Naxals, green issues hit coal projects

Ministry seeks more active role by state governments to address issues.

Implementation of new coal projects and expansion of many existing ones have been adversely affected due to deteriorating law and order situation in the Naxal-infested states, hurdles in land acquisition and delays in environment and forest clearances.

The coal ministry, in its recent communication to the Centre, had expressed a serious concern over Naxalite activities and the deteriorating law and order situation in coal-rich states Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and West Bengal.

The ministry has asked the state governments to play a more active role to address these issues. The ministry has noted that “Law and order in many states, especially Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and West Bengal, have adversely affected coal mining operations and also illegal mining have stopped creating much-needed infrastructural facilities such as roads and railways.”

Coal ministry sources told Business Standard that the issue had been taken up with the Centre as well as concerned state governments to tackle the situation. According to them, so far out of 141 projects identified to be taken up during the 11th Plan period, 75 had been approved and were in different stages of implementation. These projects, to come up in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, West Bengal, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, are expected to be delayed if the law and order problem in these states worsens.

Further, the expansion or inauguration of projects were either stalled or delayed due to land acquisition problems. Sources said this was largely due to resettlement and rehabilitation issues comprising authentication of claims of the tenants, non-availability of a valid title document and disputes among the land losers and related court cases.

In the case of Coal India alone, about 62,000 hectare of land is envisaged to be acquired for coal projects under implementation and also for projects identified to be taken up during the 11th Plan. During the first two years of the Plan period, 3,293 hectare had been acquired.

Moreover, the coal ministry has made a strong pitch for environmental clearances within 210 days and 150 days for forestry clearances by the Ministry of Environment and Forests and coal-producing states.

The ministry has suggested that its representative should be inducted in the Forest Advisory Committee to facilitate the approval process for coal projects. Besides, temporary work permission (TWP) be granted for increase in production capacity till the revised environment management plan (EMP) for higher capacity was submitted for ongoing projects and coal mines.

According to the ministry, time required for data generation and other studies for EMP preparation takes almost one year. The TWP would immediately facilitate increase in production from some opencast coal mines in the country to meet the ever increasing coal demand.