CoalMin to meet Ramesh seeking environment clearances for CIL

Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal today said he will soon meet Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh to seek early clearances for state-run Coal India Ltd's (CIL) projects which are facing delays.

"We are due to meet this month. I will take up issues like delays in granting environment clearances to projects of Coal India Ltd (CIL).

"CIL is facing problems in meeting its production target for the fiscal but I am hopeful that output would surge in the current quarter," Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal told PTI on the sidelines of a seminar organised by World Confederation of Productivity Science.

The country's largest coal producer may not be able to meet this financial year's production target of 435 million tonnes as its new projects have failed to start primarily due to delays in getting environment clearances.

"There is a proposal that both the ministries--Ministry of Coal and the Ministry of Environment and Forests-- would meet every two months to deliberate on issues like environment clearances among others," Jaiswal added.

In the last meeting between the two ministers, Ramesh had agreed to grant environment clearances to some of the CIL's expansion projects without undertaking public hearing, which involves meeting of all stakeholders to chalk out a strategy for minimising damage to the environment.

"The coal sector is facing hurdles in taking up new projects and continuing the ongoing projects mainly on account of delays in obtaining forestry clearances, environmental clearances, land acquisition and related rehabilitation.

"The government of India is seized of the matter and is taking all the required measures in addressing the issues," Jaiswal added.

Besides, constant dialogue with the Environment Ministry, he said, the Coal Ministry is also seeking cooperation from state governments for "timely acquisition of land for coal projects and resolve the issue of rehabilitation of project-affected persons in a mutually agreeable manner".

Facing problems in getting regulatory clearances, Coal India has already revised its production target for 2011-12 to 486 million tonnes from 520 million tonnes.

Also, CIL had produced 295.52 million tonne of coal during April-December 2009 and has to add about 130 million tonnes by March 31 to meet its output target for 2009-10.

As many as 17 projects, both big and small involving production of 101 million tonnes were delayed due to the long wait in getting clearances from the environment and forest ministry, CIL Chairman P S Bhattacharyya had earlier said.

Lower production of coal could have spiral affect on the end users, especially power firms led by state-run NTPC, whose production is primarily dependent on coal supplied by CIL.