15 projects of Coal India stuck due to delay in environmental clearance, land acquisition

• A total of five out of 15 delayed Coal India projects are awaiting forest or environmental clearance, said Pralhad Joshi

• The rest have been held up because of issues pertaining to land acquisition and R&R, the minister said

New Delhi: A total of 15 coal mine projects of Coal India Ltd (CIL) are held up due to delay in environmental clearance, land acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R) even as the Centre has placed an increased emphasis on increasing India's coal production. The number was shared by Union Minister for Coal Pralhad Joshi in the Rajya Sabha on Monday. "There are 15 coal mining projects, which are running behind schedule on account of EC, Land and R&R," Joshi told the Upper House of Parliament in a written response on the first day of the Winter Session.

5 Coal India projects awaiting forest, environmental clearance

A total of five out of 15 delayed Coal India projects are awaiting forest or environmental clearance. The rest have been held up because of issues pertaining to land acquisition and R&R, the minister told the House. All these projects, except for one, are open cast projects. The projects have a sanctioned cost of Rs 4,404.12 crore.

Out of 15 stuck projects, six project belong to South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL), three belong to Central Coalfields Ltd (CCL), two belong to Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL), two belong to Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL), while one belongs to Bharat Coking Coal Ltd (BCCL) and Western Coalfields Ltd (WCL).

121 coal mining projects under implementation

The minister also said that a total of 121 coal mining projects of Coal India are under implementation. "As on 30.09.2021, there are 121 coal mining ongoing projects costing Rs 20 crores and above with a sanctioned capacity of 903.81 Mty and sanctioned capital of about Rs 1,32,337.11 crores, which are in different stages of implementation," said Joshi.

The government has set a target of 1 Billion Tonne coal production for Coal India Ltd (CIL) by 2024-25. With energy transition underway, India's window for utilisation of coal is restricted. Despite having the world's second-largest coal reserves, India imports over 230 MT of coal. If it fails to exploit its coal reserves within the given window, India will not be able to make use of its reserves. The government is also pushing for ways and is encouraging the development of technology for cleaner utilisation of coal.

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