The West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) said that the AIIMS at Kalyani, which is scheduled to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually on Sunday, does not have environmental clearance.

According to the guidelines of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), any project which is bigger than 20,000 square metres requires an environment clearance (EC), WBPCB Chairman Kalyan Rudra said on Saturday.

The AIIMS Kalyani, located in Nadia district of the state, has been set up on an area larger than 20,000 square metres.

"The authorities of the AIIMS Kalyani had applied for environmental clearance on October 6, 2022. Its construction started before they obtained the clearance, Rudra told a press conference.

So, the project is under the violation category, he said.

Following the MoEFCC guidelines, the WBPCB imposed an environmental damage cost and a penalty that summed up to over Rs 15 crore, Rudra added.

The AIIMS Kalyani has, however, applied for an exemption contending that it was a healthcare facility and does not require an environmental clearance," he said.

But the state government has no authority to exempt the amount, Rudra said.

"The WBPCB filed a case before ACJM's court in Kalyani in this connection," he said. -- PTI