Form-1 and Pre-feasibility Report: the file that opens an Environment Clearance.
Every Environment Clearance begins with Form-1 and a Pre-feasibility Report, the documents that place a project in the right category and open its file on the Parivesh portal.
What it is
Form-1 is the standardised application under the EIA Notification 2006 that describes a project and its likely environmental effects; the Pre-feasibility Report sets out the project's concept, scale, siting and rationale. Together they are how the appraisal authority first sees a project, and how it decides the category (A or B) and the scope of study that follows.
KIPL prepares both to be accurate and defensible from the outset, because errors here (a wrong category, a thin project description, an omitted attribute) cost months later. We screen the project against the Notification's schedule, describe it honestly, and file it on Parivesh as the clean first step of the clearance.
What you get
The deliverables, in hand.
- Authority
- EIA Notification 2006 · Parivesh portal
- Typical timeline
- Weeks, depending on project information
- Category screening against the EIA Notification 2006 schedule
- Completed Form-1 (and Form-1A where applicable)
- Pre-feasibility Report: concept, scale, siting, rationale
- Preliminary environmental attributes and project description
- Filing and submission on the Parivesh portal
Straight answers
Form-1 & Pre-feasibility Report: common questions.
01What is Form-1 in the EC process?
Form-1 is the prescribed application under the EIA Notification 2006 that a project proponent submits to begin an Environment Clearance. It describes the project and its likely environmental impacts and, with the Pre-feasibility Report, is used by the authority to screen the project's category and set the scope of assessment.
02What is a Pre-feasibility Report?
A Pre-feasibility Report (PFR) sets out a project's concept at an early stage (its scale, location, technology and rationale) enough for the appraisal authority to understand what is proposed before detailed study. It accompanies Form-1 at the start of the clearance.
03Why does getting Form-1 right matter so much?
Because it sets the category and the scope. A mis-screened category or a weak project description can send an application down the wrong track or invite objections, costing months. The file is cheap to get right at the start and expensive to fix later.
04What is the difference between Form-1 and Form-1A?
Form-1 is the general application under the EIA Notification 2006. Form-1A is the additional form required for building, construction, township and area-development projects under item 8 of the schedule, covering the specifics of the built environment: built-up area, water and power demand, parking, solid waste and the like. A township or high-rise files both.
05Who decides whether a project is Category A or B?
The schedule to the EIA Notification 2006 decides it by activity and threshold, not by choice. Category A projects are appraised centrally by the MoEF&CC through an Expert Appraisal Committee; Category B goes to the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority through its SEAC. Form-1 is where the project is placed against that schedule.
06What is the difference between B1 and B2, and why does it matter?
After Form-1 is filed, a Category B project is screened into B1 or B2. B1 requires a full EIA study with baseline data and an EMP; B2 does not require the EIA study, though conditions and an environment management plan still apply. The distinction decides whether months of baseline monitoring are needed, so it is the single most consequential outcome of the screening stage.
07What happens after Form-1 is accepted?
For a project needing an EIA study, the authority issues Terms of Reference, the scope of the assessment to be carried out. Baseline data collection and EIA/EMP preparation follow, then public consultation where applicable, and finally appraisal. Form-1 is the gate that opens that sequence, which is why the description in it shapes everything after.
08Is a Pre-feasibility Report the same as a DPR?
No. A Pre-feasibility Report establishes the concept (scale, siting, technology and rationale) at a stage when detailed engineering does not yet exist. A Detailed Project Report is the full engineering and financial document prepared later. Submitting a DPR-level document is not required at Form-1, and submitting too thin a PFR invites queries.
09Can Form-1 be prepared by anyone, or is an accredited consultant required?
The proponent is the applicant, but the environmental documentation behind a clearance is expected to come from a QCI-NABET accredited EIA consultant organisation, working under an approved coordinator for the relevant sector. Accreditation is public and per-sector, so it is worth confirming that a consultant is accredited for your project's sector before the file is opened.
Within Environment Clearance
Part of the whole route, the other components.
Primary sources
Check it at source.
This page describes EIA Notification 2006 · Parivesh portal. The regulation and the filing portal are public, these are the official endpoints, not our summary of them.
Relevant proof
Where this stage has already been delivered.
Greenscape IT Park LLP · MIDC, Nerul, Navi Mumbai
Cyber Square IT Park, Nerul
Category B1 under Schedule 8(b): EIA and EMP prepared and carried through SEIAA appraisal for the expansion at Nerul.
Where we do this
Environment Clearance on the ground.
The authority, the timeline and the local ground differ by city. These pages set out how environment clearance actually runs in each.
Featured projects
Work that carries its own evidence.
Our expertise
One team across the whole environmental brief.
Form-1 & Pre-feasibility Report is one stage of one practice. Most projects need several, and the commitments made at clearance are the ones we build and maintain.
Who we do this for
Environment Clearance reads differently by industry.
- 01
Real Estate & ConstructionCore
Built-up area above the item 8(a) threshold means no foundation until SEIAA grants EC, so the clearance sits on the RERA critical path.
Environment Clearance for Real Estate & Construction - 02
Townships & Area DevelopmentCore
Above 150,000 sq.m or 50 ha the project is appraised under item 8(b) as a settlement, on cumulative water, waste, traffic and air load.
Environment Clearance for Townships & Area Development - 03
Data Centres & IT ParksCore
Hyperscale halls and IT park blocks cross the item 8(a) built-up threshold, with backup-fuel storage and cooling water driving the appraisal.
Environment Clearance for Data Centres & IT Parks - 04
Hospitality, Healthcare & EducationCore
Hotels, hospitals and institutional campuses above the item 8(a) built-up threshold are appraised on water demand and waste streams, not floor count.
Environment Clearance for Hospitality, Healthcare & Education - 05
Chemical IndustryCore
Item 5(f) synthetic organic chemicals draw the highest appraisal scrutiny in Schedule I, and Category A cases are judged by the MoEF&CC's EAC.
Environment Clearance for Chemical Industry - 06
Distilleries & EthanolCore
Item 5(g) appraisal turns almost entirely on spent wash: no credible disposal route, no clearance, regardless of how the rest of the file reads.
Environment Clearance for Distilleries & Ethanol - 07
Sugar IndustryCore
Crushing capacity increases reopen the item 5(j) clearance, and cogeneration or distillation alongside it changes the category and the scale.
Environment Clearance for Sugar Industry - 08
Mining & MineralsCore
Item 1(a) covers major and minor minerals alike, with cluster assessment for sand ghats and intense baseline and public-hearing scrutiny.
Environment Clearance for Mining & Minerals
Trusted by
The organisations this work is done for.
In the press