.
Government data, submitted to Parliament, showed that between April 2019 and March 2024, nearly 95,724.99 hectares of forest land within wildlife reserves and national parks were converted for non-forest development projects, with 881 such projects approved – including railway lines, road expansion and mining.
Retired IFS officer MI Varghese said that while an in-depth assessment had been done in the past before granting clearances, the process now seemed more urgent.
“The huge number of proposals being accepted is alarming. Not enough time is being spent on projects to assess the environmental impacts. Site visits are also needed, along with a proper study to determine the extent of the project’s impact on the area and its surroundings,” Varghese said.
