State-owned Coal India Ltd has plans to develop 36 new mining projects in the next five years, Coal and Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy has said.
In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, Reddy said while Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) plans to develop seven new mines in the next five years, NLC India Ltd (NLCIL) is expected to open two new blocks.
The Coal Ministry has allocated a total of 175 coal blocks. Of these, 65 blocks have received mine opening permissions of which 54 are presently operational.
The country produced 997.8 million tonnes (MT) of coal in 2023-24 against 893.191 MT in 2022-23, the minister said.
The coal mining projects require extensive land, which often includes forest areas, leading to displacement of habitation, and loss of livelihoods with impact on the environment. However, for mitigation of environmental impacts, a detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is conducted for each project, considering both pre and post-mining conditions.
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