{
  "terms": [
    {
      "id": "psp",
      "term": { "en": "Pumped storage project (PSP)", "mr": "उदंचन जलविद्युत प्रकल्प" },
      "match": ["pumped storage project", "pumped storage projects", "pumped storage", "PSP", "PSPs", "PSH", "उदंचन"],
      "category": "energy",
      "short": { "en": "Two reservoirs at different heights: water is pumped up when power is cheap and released through turbines when power is needed." },
      "body": { "en": "A pumped storage project stores electricity as water held high up. When there is surplus power (for example, midday solar), pumps lift water from a lower reservoir to an upper one. At peak demand the water flows back down through turbines. It is a battery made of dams and tunnels: it does not create energy, it moves it in time and loses part of it on the way. In the Sahyadri, the steep drop of the Ghats gives the height difference ('head') these projects need, which is why so many are proposed here." },
      "related": ["open-loop", "closed-loop", "round-trip-efficiency", "mw-mwh", "bess"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumped-storage_hydroelectricity", "title": "Wikipedia: Pumped-storage hydroelectricity" },
        { "url": "https://atb.nrel.gov/electricity/2023/pumped_storage_hydropower", "title": "NREL Annual Technology Baseline 2023: Pumped storage hydropower", "outletId": "nrel" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "open-loop",
      "term": { "en": "Open loop", "mr": "खुला प्रवाह (ओपन लूप)" },
      "match": ["open loop", "open-loop", "off-stream open loop"],
      "category": "energy",
      "short": { "en": "A PSP with at least one reservoir on a river or stream, so it changes natural water flow." },
      "body": { "en": "In an open-loop project one or both reservoirs sit on a river, stream or existing dam and exchange water with it. The EAC calls a project 'open loop' even when its reservoirs are on seasonal nalas, as for Amba. Open-loop projects affect river flow, fish and downstream users more than closed-loop ones. The EAC applies a separate set of standard conditions (its 14 Aug 2023 'Specific ToR' for open-loop PSPs)." },
      "related": ["closed-loop", "psp", "tor"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://atb.nrel.gov/electricity/2023/pumped_storage_hydropower", "title": "NREL ATB 2023: closed vs open loop", "outletId": "nrel" },
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1226853020_1778155785133.pdf", "title": "EAC 53rd meeting minutes, 29–30 Apr 2026 (Amba termed open loop because both reservoirs are on seasonal nalas)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-04-30" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "closed-loop",
      "term": { "en": "Closed loop", "mr": "बंद प्रवाह (क्लोज्ड लूप)" },
      "match": ["closed loop", "closed-loop", "close loop", "off-stream closed loop"],
      "category": "energy",
      "short": { "en": "A PSP whose two reservoirs are built away from rivers; water is filled once and then recirculated." },
      "body": { "en": "In a closed-loop project both reservoirs are artificial and not on a natural stream. ('Off-stream' only means away from the main river; an off-stream project can still be open loop, like Bhivpuri.) Water is drawn once from a nearby source to fill them, then topped up for evaporation. This avoids damming a river, but the reservoirs, roads and muck dumps still need land, often forest on hill tops and slopes. A 2025 central notification exempts off-stream closed-loop schemes from CEA concurrence of their project reports, whatever their cost." },
      "related": ["open-loop", "psp", "cea-concurrence"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumped-storage_hydroelectricity", "title": "Wikipedia: Pumped-storage hydroelectricity (closed-loop systems)" },
        { "url": "https://atb.nrel.gov/electricity/2023/pumped_storage_hydropower", "title": "NREL ATB 2023", "outletId": "nrel" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "round-trip-efficiency",
      "term": { "en": "Round-trip efficiency", "mr": "फेरी-कार्यक्षमता" },
      "match": ["round-trip efficiency", "round trip efficiency", "cycle efficiency", "cycle loss"],
      "category": "energy",
      "short": { "en": "Share of the electricity used for pumping that comes back as electricity. For PSPs, typically 70–80%." },
      "body": { "en": "Pumping water uphill takes more electricity than the water gives back when it falls. If round-trip efficiency is 77.5%, every 100 units used for pumping return 77.5 units: 22.5 units are lost as heat and friction. That is why a PSP is a net consumer of power, and why what charges it (coal or surplus solar) decides whether it cuts or adds emissions. NREL's literature review found 70–87%, with 80% as a central estimate." },
      "related": ["psp", "mw-mwh", "capacity-factor"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://atb.nrel.gov/electricity/2023/pumped_storage_hydropower", "title": "NREL ATB 2023: round-trip efficiency 70–87%, central 80%", "outletId": "nrel" },
        { "url": "https://www.dtnext.in/news/tamilnadu/tnerc-approves-tariff-for-500-mw-pumped-storage-power-purchase", "title": "TNERC PSP tariff order 2026 (22.5% cycle loss)", "outletId": "dt-next" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "mw-mwh",
      "term": { "en": "MW, MWh and GWh", "mr": "मेगावॅट, मेगावॅट-तास" },
      "match": ["MWh", "GWh", "megawatt", "megawatt-hour"],
      "category": "unit",
      "short": { "en": "MW is how fast power flows; MWh (or GWh = 1,000 MWh) is how much energy is stored or delivered." },
      "body": { "en": "Capacity in megawatts (MW) is like the width of a tap. Storage in megawatt-hours (MWh) is like the size of the tank. A 1,500 MW project that can run at full power for 6 hours stores about 9,000 MWh, or 9 GWh. MoUs usually quote MW; for storage, the GWh figure matters more. Where minutes give only hours of operation, we estimate storage and mark it as an estimate." },
      "related": ["psp", "capacity-factor"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kilowatt-hour", "title": "Wikipedia: Kilowatt-hour (energy vs power)" },
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1228700138_1779444670670.pdf", "title": "EAC 54th meeting minutes: 'installed capacity of 2000 MW and with a storage capacity of 12740 MWH' (Nayagaon)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-05-08" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "capacity-factor",
      "term": { "en": "Capacity factor", "mr": "क्षमता वापर घटक" },
      "match": ["capacity factor", "plant load factor"],
      "category": "energy",
      "short": { "en": "Actual yearly output divided by what the plant would produce running flat out all year." },
      "body": { "en": "A PSP is meant to run only a few hours a day. Karjat's EC figures (6,241.5 million units a year from 3,000 MW) imply a capacity factor of about 24%, or roughly 5.7 full-power hours a day. Capacity factor matters for working out yearly losses and emissions." },
      "related": ["mw-mwh", "round-trip-efficiency"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://atb.nrel.gov/electricity/2023/pumped_storage_hydropower", "title": "NREL ATB 2023", "outletId": "nrel" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "bess",
      "term": { "en": "Battery energy storage system (BESS)", "mr": "बॅटरी ऊर्जा साठवण प्रणाली" },
      "match": ["BESS", "battery energy storage", "battery storage"],
      "category": "energy",
      "short": { "en": "Grid-scale batteries (mostly lithium-ion) that store electricity in containers, needing far less land than a PSP." },
      "body": { "en": "BESS does the same grid job as a PSP for short durations (typically 2–4 hours) and can be built in months on small plots near substations. Indian tenders in 2025–26 brought battery tariffs close to 8-hour PSP tariffs per MWh of storage. CEA's plan to 2031-32 has more battery capacity (47.24 GW) than pumped storage (26.69 GW). Batteries have their own costs: mining, a shorter life and recycling." },
      "related": ["psp", "mw-mwh"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battery_energy_storage_system", "title": "Wikipedia: Battery energy storage system" },
        { "url": "https://cea.nic.in/wp-content/uploads/notification/2026/01/Roadmap_to_100_GW_of_Hydro_Pumped_Storage_Projects-2.pdf", "title": "CEA: Roadmap to 100 GW of PSP (Jan 2026)", "outletId": "cea" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "mou",
      "term": { "en": "Memorandum of understanding (MoU)", "mr": "सामंजस्य करार" },
      "match": ["MoU", "MoUs", "memorandum of understanding", "सामंजस्य करार"],
      "category": "process",
      "short": { "en": "A non-binding agreement between the state and a developer to study and build a project at a site, with a water allocation." },
      "body": { "en": "Maharashtra's Water Resources Department has signed about 55 PSP MoUs (78,215 MW). An MoU allots a site and water but grants no environmental or forest permission. Capacities often change later: Amba went from 800 to 1,500 MW, and the EAC has asked developers to revise MoUs to match." },
      "related": ["tor", "dpr"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://electricalmirror.net/ensure-fast-implementation-of-55-mous-for-pumped-storage-power-projects-fadnavis-tells-officials/", "title": "Electrical Mirror: CM review of 55 PSP MoUs", "outletId": "electrical-mirror" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "eia",
      "term": { "en": "Environmental impact assessment (EIA)", "mr": "पर्यावरणीय परिणाम मूल्यांकन" },
      "match": ["environmental impact assessment", "EIA", "EIA report", "draft EIA", "EIA Notification"],
      "category": "process",
      "short": { "en": "The study a developer must commission on a project's effects on land, water, wildlife and people before it can get an EC." },
      "body": { "en": "Under the EIA Notification, 2006, large projects need prior environmental clearance in four stages: screening, scoping (the ToR), public consultation (including a public hearing) and appraisal by an expert committee. The developer pays a consultant to write the EIA. Hydro and pumped storage projects above set limits are 'Category A' and are appraised in Delhi by the EAC for river valley projects." },
      "related": ["tor", "ec", "public-hearing", "eac", "category-a"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/environmental-impact-assessment-1", "title": "Drishti IAS: Environmental impact assessment (stages under the 2006 notification)" },
        { "url": "https://ebooks.inflibnet.ac.in/esp12/?p=107", "title": "INFLIBNET e-PG Pathshala: EIA Notification 2006" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "category-a",
      "term": { "en": "Category A project", "mr": "श्रेणी 'अ' प्रकल्प" },
      "match": ["Category A", "Category 'A'"],
      "category": "process",
      "short": { "en": "A project big or risky enough to be appraised by the central environment ministry rather than the state." },
      "body": { "en": "The EIA Notification sorts projects into Category A (central appraisal by an EAC) and Category B (state appraisal by SEIAA/SEAC). Category A projects skip screening and always need an EIA. All the Ghats PSPs are Category A under item 1(c), river valley projects." },
      "related": ["eia", "eac"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/environmental-impact-assessment-1", "title": "Drishti IAS: EIA categories" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "tor",
      "term": { "en": "Terms of Reference (ToR)", "mr": "संदर्भ अटी" },
      "match": ["Terms of Reference", "Terms of References", "ToR", "ToRs", "TOR", "Specific ToR", "Standard ToR"],
      "category": "process",
      "short": { "en": "The list of studies an EIA must cover, set by the expert committee. Getting a ToR is the first clearance step, not a permission to build." },
      "body": { "en": "At the scoping stage the EAC reviews the developer's Form 1 and pre-feasibility report and recommends Terms of Reference. A ToR lets the developer do surveys and the EIA; it does not allow construction or tree felling. For PSPs the ministry uses ready-made 'Specific ToR' (OM of 14 Aug 2023) plus extra conditions per project, for example 'explore reducing forest land' or a sub-committee site visit before EC. A ToR is valid for a fixed period and can lapse." },
      "related": ["eia", "ec", "eac", "site-visit"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/environmental-impact-assessment-1", "title": "Drishti IAS: scoping and ToR" },
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1226853020_1778155785133.pdf", "title": "EAC 53rd minutes: ToR recommended under the Specific ToR of 14 Aug 2023", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-04-30" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "ec",
      "term": { "en": "Environmental clearance (EC)", "mr": "पर्यावरण मंजुरी" },
      "match": ["environmental clearance", "environment clearance", "EC", "ECs", "पर्यावरण मंजुरी"],
      "category": "process",
      "short": { "en": "The environment ministry's permission for a project, given after the EIA and public hearing, with conditions attached." },
      "body": { "en": "After the EIA and public hearing, the EAC appraises the project and recommends (or rejects) an EC; the ministry then issues the letter. An EC is separate from forest clearance: a project needs both before it can fell trees on forest land. EC conditions often include wildlife plans, compensatory planting and monitoring, but enforcement is weak." },
      "related": ["eia", "tor", "forest-clearance", "eac"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/environmental-impact-assessment-1", "title": "Drishti IAS: appraisal and EC" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "eac",
      "term": { "en": "Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC)", "mr": "तज्ज्ञ मूल्यांकन समिती" },
      "match": ["Expert Appraisal Committee", "EAC"],
      "category": "body",
      "short": { "en": "The central committee of experts that recommends ToR and EC for river valley and hydro projects, including PSPs." },
      "body": { "en": "The EAC for River Valley and Hydroelectric Projects meets about twice a month. Its minutes, published on Parivesh, are the best primary record of each project's land, forest area, coordinates and decisions, and most of the figures on this site come from them. The EAC recommends; the ministry decides." },
      "related": ["tor", "ec", "parivesh", "fac"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/#/ec-mom-list", "title": "Parivesh: EC minutes of meeting list", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "site-visit",
      "term": { "en": "EAC site visit", "mr": "समितीची स्थळ पाहणी" },
      "match": ["site visit", "site visits", "sub-committee visit"],
      "category": "process",
      "short": { "en": "An inspection by EAC members. Since Sep 2024 the EAC wants one for every Western Ghats PSP before EC." },
      "body": { "en": "At its 16th meeting (27 Sep 2024) the EAC recommended site visits, 'wherever feasible', for all PSPs in the Western Ghats. Visits are short and accompanied by the developer. Some sites could not be reached (Karjat's upper reservoirs were judged from drone footage), and the Amba and Malshej Ghat visits took place in June, before the monsoon, when hill streams are dry." },
      "related": ["eac", "ec"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1236788986_1785321627082.pdf", "title": "EAC 58th meeting minutes, 15 Jul 2026 (item 58.6: site-visit rule and reports)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-07-15" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "public-hearing",
      "term": { "en": "Public hearing", "mr": "जनसुनावणी" },
      "match": ["public hearing", "public hearings", "जनसुनावणी"],
      "category": "community",
      "short": { "en": "A meeting near the project site, run by the state pollution control board, where affected people can object on record." },
      "body": { "en": "Public consultation is the third stage of the EIA process. The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) publishes the draft EIA summary and holds the hearing; written objections can also be sent. The minutes go to the EAC. Residents and activists have reported hearings held far from affected villages, at short notice or postponed." },
      "related": ["eia", "gram-sabha"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/environmental-impact-assessment-1", "title": "Drishti IAS: public consultation" },
        { "url": "https://www.mpcb.gov.in/sites/default/files/public_hearing/exe_summary/2024-03/English_BHivpuri_PSP_Draft%20EIA_Executive%20Summary.pdf", "title": "MPCB public-hearing file: Bhivpuri PSP draft EIA executive summary", "outletId": "mpcb" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "forest-clearance",
      "term": { "en": "Forest clearance (Stage-I / Stage-II)", "mr": "वन मंजुरी (टप्पा १ / २)" },
      "match": ["forest clearance", "Stage-I", "Stage I", "Stage-II", "Stage II FC", "Stage-I FC", "Stage I FC", "FC", "forest diversion"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "Central permission to use forest land for a project. Stage-I is in-principle approval with conditions; Stage-II is final approval." },
      "body": { "en": "Under the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980, the earlier Forest (Conservation) Act, forest land cannot be used for non-forest purposes without central approval. After the Forest Advisory Committee reviews a proposal, the ministry gives Stage-I (in-principle) approval. Once the state reports that conditions are met (compensatory afforestation land, payments, forest-rights compliance), Stage-II (final) approval follows. No work may start on forest land under Stage-I alone." },
      "related": ["fac", "compensatory-afforestation", "npv", "fra", "van-adhiniyam"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://dghindia.gov.in/assets/downloads/6321979a069f3FCActPPT130922.pdf", "title": "DGH: Process of approval under the Forest (Conservation) Act" },
        { "url": "https://forestsclearance.nic.in/writereaddata/RO_App_Inprinciple/050120211Stage-Iletter.pdf", "title": "Example Stage-I letter (MoEFCC regional office)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "van-adhiniyam",
      "term": { "en": "Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980", "mr": "वन (संरक्षण व संवर्धन) अधिनियम" },
      "match": ["Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam", "Van Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan Adhiniyam", "Forest (Conservation) Act", "Forest Conservation Act"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "The 1980 forest law (renamed in 2023) that requires central approval before forest land is diverted." },
      "body": { "en": "The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 was amended and renamed in 2023. It is the legal basis of Stage-I and Stage-II forest clearance, compensatory afforestation and NPV payments." },
      "related": ["forest-clearance"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://anantamias.com/forest-conservation-act-1980/", "title": "Anantam IAS: Forest Conservation Act, 1980 and the 2023 amendment" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "fac",
      "term": { "en": "Forest Advisory Committee (FAC)", "mr": "वन सल्लागार समिती" },
      "match": ["Forest Advisory Committee", "FAC"],
      "category": "body",
      "short": { "en": "The central committee that recommends whether forest land may be diverted for a project." },
      "body": { "en": "The FAC (also called the Advisory Committee) examines forest diversion proposals over a set size, including canopy density, trees to be felled, wildlife value and compensatory afforestation land, and recommends Stage-I approval or not. For Shirawta it recorded 64,729 trees in very dense forest and still recommended Stage-I." },
      "related": ["forest-clearance", "canopy-density"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://www.downtoearth.org.in/environment/forest-advisory-committee-gets-earnest-about-implementing-forest-diversion-rules-finally-38070", "title": "Down To Earth: FAC and forest diversion rules" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "compensatory-afforestation",
      "term": { "en": "Compensatory afforestation (CA) and CAMPA", "mr": "भरपाई वनीकरण" },
      "match": ["compensatory afforestation", "CA land", "CAMPA"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "Planting on other land to 'replace' forest that is cut. The developer pays; the money goes to a state CAMPA fund." },
      "body": { "en": "For forest diverted, the developer must provide equal non-forest land (or twice the area of degraded forest) for planting, and pay for it into the state's CAMPA account. Plantations elsewhere do not replace a natural forest's age, species or water role. Karjat's CA land had to move from Ratnagiri to Patan (Satara) after landowners withdrew; the new land lies in the buffer of Sahyadri Tiger Reserve and is already mostly forest." },
      "related": ["forest-clearance", "npv"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://anantamias.com/current-affairs/compensatory-afforestation/?pdf=1", "title": "Anantam IAS: Compensatory afforestation" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "npv",
      "term": { "en": "Net present value (NPV) of forest", "mr": "वनाचे निव्वळ वर्तमान मूल्य" },
      "match": ["net present value", "NPV"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "A one-time payment for the ecosystem services lost when forest is diverted, set under Supreme Court orders." },
      "body": { "en": "Besides compensatory afforestation, the developer pays the NPV of the forest land, a per-hectare charge based on forest type and density, under Supreme Court orders of 2008 and later ministry guidelines. Penal NPV (up to five times) applies to illegal diversion." },
      "related": ["compensatory-afforestation", "forest-clearance", "canopy-density"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://forestsclearance.nic.in/writereaddata/RO_App_Inprinciple/090420261Stage-Iletter.pdf", "title": "Example Stage-I letter citing the NPV orders of 28 Mar 2008", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "canopy-density",
      "term": { "en": "Canopy density / very dense forest", "mr": "वृक्षछत्र घनता" },
      "match": ["very dense forest", "moderately dense forest", "open forest", "canopy density", "VDF", "MDF"],
      "category": "ecology",
      "short": { "en": "How much of the ground the tree crowns cover. 70% or more is 'very dense forest' in India's forest survey." },
      "body": { "en": "The Forest Survey of India classes forest cover by canopy density: very dense (70% and above), moderately dense (40–70%), open (10–40%) and scrub (below 10%). Forest papers record canopy as a fraction, so 'canopy 0.7' (as recorded for Shirawta) means very dense forest." },
      "related": ["fac", "npv"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://forests.gujarat.gov.in/forest-cover.htm", "title": "Gujarat Forest Department: FSI forest cover classes" },
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forest_cover_by_state_in_India", "title": "Wikipedia: Forest cover by state in India (VDF/MDF/OF definitions)" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "esz",
      "term": { "en": "Eco-sensitive zone (ESZ)", "mr": "पर्यावरण-संवेदनशील क्षेत्र" },
      "match": ["eco-sensitive zone", "eco sensitive zone", "ESZ", "ESZs"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "A notified buffer around a sanctuary or national park where some activities are banned or regulated." },
      "body": { "en": "ESZs are notified around protected areas, usually up to 10 km, with activities listed as prohibited, regulated or permitted. Where no ESZ is notified, projects within 10 km of a protected area need the NBWL Standing Committee's approval. Some ESZ notifications ban new major hydro (Kalsubai-Harishchandragad, 2017), which is why Ghatghar Stage II was deferred. The Mahabaleshwar–Panchgani ESZ (2001) has a monitoring committee whose NoC let Humbarli Birmani get its ToR. Not to be confused with the Western Ghats ESA." },
      "related": ["esa", "nbwl", "wls", "noc"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://www.downtoearth.org.in/environment/moef-opposes-cecs-recommendation-on-ecosensitive-zones-39631", "title": "Down To Earth: eco-sensitive zones and the 10 km rule" },
        { "url": "https://vajiramandravi.com/current-affairs/revisiting-eco-sensitive-zone-esz-guidelines-towards-ecological-and-socio-economic-balance/", "title": "Vajiram & Ravi: ESZ guidelines (2011) and the 2025 review" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "esa",
      "term": { "en": "Western Ghats Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA)", "mr": "पश्चिम घाट पर्यावरणीय संवेदनशील क्षेत्र" },
      "match": ["Ecologically Sensitive Area", "Eco-Sensitive Area", "ESA", "Western Ghats ESA", "draft ESA"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "About 56,825 sq km of the Western Ghats proposed for protection since 2014; still only a draft, reissued six times." },
      "body": { "en": "Following the Kasturirangan report, the ministry has repeatedly issued draft notifications declaring about 56,825 sq km across six states as ecologically sensitive, 17,340 sq km of it in Maharashtra. The sixth draft came on 31 Jul 2024. It would ban mining, quarrying and new thermal plants and regulate other activities, but it has never been finalised. The EAC notes when a PSP lies inside the draft ESA (most Ghats projects do) and still recommends ToR." },
      "related": ["esz", "gadgil-kasturirangan", "western-ghats"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://www.onmanorama.com/news/kerala/2024/08/03/ecologically-sensitive-area-draft-western-ghats-centre-wayanad-landslide.html", "title": "Onmanorama: sixth draft ESA notification, 56,825.7 sq km (3 Aug 2024)" },
        { "url": "https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/india/centre-issues-fresh-draft-notification-to-declare-western-ghats-eco-sensitive/amp", "title": "Tribune: Centre issues fresh draft notification", "outletId": "tribune" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "gadgil-kasturirangan",
      "term": { "en": "Gadgil and Kasturirangan reports", "mr": "गाडगीळ व कस्तुरीरंगन अहवाल" },
      "match": ["Gadgil", "Kasturirangan", "WGEEP", "HLWG"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "Two expert reports on protecting the Western Ghats: Gadgil (2011) proposed 64% as sensitive, Kasturirangan (2013) cut it to 37%." },
      "body": { "en": "The Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel led by Madhav Gadgil (2011) graded the whole range into three zones of sensitivity and gave local bodies a central role. The High-Level Working Group led by K. Kasturirangan (2013) narrowed protection to about 37% of the area (natural landscapes), leaving the rest open to regulated development. The draft ESA notifications follow Kasturirangan." },
      "related": ["esa", "western-ghats"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Ghats_Ecology_Expert_Panel", "title": "Wikipedia: Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel" },
        { "url": "https://vajiramandravi.com/current-affairs/conservation-of-the-western-ghats-what-madhav-gadgil-and-kasturirangan-reports-recommended/", "title": "Vajiram & Ravi: what the Gadgil and Kasturirangan reports recommended" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "wls",
      "term": { "en": "Wildlife sanctuary (WLS) and tiger reserve", "mr": "वन्यजीव अभयारण्य" },
      "match": ["wildlife sanctuary", "WLS", "tiger reserve", "core zone", "buffer zone", "protected area", "अभयारण्य"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "Protected areas under the Wild Life (Protection) Act. A tiger reserve has an inviolate core and a surrounding buffer." },
      "body": { "en": "Sanctuaries near the Ghats PSPs include Bhimashankar, Kalsubai-Harishchandragad, Tamhini, Koyna and Radhanagari; Koyna and Chandoli form the core of Sahyadri Tiger Reserve. Projects inside a sanctuary need NBWL approval and are rarely permitted, so developers redraw layouts to stay just outside: Nivakane is about 150 m from the tiger reserve's buffer. Wildlife does not stop at legal lines, so corridors between protected areas matter." },
      "related": ["esz", "nbwl", "schedule-i", "corridor"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sahyadri_Tiger_Reserve", "title": "Wikipedia: Sahyadri Tiger Reserve" },
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1236788986_1785321627082.pdf", "title": "EAC 58th minutes (Nivakane ~0.15 km from Sahyadri Tiger Reserve buffer)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-07-15" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "corridor",
      "term": { "en": "Wildlife corridor", "mr": "वन्यजीव मार्ग" },
      "match": ["wildlife corridor", "corridor"],
      "category": "ecology",
      "short": { "en": "A strip of habitat that lets animals move between protected areas; usually has no legal protection of its own." },
      "body": { "en": "Environmentalists describe the Bhimashankar–Malshej–Sahyadri belt, where several PSPs are planned, as a corridor used by the Indian giant squirrel (shekru), leopard, sambar and gaur. Because corridors are not notified, project papers can truthfully say a site is 'outside' any sanctuary or ESZ while it sits on a movement route. The EAC's Amba site-visit report asked that corridors be kept 'wherever necessary'." },
      "related": ["wls", "esz"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1236788986_1785321627082.pdf", "title": "EAC 58th minutes, Amba site-visit recommendations", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-07-15" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "nbwl",
      "term": { "en": "National Board for Wildlife (NBWL)", "mr": "राष्ट्रीय वन्यजीव मंडळ" },
      "match": ["National Board for Wildlife", "NBWL", "Standing Committee of NBWL"],
      "category": "body",
      "short": { "en": "The body chaired by the Prime Minister whose Standing Committee must approve projects in or near protected areas." },
      "body": { "en": "Projects inside a sanctuary, or within 10 km of one with no notified ESZ, go to the NBWL Standing Committee. Nivakane's EC was recommended on condition that this approval comes before construction. In 2025 the Standing Committee asked for the 10 km rule to be revised to a site-specific approach." },
      "related": ["wls", "esz"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://visionias.in/current-affairs/news-today/2025-07-14/environment/sc-nbwl-seeks-review-of-eco-sensitive-zone-guidelines-to-allow-a-more-flexible-site-specific-approach", "title": "Vision IAS: SC-NBWL seeks review of ESZ guidelines (2025)", "outletId": "vision-ias" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "schedule-i",
      "term": { "en": "Schedule-I species", "mr": "अनुसूची-१ प्रजाती" },
      "match": ["Schedule-I", "Schedule I species", "Schedule-I species"],
      "category": "ecology",
      "short": { "en": "Animals given the highest legal protection under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, such as leopard, sloth bear and pangolin." },
      "body": { "en": "Since the 2022 amendment the Act has four schedules; Schedule I lists animals with the highest protection. EIAs must list Schedule-I species in the study area and propose a conservation plan approved by the Chief Wildlife Warden. Karjat's EC lists 14 Schedule-I mammals; Bhorande's site-visit report 12." },
      "related": ["wls", "eia"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://ruralindiaonline.org/en/library/resource/the-wild-life-protection-amendment-act-2022/", "title": "PARI Library: The Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2022", "outletId": "pari" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "western-ghats",
      "term": { "en": "Western Ghats / Sahyadri", "mr": "पश्चिम घाट / सह्याद्री" },
      "match": ["Western Ghats", "Sahyadri", "Sahyadris", "सह्याद्री", "पश्चिम घाट"],
      "category": "ecology",
      "short": { "en": "The 1,600 km mountain chain along India's west coast: older than the Himalaya, a UNESCO World Heritage site and a global biodiversity hotspot." },
      "body": { "en": "The Ghats run about 30–50 km inland from Gujarat to Kerala and catch the south-west monsoon, feeding rivers that much of peninsular India depends on. UNESCO lists at least 325 globally threatened species here; 65% of its amphibians and 54% of its tree species are found nowhere else. In Maharashtra the range is called the Sahyadri." },
      "related": ["esa", "gadgil-kasturirangan", "plateau", "devrai"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1342", "title": "UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Western Ghats (inscribed 2012)" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "plateau",
      "term": { "en": "Lateritic plateau (sada)", "mr": "सडा (जांभा पठार)" },
      "match": ["lateritic plateau", "plateau", "sada", "सडा"],
      "category": "ecology",
      "short": { "en": "Flat, rocky hill tops that look barren in summer but burst into rare, mostly endemic flowers in the monsoon." },
      "body": { "en": "The Sahyadri hill tops are capped with laterite. Dry for eight months, they fill with shallow rock pools and short-lived herbs in the rains. On the Kas plateau, about 80% of the region's phytogeographically important plant species are restricted to the plateau top and escarpments. Closed-loop PSPs prefer flat hill tops for upper reservoirs, and site visits in dry months can mistake them for wasteland." },
      "related": ["western-ghats", "site-visit"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3725892/", "title": "Watve (2013): hydrogeomorphic habitats and endemic plant diversity on the Kas plateau" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "devrai",
      "term": { "en": "Devrai (sacred grove)", "mr": "देवराई" },
      "match": ["devrai", "devrais", "sacred grove", "sacred groves", "देवराई"],
      "category": "ecology",
      "short": { "en": "Patches of old forest protected by villages for a local deity; often the last old-growth trees in a valley." },
      "body": { "en": "Maharashtra has thousands of devrais (counts range from about 2,800 to 4,000), most in the Ghats and Konkan, many owned by village councils or temple trusts. They hold rare and old trees and springs. They have no special legal status in forest clearance unless recorded as forest or as community forest resources under the FRA." },
      "related": ["fra", "western-ghats"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/article/download/3412/4358?inline=1", "title": "Journal of Threatened Taxa (2018): sacred groves of Pune district" },
        { "url": "https://threatenedtaxa.org/JoTT/article/download/1592/2926?inline=1", "title": "Journal of Threatened Taxa: sacred groves of the northern Western Ghats" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "fra",
      "term": { "en": "Forest Rights Act (FRA)", "mr": "वन हक्क कायदा" },
      "match": ["Forest Rights Act", "FRA", "वन हक्क"],
      "category": "community",
      "short": { "en": "The 2006 law that recognises tribal and forest-dwelling communities' rights over the land and forests they use." },
      "body": { "en": "The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 recognises individual and community rights. Under a 2009 ministry circular, forest diversion needs proof that FRA rights have been settled and the consent of affected gram sabhas. Compliance has been weak, and in 2026 the tribal affairs ministry said the Act itself does not require gram sabha consent for Stage-II." },
      "related": ["gram-sabha", "pesa", "forest-clearance"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://forestrightsact.com/corporate-projects/timeline-of-attempts-to-sabotage-forest-rights-for-large-projects/", "title": "forestrightsact.com: timeline of FRA and forest diversion" },
        { "url": "https://www.downtoearth.org.in/environment/forest-advisory-committee-gets-earnest-about-implementing-forest-diversion-rules-finally-38070", "title": "Down To Earth: FAC on FRA compliance and gram sabha consent" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "gram-sabha",
      "term": { "en": "Gram sabha", "mr": "ग्रामसभा" },
      "match": ["gram sabha", "gram sabhas", "ग्रामसभा"],
      "category": "community",
      "short": { "en": "The assembly of all adult voters of a village; under FRA and PESA its consent is needed for some decisions on land and forests." },
      "body": { "en": "Gram sabhas in the Karjat and Malshej belts have passed resolutions against PSPs, according to residents. Whether these resolutions were sought or considered before clearances is a key question on the Voices page." },
      "related": ["fra", "pesa", "public-hearing"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gram_Sabha", "title": "Wikipedia: Gram sabha" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "pesa",
      "term": { "en": "PESA and Fifth Schedule areas", "mr": "पेसा कायदा" },
      "match": ["PESA", "Fifth Schedule", "Scheduled Area", "Scheduled Areas"],
      "category": "community",
      "short": { "en": "In tribal-majority 'Scheduled Areas', the 1996 PESA Act gives gram sabhas a say over land acquisition and resources." },
      "body": { "en": "The Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 applies in Fifth Schedule areas, which in Maharashtra include parts of Pune, Thane, Nashik, Palghar and other districts. It requires consultation of the gram sabha before land acquisition for projects. Some PSP villages, such as Ambegaon (ST population about 55%), fall in such areas." },
      "related": ["gram-sabha", "fra"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panchayats_(Extension_to_Scheduled_Areas)_Act,_1996", "title": "Wikipedia: PESA Act, 1996" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "rr",
      "term": { "en": "Rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R)", "mr": "पुनर्वसन" },
      "match": ["rehabilitation and resettlement", "R&R", "पुनर्वसन"],
      "category": "community",
      "short": { "en": "What a project must provide to people who lose homes, land or livelihoods." },
      "body": { "en": "The 2013 land acquisition law (RFCTLARR) sets compensation and R&R entitlements. Several PSP EIAs say R&R is 'not applicable' because no houses are submerged or the land is bought privately, even where farmland and grazing land are lost." },
      "related": ["public-hearing", "gram-sabha"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right_to_Fair_Compensation_and_Transparency_in_Land_Acquisition,_Rehabilitation_and_Resettlement_Act,_2013", "title": "Wikipedia: RFCTLARR Act, 2013" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "noc",
      "term": { "en": "No-objection certificate (NoC)", "mr": "ना-हरकत प्रमाणपत्र" },
      "match": ["No Objection Certificate", "no-objection certificate", "NoC", "NOC"],
      "category": "process",
      "short": { "en": "A letter from another authority saying it does not object, often required before a committee will consider a project." },
      "body": { "en": "The EAC deferred Savitri and Humbarli Birmani until the Mahabaleshwar–Panchgani ESZ Monitoring Committee issued NoCs. Humbarli's NoC came on 6 Jul 2026 and its ToR on 15 Jul 2026." },
      "related": ["esz", "tor"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1236788986_1785321627082.pdf", "title": "EAC 58th minutes, item 58.5 (Humbarli NoC)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-07-15" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "red-category",
      "term": { "en": "Red category", "mr": "लाल श्रेणी" },
      "match": ["red category", "White Category"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "Pollution boards' highest-pollution class of industries; hydel projects over 50 MW are red, which restricts them in some ESZs." },
      "body": { "en": "The Central Pollution Control Board sorts industries into red, orange, green and white by a pollution index (red is 60 and above). The EAC noted that hydel projects above 50 MW are red category, so not a fit case in an ESZ without the monitoring committee's NoC. CEA's Jan 2026 roadmap proposes a 'White Category' for off-stream PSPs, which would ease this." },
      "related": ["esz", "noc"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://mpcb.gov.in/consentmgt/revised-industry-categorization", "title": "MPCB: revised categorisation of industries (R/O/G/W)", "outletId": "mpcb" },
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1225359238_1777007399745.pdf", "title": "EAC 52nd minutes (hydel > 50 MW is red category)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-04-13" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "cumulative-impact",
      "term": { "en": "Cumulative impact assessment", "mr": "एकत्रित परिणाम मूल्यांकन" },
      "match": ["cumulative impact assessment", "cumulative impact", "carrying capacity", "CIA&CC"],
      "category": "process",
      "short": { "en": "A study of the combined effect of all projects in one river basin or landscape, rather than one project at a time." },
      "body": { "en": "Each PSP's EIA looks at its own footprint. Several sites cluster on the same ridges (Saidongar, Pimpalpada Savale, Amba, Pawana Falyan, Bhivpuri) and catchments (Kalu: THDC Malshej and NHPC Kalu). The EAC has asked Amba's developer for 'a combined study of all projects', but no basin-wide cumulative study exists for these Sahyadri catchments." },
      "related": ["eia", "eac"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1226853020_1778155785133.pdf", "title": "EAC 53rd minutes (Amba: combined study of all projects)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-04-30" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "muck",
      "term": { "en": "Muck disposal", "mr": "उत्खनन राडारोडा" },
      "match": ["muck disposal", "muck"],
      "category": "land",
      "short": { "en": "Rock and soil dug out for tunnels and caverns, dumped on land set aside for it." },
      "body": { "en": "PSPs are mostly tunnels and underground powerhouses, which produce millions of cubic metres of excavated rock (Humbarli Birmani: 78.34 lakh m³). What is not reused is dumped on 'muck disposal areas', which need land and can slide into streams in heavy rain." },
      "related": ["psp"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/1225359238_1777007399745.pdf", "title": "EAC 52nd minutes (Humbarli Birmani muck quantities)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2026-04-13" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "mcm-tmc",
      "term": { "en": "MCM and TMC (water volume)", "mr": "दशलक्ष घनमीटर / टीएमसी" },
      "match": ["MCM", "TMC", "million cubic metres"],
      "category": "unit",
      "short": { "en": "MCM = million cubic metres. TMC = thousand million cubic feet, about 28.3 MCM." },
      "body": { "en": "Indian water documents use both. Karjat's upper reservoir is written as '0.56 TMC (15.87 MCM)'. One MCM fills about 400 Olympic swimming pools." },
      "related": ["psp"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/utildoc/119458936_1738845706968.pdf", "title": "EAC 23rd minutes (Saidongar-1: 0.56 TMC = 15.87 MCM)", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh", "date": "2025-01-29" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "dpr",
      "term": { "en": "Detailed project report (DPR)", "mr": "सविस्तर प्रकल्प अहवाल" },
      "match": ["detailed project report", "DPR", "pre-feasibility report", "PFR"],
      "category": "process",
      "short": { "en": "The engineering and cost report for a project; a pre-feasibility report (PFR) is the early version." },
      "body": { "en": "A PFR accompanies the ToR application; the DPR comes later and sets the final layout, cost and tariff. Land and forest figures often change between the two." },
      "related": ["cea-concurrence", "tor"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://cea.nic.in/wp-content/uploads/hpa/2023/06/Guidelines_for_Formulation_of_Detailed_Project_Reports_for_Pumped_Storage_Schemes_version_2.pdf", "title": "CEA: Guidelines for DPRs of pumped storage schemes", "outletId": "cea" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "cea-concurrence",
      "term": { "en": "CEA concurrence", "mr": "केंद्रीय विद्युत प्राधिकरणाची सहमती" },
      "match": ["CEA concurrence", "concurred", "concurrence", "Central Electricity Authority", "CEA"],
      "category": "body",
      "short": { "en": "Technical-economic approval of a hydro DPR by the Central Electricity Authority, needed above a cost threshold." },
      "body": { "en": "Under Section 8 of the Electricity Act, 2003, hydro schemes above a capital cost set by the Centre need CEA concurrence: ₹3,000 crore under an Aug 2025 notification. That notification exempts off-stream closed-loop PSPs whatever their cost. Concurrence covers engineering and cost, not environment." },
      "related": ["dpr", "closed-loop"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://cea.nic.in/hydro-project-appraisal-division/?lang=en", "title": "CEA: Hydro Project Appraisal Division", "outletId": "cea" },
        { "url": "https://cea.nic.in/wp-content/uploads/hpa/2023/06/Guidelines_for_Acceptance_examination__concurrence_of_DPR_of_HE_schemes_Revision_7.0-1.pdf", "title": "CEA: Guidelines for concurrence of DPRs of hydro schemes", "outletId": "cea" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "parivesh",
      "term": { "en": "Parivesh", "mr": "परिवेश" },
      "match": ["Parivesh", "PARIVESH"],
      "category": "body",
      "short": { "en": "The environment ministry's online portal for clearance applications, agendas and minutes." },
      "body": { "en": "Every EC, forest and wildlife proposal has a Parivesh number (for example IA/MH/RIV/575297/2026 for Amba's ToR). Agendas and minutes are public on the portal; many project documents are not." },
      "related": ["eac", "rti"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://parivesh.nic.in/", "title": "Parivesh portal", "outletId": "moefcc-parivesh" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "rti",
      "term": { "en": "Right to Information (RTI)", "mr": "माहितीचा अधिकार" },
      "match": ["Right to Information", "RTI", "माहितीचा अधिकार"],
      "category": "law",
      "short": { "en": "The 2005 law that lets any citizen request government records, normally answered within 30 days." },
      "body": { "en": "Documents not on Parivesh, such as felling orders, Stage-II letters and the state's MoU register, can be sought under the RTI Act. We list what we have asked for on the Methodology page." },
      "related": ["parivesh"],
      "refs": [
        { "url": "https://rti.gov.in/", "title": "RTI portal, Government of India" }
      ]
    }
  ]
}