CUTTACK: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued notices to the central and state governments over allegations of diversion of forest land for the purpose of an opencast coal mining project in Chhendipada tehsil area of Angul district.
A petition filed by Jharana Dehury and eight other residents of Chendipada alleged that the transfer of over 643 hectares of reserve forest land to Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) for the coal mining project was illegal as the Forest Rights Act, 2006 has not been implemented at all stages of the approval process as on date, and tree felling and construction activities are being proceeded with.
Around 1,05,092 trees are proposed to be felled in Chhendipada Reserve Forest and hundreds of trees in other forest and non-forest areas for the mining project. Thus, the rights of the petitioners and other Scheduled Tribe population in the proposed project area has been affected, the petitioners alleged.
SCCL is a joint venture company of government of India and government of Telangana. Advocate Sankar Prasad Pani represented the petitioners.
Taking note of it, the NGT’s east zone bench of B Amit Sthalekar (Judicial Member) and Dr Arun Kumar Verma (Expert Member) issued notices to secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), additional chief secretary of state Forest and Environment department, Angul collector and DFO, and SCCL.