Environment ministry to boost coal mining on degraded forest land

19 June 2009

Aiming to speed up bureaucratic clearances and aid coal production, the environment and the coal ministry have agreed to delineate degraded forest lands for mining activities. The six-point agenda would make it faster to obtain forest and environment clearances for mining projects.

About 55 per cent of the land under forests falls under the degraded category. The remaining moderate and densely forested land will remain closed for mining activities.

This agenda was made public by environment minister Jairam Ramesh and the coal minister Sriprakash Jaiswal at a press conference.

''Much of our problems of delay in giving clearances will end once this distinction is made between degraded and non-degraded areas,'' said Jairam Ramesh.

The agenda is aimed at increasing overall coal production in the country.

At present, the coal production stands at around 500 million tonnes a year. ''If we do not reach a production level of 1 billion tonnes, our power plants will not materialise,'' Ramesh said.