A meeting of Ministers for Environment, Coal, Petroleum, Surface Transport and others would be shortly called to discuss issues of environment and development, he told a group of editors.
"Environmental concerns have come to stay. Our industry must recognise that. At the same time we cannot solve environmental problems by perpetuating poverty," Singh said.
He refused to talk about specific projects like that of Vedanta bauxite mining in Orissa which has been refused permission by the Union Environment ministry.