Coal news and updates

More than 70 coal drilling projects awaiting FC

February 26: Despite the NDA government’s stress on expediting Green clearances, there has not been any improvement in the case of clearances for drilling projects in coal exploration, a senior official of Central Mine Planning and Design Institute told ICMW.

“As of today, more than 70 project proposals for forestry clearances are pending with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MEFCC), both at Central and state levels. The situation has remained more or less the same as it was before the new government came to power in May 2014,” the official said.

In fact, at the start of the current financial year (April 2014), the pendency was a little less, at around 62 projects, he said.

Besides delay in clearances, law and order issues in states like Jharkhand and Bihar are posing hurdles for exploration projects, the official added.