Parivesh portal mandatory for all forest and wildlife clearances on highway projects
MoRTH OM (2023-24)
Open the sourceWhat the circular says
MoEFCC and MoRTH jointly mandated use of the Parivesh 2.0 single-window portal for all Environmental Clearance, Forest Clearance, and Wildlife Clearance applications on national highway projects. Stage 1 forest clearance is to be processed within 60 days; Stage 2 within 45 days of Stage 1 grant. Projects on forest land without Stage 2 clearance cannot commence earthworks in the affected zone.
Contractor action
Forest clearance delays are not automatically Force Majeure under NHAI contracts unless the delay exceeds 180 days and is attributable to the authority's failure to obtain clearance. Track clearance status on the Parivesh dashboard weekly. Build the clearance milestone into your NTP negotiation with NHAI's Project Director.
Related circulars
Road Safety Audit at pre-opening stage is mandatory before Completion Certificate
MoRTH issued an Office Memorandum requiring that all national highway projects undergo a formal Road Safety Audit (RSA) at the pre-opening stage before any Completion Certificate is issued. The RSA must be conducted by an accredited RSA team (minimum two Lead RSA auditors with IRC/CSIR certification) and the RSA report must be submitted to the Independent Engineer and NHAI Project Director. Completion of RSA punch-list items is a condition precedent to final payment.
DRB decisions are advisory only for NHAI disputes above ₹10 crore
This Ministry of Road Transport circular formally clarified that Dispute Review Board recommendations are non-binding in nature for disputes exceeding ₹10 crore on NHAI projects. The circular aligns NHAI practice with the Supreme Court's 2023 position on DRB enforceability. Both parties are required to proceed through CCIE conciliation or formal arbitration regardless of whether a DRB has already issued a recommendation.
BOT Toll MCA amended: termination payment cap raised to 115% of TPC
MoRTH amended the Model Concession Agreement for BOT Toll projects under the capacity augmentation framework. The most significant change for concessionaires: NHAI's default termination payment cap was raised from 100% to 115% of Total Project Cost. The amendment also clarified the capacity augmentation trigger mechanism and NHAI's obligation to compensate for additional lane costs arising from NHAI's own traffic forecasting errors.
The circular changed the rules. CivilBolt flags it in the NIT.
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