The ministry of forest and environment has refused to lift the moratorium on environmental clearance to set up new projects in the Visakhapatnam industrial cluster. In January 2010, the Centre ruled that projects meant for critically polluted areas and industrial clusters, as identified by the Central Pollution Control Board, would not be considered for environmental clearance. The Pollution Control Board prepares time-bound action plans during the period of moratorium to improve the quality of environment in these industrial clusters.