Industry Odisha Bureau, April 13: The Ministry of Coal is not able to auction 66 coal mines under the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015, due to various reasons including some coming under the notified Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZ), officials said.
Out of the total 204 coal mines under the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015, 138 coal mines have been successfully allocated by the Ministry of Coal. Remaining 66 coal mines could not be auctioned due to various reasons, officials said.
According to the official sources, 42 blocks could not be put up for auction due to constraints, including overlap with Coal Bed. Methane (CBM) blocks, location within notified Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZ), and presence of substantial built-up areas etc. which affect mining & statutory clearances.
Similarly, 24 blocks could not be auctioned despite offering in auctions due to lack of response primarily on account of limited geological attractiveness, small extractable reserves, adverse mining conditions or lack of market interest.
Coal mining projects are covered under the EIA Notification, 2006 issued by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
As per the extant regulatory framework, prior Environmental Clearance (EC) is mandatory before commencement of any new coal mining project, as well as for expansion or modernization beyond the prescribed threshold limits.
In view of the above statutory provisions, coal mines are not permitted to operate without obtaining requisite Environmental Clearance.
Environmental non-compliances relating to land and water are dealt with under Sections 5, 15 and 19 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 read with Rule 4 of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986.
The action is guided by the Standard Operating Procedure (SoP) issued vide Office Memorandum dated 25.11.2022 for post-environmental clearance monitoring and compliance, which prescribes a structured mechanism including seeking clarification, issuance of Show Cause Notice and concluding action.
Two Central Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), Coal India Limited (CIL) and NLC India Limited (NLCIL) have collected a total revenue of Rs 13,960.50 crore from their coal mining operations in Odisha during a period of years.
The CIL is a Maharatna Company and NLC India Limited is a ‘Navratna’ Central PSU under the Ministry of Coal.
According to official data, CIL has earned a revenue of Rs 12,741.80 crore and the NLCIL collected Rs 1218.70 crore revenue during the financial years 2022-23 to 2024-25.
The revenue was generated from their operations in the districts of Angul, Jharsuguda, Sundergarh and Sambalpur. While the CIL has its operations in Angul, Jharsuguda and Sundergarh districts, the NLC India Ltd is operating coal mines only in Sambalpur district.
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