New Delhi, Nov. 18 -- The Supreme Court on Tuesday restored the legal framework that allows retrospective grant of environmental clearances (EC) for projects that began or expanded without prior approval under the 2006 Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) notification.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India B R Gavai, and Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and K Vinod Chandran pronounced three separate judgments, allowing a review petition against the Court's earlier ruling of May 2025, which had struck down the 2017 notification and 2021 Office Memorandum permitting ex post facto environmental clearances.
CJI Gavai and Justice Chandran allowed the review plea, while Justice Bhuyan delivered a strong dissent, refusing to reopen the earlier judgmen...