TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: The actual mining of coal at the Raigarh district, Chhattisgarh, coal block allotted to Goa Industrial Development Corporation is expected to commence by December-end or beginning of January 2014, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar said Thursday.
The Union Ministry has given its approval for floating the tender and finalising the company to extract the coal and the process for this is likely to begin by August first week, Parrikar stated.
“The actual coal extraction from the coal block can begin by December-end or by January, next year,” he said.
Parrikar was speaking to media persons soon after chairing the GIDC board meeting Thursday morning.
The total area of land acquired in 2008 by the Goa government is 639 hectares, whereas projected area is 714.35 hectares.
Parrikar said that government has already started the process of purchasing power from the K S K Energy Venture Pvt Ltd, the power project development agency appointed for power generation.
GIDC, earlier last month, received environment clearance for the coal block from the Ministry of Environment and Forests.
However, the ministry is yet to give its forest clearance for the project. GIDC has also to obtain a mining lease from the Chhattisgarh government.
The State government is expected to get 1800 mega watt of power through this coal block. The government has recently constituted five-member steering committee to monitor the progress of the coal block, allotted to it in 2009.
