CIL’s former CMD AK Jha appointed head of panel that examines environmental violations

Former CMD of Coal India Limited Anil Kumar Jha has been appointed as Chairman of Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) formed by the Environment Ministry

New Delhi: Former Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of Coal India Limited (CIL) Anil Kumar Jha has been appointed as Chairman of Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC), an important panel under the aegis of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change that examines cases of environmental violations. EAC is a body that exists at the union as well as the state level (state expert appraisal committee or SEAC) to advise the government on environmental clearance of development projects. This panel was constituted in June 2017 for three years and its tenure has been extended till June 2021.

The EACs' primary role in the environmental clearance (EC) process is to give recommendations to the Environment Ministry on project proposals after considering the potential impacts of the project. Based on these recommendations, the Ministry either rejects the proposal or grants a clearance with conditions which would mitigate the impact on the environment or compensate for the same.

AK Jha

Jha is an Engineering Postgraduate (M Tech) in mining engineering with distinction from the Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad (now IIT). He began his career in the coal mining industry, in 1983, at Central Coalfields Limited (CCL). He had held many important assignments and senior positions in CCL, including that as General Manager, Argada Area. He had a 14-year stint in Central Mine Planning & Design Institute (CMPDI), the Ranchi-based consultancy arm of CIL. He took over as CMD of Coal India on May 18, 2018. Prior to the assumption of charge as CIL CMD, Jha had headed Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) as its CMD. He retired as CMD of Coal India in January 2020.

Jha is the recipient of the 'Best Chief Executive' Award conferred by GeoMine Tech for outstanding performance of MCL during 2017-18.

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