The government has paved way for starting one more mine in Pench-Satdpuda tiger corridor, a three km wide area identified as a regular route for the big cat to move from one forest to another. This corridor connects Pench and Satpuda tiger reserves and environmentalists have been strongly opposing mining activity in this area. The mines are in Chhindwara district and union urban development minister Kamal Nath who contests from the area was strongly in favour of starting the projects. This year, the ministry of environment and forests (MOEF), had allowed only underground mining in the patch, opening the gates for public sector undertaking Western Coalfields Ltd (WCL), a subsidiary of the Coal India Ltd (CIL). The MOEF, while giving a go-ahead, had put a rider that only CIL mines could operate in the corridor. However, Dhau North, a block which has the second highest capacity among the mines in the corridor was not allotted to WCL. So it could not be mined on account of the stipulation laid down by MOEF. Now the ministry of coal has brought even this block under CIL ambit, giving WCL the right to go ahead with the operations. WCL will now be able to operate four mines in the Pench-Satpuda tiger corridor.
Posted on: Fri, 05 Jul 2013 11:48:59 +0000
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