Hearing of a case seeking vacation of the stay order on felling of trees in the proposed Posco steel project area in Jagatsinghpur district by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) could not be completed on Tuesday. The tribunal fixed January 23 as the next date of hearing in the case.
Earlier on January 13, the NGT had postponed the hearing on a petition to vacate the stay order for lack of quorum.
Notably, the State Government could not acquire land for the project in May last year after the NGT banned tree felling in the project area. As of now, without lifting the ban on tree felling, the clearance granted to the Posco by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) remains incomplete.
The State Government also cannot transfer the additional 1,000 acres of land to the project unless the NGT lifts the stay order on tree felling.