Proposal to fell 332K trees for coal mining in Odisha sparks concerns

A proposed coal mine in Odisha's Angul district has sparked environmental concerns after clearance was recommended for felling over 3.31 lakh trees

A massive forest clearance proposal in Odisha’s coal-rich Angul district has sparked environmental concerns, with activists warning that the proposed Alakananda coal mine could clear almost the entire tree cover within its lease area. 

The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has recommended Stage-I approval for diversion of about 754 hectares (ha) of forest land for the project, despite records showing that 331,818 of the 334,408 enumerated trees within the lease area are proposed to be felled. 

The Alakananda coal mine, allotted to Rungta Sons, spans 1,102 ha, including 754.04 ha of forest, 91.2 ha of government, and 256.76 ha of private land. Located in the Talcher coalfield in Chhendipada tehsil, the coal block with over 500 million tonne of fossil fuel reserve involves diversion of 436.47 ha of reserved forest and 316.21 ha of revenue forest. 

Environmentalists say nearly 99 per cent of the trees within the mining area, located about 5 kilometres from the Similipal-Satkosia tiger corridor, could be cut. 

Jayakrushna Panigrahi, working president of the Orissa Environmental Society, said the proposal goes far beyond a routine forest clearance. “The number is staggering... The figures indicate that almost the entire existing tree cover within the lease area is proposed to be destroyed,” he said, adding that mining, industrial expansion, roads, railways, and urbanisation have already caused extensive forest loss in Odisha. 

The FAC has directed that tree felling be phased and restricted to the minimum necessary. It also asked the state forest department and the project proponent to explore transplantation of trees below 30 centimetre girth, wherever technically feasible, and relocate at least 50 per cent of such trees to suitable nearby sites, in addition to compensatory afforestation.  Environmentalists, however, questioned whether transplantation and compensatory afforestation can offset the loss of a mature natural forest. “Compensatory afforestation should not become a justification for the destruction of natural forests,” said environmental campaigner Prashant Kumar Padhi. 

The project entails the displacement of 818 families and affects 1,584 families across five villages, raising concerns over the loss of forest resources and traditional livelihoods. 

Environmental lawyer Sankar Prasad Pani said Chhendipada, regarded as the “lungs” of Angul district, has seen a surge in coal mining approvals with little regard for ecological consequences. “Since 2020, at least 30 coal mines have been allotted and are at different stages of development. Five are already operational, with 100,000 trees felled,” he said. 

The FAC has directed the state government to implement rehabilitation and resettlement in line with the approved plan at the project proponent’s cost. It also made wildlife clearance conditional on a regional wildlife management plan. The state government has argued that the coal block is site-specific because economically mineable coal seams lie beneath the forest.

 

The block was auctioned by the Ministry of Coal, with Rungta Sons signing a coal block development and production agreement in October 2022 before the allotment was finalised in December that year, according to the FAC minutes reviewed by Business Standard.