The proposed Shree Jagannath International Airport in Odisha has received Stage-I (in-principle) forest clearance from the Government of India, marking a major milestone for the project.
Key Highlights
Clearance granted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).
Approval allows diversion of about 27.886 hectares of forest land for the airport project.
It is a Stage-I (in-principle) approval, not final clearance.
Construction can begin only after obtaining Stage-II (final) clearance.
Considered a major step forward for the greenfield airport project.
Conditions for Final Approval
Compensatory afforestation to offset forest loss
Payment of forest diversion charges
Measures for wildlife and ecosystem protection
Compliance with environmental norms before Stage-II clearance
Legal & Policy Framework
Approval granted under:
Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 (now Van Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan Adhiniyam)
Forest clearance in India follows a two-stage process:
Stage I: In-principle approval
Stage II: Final approval after compliance
Project Details
Location: Puri district, Odisha
Type: Greenfield International Airport
Estimated cost: ~₹5,600+ crore
Development mode: Public-Private Partnership (PPP)
Proposed runway length: ~3,700 meters
Background
Proposed to improve connectivity to Puri, a major religious destination.
Puri is famous for:
Jagannath Temple
Annual Rath Yatra
The project had earlier faced delays due to:
Environmental concerns
Impact on coastal ecosystem and wildlife
Greenfield Airports in India
Developed under Greenfield Airports Policy, 2008
Requires:
Site clearance
Environmental & forest clearances
Defence clearance
Aviation Sector (India)
India is among the fastest-growing aviation markets globally
Focus on regional connectivity under UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme
Environmental Governance
MoEFCC is responsible for:
Environmental clearance (EC)
Forest clearance (FC)
Wildlife protection
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