Raipur, Jan 8 (PTI) Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Saturday said 39 coal mines that fall in the limits of the proposed Lemru Elephant Reserve in the northern part of the state will not be allocated for mining.
Talking to reporters at the helipad in Police Lines here, Baghel said the state government has informed the Centre that these mines will not be considered for auctioning.
“At least 39 mines are within the limits of Lemru elephant corridor, hence, the question of mining in there does not arise. No further activities will take place in mines allotted to Chhattisgarh or other states in the area,” the chief minister said.
The state government’s publication regarding the elephant reserve has already been sent to the Centre and it was also informed about this during a virtual meeting (with Union Coal and Mines minister Pralhad Joshi), he said.
In the virtual meeting of Baghel and Joshi on Friday, the state officials informed that the Gidhamuri-Paturia coal block and Madanpur South coal block, which fall under the reserve limits, will not be considered for auctioning and mining, a government statement said.
In August 2019, the state cabinet had decided to develop an elephant reserve in 1,995.48 sq km area in Surguja division, considering the constant rise in the elephant population in the region and to prevent incidents of human-elephant conflicts.
Meanwhile, Alok Shukla, the convener of Chhattisgarh Bachao Andolan (CBA), which fights for the rights of tribals and mining-affected people, said he welcomes the state government’s decision.
Shukla, however, questioned why the state government was silent about the coal blocks located in the adjoining areas of the reserve in the same biodiversity-rich Hasdeo Arand region.
“We welcome the Bhupesh Baghel government’s decision to not allow coal mining in the reserve area. But why is it silent about the nearby Parsa and Kente Extension blocks, which fall in Surguja district where tribals have been protesting against mining. Why three blocks in Tara to Pendrakhi area in the same region were excluded from the reserve area?” Shukla asked. PTI TKP ARU ARU
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