Ministry Asks Coal India Unit to Give Details of 14 Projects Awaiting Clearances: Report

The Coal Ministry has asked Central Coalfields Ltd, a subsidiary of Coal India Ltd (CIL), to provide details of its 14 projects that are awaiting clearances, including those pertaining to environment and forest.

CIL has made a presentation before Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal on its projects awaiting environment and forest clearances.

"I have been made nodal officer for monitoring these 14 projects with a view to fast-track and expedite their development," a Coal Ministry official said.

"I shall be grateful if a brief note on each of the 14 projects inter-alia incorporating status of the pending approvals, especially with regard to EC/FC (Environment clearance/Forest Clearance)" be submitted, he said.

Some of the 14 projects awaiting clearances are Panchra Integrated OC (Open Cast), Koed-Manatu-Saradhu OC/Sanghamitra OC, Ashok Expn OC and Pundi Expn OC.

During the presentation to Mr Goyal, Coal India had said that expediting clearances to its projects, stuck due to regulatory hurdles, would lead to crucial contribution to overall coal production of the PSU.

State-owned CIL is awaiting environment and forestry clearances pertaining to 241 projects, amid the company drawing flak for not achieving its production target.

As many as 48 environmental clearance proposals, having a capacity of about 109 million tonnes, are awaiting clearances at different levels, CIL had earlier said.

Moreover, 193 forestry proposals are awaiting clearances either at the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) or at state levels, it had said.

CIL, which accounts for over 80 per cent of the country's coal production, missed its output target of 482 MT in the last fiscal year. It produced only 462 MT.