Singh reportedly asked Sharma to restrain more than once when the commerce minister went on offensive against the Natarajan, who was inducted as a minister of state for independent charge in July this year.
Sharma went to the extent of saying that Natarajan was oblivious of environmental norms and the policy, sources familiar with the developments said.
It all started when Natarajan reportedly opposed the provision in the policy which sought delegation of environment clearance powers to chief executive officer of the proposed National Manufacturing and Industrial Zones (NMIZ) to operate in 2,500 acres.
Her objection to the provision was on the basis that such delegation of powers would require an amendment to Water and Air Acts and will also open the policy to judicial review in wake of recent court judgments. The powers to give environment clearance are with the central and the state governments depending on scope of the project. Read the full report here.
Source: Chetan Chauhan, Hindustan Times, New Delhi.
