CSE transparency index

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In news- The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) released the report ‘Transparency Index — Rating of Pollution Control Boards on Public Disclosure’. 

About CSE Transparency Index-

• To assess the level of transparency maintained by the  state pollution control boards (SPCB) and pollution control committees (PCC),  CSE has conducted a study, and assessed the data disclosure performance of 29 state pollution control boards (PCBs) and 6 pollution control committees in the country.
• This report critically evaluates the information shared by SPCBs/PCCs during the last four-five years (2016–21) and uses several indicators that provide a broader indication on the type and amount of information shared. 
• This report provides the status of the information shared by SPCBs/PCCs on their websites and annual reports. 

Key findings-

• Around 60 per cent of the bodies scored less than 50 per cent on the information disclosure parameters studied.
• Only 14 boards scored above 50 per cent in the index.
• They are Odisha, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Goa, Karnataka, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan.
• The index’s  analysis cited that most agencies are not transparent enough with information in the public domain.
• Information on functioning, actions taken by boards against polluting industries, public hearing data on new projects etc are rarely disclosed, or are not even available on public websites.
• The pollution control boards of Odisha and Telangana were the top performers and had scored 67 per cent in transparency.
• Tamil Nadu ranked a close second with 65.5 percent transparency, Madhya Pradesh ranked third (64 per cent), West Bengal ranked fourth (62 per cent) and Goa ranked fifth (60.6 per cent).
• Only five boards including Haryana have shared minutes of their board meetings on their websites.
• Only five SPCBs including Himachal Pradesh have shared information on inspections conducted by the boards.

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