Public participation and EIA – UGC NET Question

Statements A, B, D and E are correct as they describe essential elements of participatory environmental governance. Hearings and access to information enable communities to voice concerns, involving them enhances quality and legitimacy, and marginalised groups may require special measures to participate. Statement C is false because participation does not guarantee that all demands are fully accepted, and F is false since participation is also relevant for policies, plans and programmes. Therefore, the correct set is A, B, D and E only.

Option A:
Option A is correct since it collects the four statements that reflect widely accepted principles of participation and excludes those that overpromise or unduly restrict its scope. It captures both procedural and equity concerns in participation.

Option B:
Option B is incorrect because it includes F, which wrongly limits participation to projects and ignores its role in broader policy and planning processes. This contradicts integrated environmental governance frameworks.

Option C:
Option C is incorrect as it also accepts F and omits A. Leaving out A ignores a core participatory mechanism—public hearings—while retaining an inaccurate restriction on where participation applies.

Option D:
Option D is incorrect because it again includes F and omits B, thereby underplaying the importance of information access while keeping a false limitation on participation arenas.