By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR: With Union Coal Ministry withdrawing few blocks in Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh out of the 41 Coal blocks put for commercial bidding after resistence from respective State Governments, wildlife activists and environmentalists have started opposing the auction of 9 blocks belongs to Odisha.
The 9 mines blocks including Chendipada I, Chendipada II, Machhakata, Mahanadi, Radhikapur (East), Radhikapur (West), Brahmanbil & Kardabahal, Kuraloi (A) North, and Phuljhari (East & West) were put for auction in Odisha. Most of these Blocks belongs Angul-Talcher coal Belt, close to Satkosia and Similipal Tiger Reserves.
The Naveen Patnaik led Government in Odisha, was expecting to get near about Rs 10,648 crore from 9 Coal Blocks of the total 41 put for auction for commercial coal mining. Of the 9 blocks, fierce bidding for Odisha’s Chendipada (40 MTPA) and Macchakatta (30 MTPA) blocks is expected along with Chhattisgarh’s Gare Pelma IV/1 (6 MTPA) coal mine, sources said.
The Union Coal Ministry had in July first week, said last date for purchase of Tender Document after payment of a fee of Rs. 5,00,000 (Rs. FiveLakh Only) per mine/ block on MSTC Limited website is 14.08.2020 and last date for submission of bid on MSTC Limited website is 1400 hours on 18.08.2020.Bidders will not be allowed to submit their bids beyond stipulated date and time.
As per Coal Ministry estimates, 41 coal mines are likely to produce about 225 million tonnes annually. It will require Rs 33,000 crore in capital expenditure to get these mines going and, at potential coal prices of Rs 1,500 to 2,000 per tonne, they are likely to generate about Rs 34,000 to Rs 45,000 crore in annual coal revenues.
Lok Shakti Abhiyan president Prafulla Samantara has written a letter to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and apprehended that there will be destruction of thousands acres of agriculture land in Chendipada area where there is coal under three feet beneath the earth. Similarly, huge forest areas will be lost in both two districts of Keonjhar and Jharsuguda.
He mentioned that another very sensitive deep green forest in the Gandhalpada area in Keonjhar district having nine lakh Saal trees, where auction for mining of iron ores would be done by the State Government, would be affected. “You can also stop the anti-people and anti-nature auction of rich natural resources of our State in the interest thousands’ right to livelihood and climate justice. I appeal you to stop the destruction in the name of development,” Samantara urged the CM.
“The present auction of 41 coal blocks will destroy lakhs of acres of forest and agricultural land in Odisha, Chhatisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Maharastra. In Angul and Jharsuguda districts 33,000 acres of forest and agricultural land will be diverted and the mining activities will pollute and create water scarcity in river Brahmani which has been already vulnerable to industrial and mining activities. In Jharkhand there will be huge loss of livelihood system of tribal communities. In Maharastra a tiger sanctuary will be affected along with land of tribals. In Madhya Pradesh 11 coal blocks are to be auctioned where as the State is surplus of power generation”, they argued.
Private players like Rungta Mines Limited, Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, JSW Steel-Energy, Essel Mining and Industries Ltd, Hindalco, Tatas, Sesa Goa, Vedanta Industries Ltd, Adani Group, Thriveni Earth Movers Pvt Ltd and global players like Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton, PesBody, Glencore and Vale are among those eyeing on Odisha’s Coal blocks.
26 companies have already bought the tender documents which costs Rs 5 lakh and 10 companies want to visit the proposed sites. The Ministry has appointed KPMG to handhold companies for mine visits, documentation and other such procedures.
