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The uncertainty over the fate of the Morga II coal block allocated to the Gujarat Mineral Development Corp (GMDC) continues as the meeting of a Group of Ministers, headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, on the issue remained inconclusive on Monday.
The ministerial panel met to deliberate on the coal block in Chhattisgarh, which faces a threat of being de-allocated on the back of delay in production and also to look into a report by the an Environment Ministry panel on identifying “inviolate” forest areas where mining could be barred.
However, the GoM panel chair, Pawar, said no decision has been taken yet. The next meeting of the panel is likely to take place only after the presentation of the Budget.
This was the first meeting of the panel after Pawar took over as the chair of the GoM, which was earlier headed by the then Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.
Fixing parameters
According to sources, the Environment Ministry wants to fix parameters for areas in which mining would not be allowed to be called “inviolate” areas.
Earlier the ministerial panel had scrapped the idea of go and no-go areas, which was proposed by the former Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh.
The panel has decided that all projects would be decided on case-to-case basis.
Inviolate areas, which could include forests, national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, tiger reserves and elephant corridors, could affect a number of proposed coal projects.
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