Govt leaves it to SC to decide on de-allocation of coal blocks

Provides details of the 46 blocks it had asked the apex court to spare

Government today filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court over coal block allocations, leaving it to the apex court to decide if the 218 blocks deemed illegal by it should be cancelled or not.

 

It also gave SC details about 40 operational coal blocks and six ready to be functional blocks, which it had earlier asked the apex court to spare.

Attorney-General Mukul Rohatgi had earlier told a Bench headed by Chief Justice R M Lodha that leaving these 46 blocks, the remaining blocks could be auctioned.

The Supreme Court had ruled that Centre’s allocation of coal blocks between 1993 and 2010 was illegal. The consequences of declaring the allocations illegal would be considered tomorrow taking into account the investments made by companies for various projects and the procedure to be adopted for cancellation.

Meanwhile, according to sources, the Ministry of Power and Coal is planning to auction the blocks, allocation of which may be scrapped by the apex court, by the end of the fiscal.