New Delhi : More than 750 hectares of forest land in Odisha’s Angul district is likely to be diverted for mining at the proposed Alakananda coal mine, allotted to Rungta Sons Private Limited. The mining site is about 4.9 kilometres from the Similipal-Satkosia Gorge tiger corridor and 8.5 km from the Sambalpur elephant reserve. In recent years, the site and its surrounding areas have witnessed the presence of not only elephants but also sloth bears and leopards, among other wild animals.
The forest-land diversion, leading to the felling of more than 3.3 lakh trees, was recommended for stage-1 (in-principle) approval by the environment ministry’s Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) at its meeting on July 7.
The stage-I clearance stipulates conditions, including compensatory afforestation, which must be fulfilled before the stage-II formal diversion approval can be granted.
At the meeting, the committee also observed that the mining site’s eastern and southern boundaries are flanked by the Olhani river.
The Tikra river, a tributary of the Brahmani river, flows about 750 metres north of the proposed mining lease area.
The proposed project also involves the displacement of 818 families and affects 1,584 families across five villages.
The FAC has recommended approval based on several conditions, including that the state government must ensure a safety barrier with a minimum width of 50 metres on either side of the Olhani river.
Another condition is the implementation of a regional wildlife-management plan, as approved by the chief wildlife warden, according to the minutes of the meeting.
The minutes of the meeting also state that the “tree felling shall be carried out in a phased manner, in consultation with the state forest department and in accordance with the approved mining plan, mine-closure plan and the guidelines of the forest department”.
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