Stalin urges Modi to exclude Cauvery Delta area from coal mine auction

Tamil Nadu CM says valuable farm lands and food security of Tamil Nadu's people are at stake; points out that state govt wasn't consulted prior floating tender

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the exclusion of three coal blocks in Tamil Nadu's Cauvery Delta area from the recent bidding process for coal by the Centre government. The coal blocks in question are East of Sethiathope, Michaelpatti and Vadaseri.

The nominated authority under the ministry of coal had invited the 17th/7th tranche of auction under the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2005, Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 for coal and lignite on March 29. Of the 101 blocks put up for auction across the country, three are in Tamil Nadu.

“Neither was the concurrence of the Government of Tamil Nadu obtained prior to the floating of the tender nor was the State Government consulted in this matter. It is unfortunate that the Ministry of Coal, Government of India, has proceeded unilaterally with no consultation with the states in such a sensitive matter,” Stalin's letter said.

“Given the fact that valuable agricultural lands are involved and the food security of the people of Tamil Nadu is at stake, it would be appropriate if the three mining blocks in Tamil Nadu – Vadaseri, Michaelpatti and East of Sethiathoppe- proposed for auction in the 7th/17th Tranche of Auction, are excluded from the auction process by the issue of a necessary corrigendum,” he added.

Michaelpatti is in Udayarpalayam Taluk of Ariyalur district, East of Sethiathope in Bhuvanagiri Taluk of Cuddalore district and Vadaseri is in Orathanadu Taluk of Thanjavur district. Vadaseri and East of Sethiathope fall within the Protected Agricultural Zone under the Tamil Nadu Protected Agriculture Zone Development Act, 2020, while the Michaelpatti Block falls in a major paddy growing area adjoining a very fertile part of the Cauvery Delta.

He said that Under Section 4(1) of the Act, “no person shall undertake any new project or new activity specified in the Second Schedule in the protected agricultural zone”. The projects covered in the Second Schedule and thus prohibited include “Exploration, drilling and extraction of oil and natural gas including coal-bed methane, shale gas and other similar hydrocarbons”.

“The present tender conditions include the exploitation of coal bed methane and hence are covered within the prohibition of the Tamil Nadu Protected Agriculture Zone Development Act, 2020. This implies that even if the tender process is conducted and a successful bidder identified, it would not be possible to take up the mining project. Hence, the auction process is a wasteful exercise in so far as the identified blocks in Tamil Nadu are concerned. Had the State Government been consulted prior to the issue of the notification, these issues could have been clarified and the unnecessary disquiet caused by the issue of the notification for auction could have been avoided,” he added.