Kolkata: Stating that "wheels of development in Bengal won't stop even in times of crisis", Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that Deocha Pachami Coal Block project in Birbhum will come up as a model for the entire country and it will be executed in phased manner with full support of people.
In a tweet, Banerjee stated: "Chief Secretary Shri Rajiva Sinha ji, other senior state and district officials have held detailed consultation with the people of Mohammad Bazar Block at Deocha. The entire coal mining project was explained at length and all queries by the relevant stakeholders were addressed."
She further stated: "We will create a model for India to execute large projects like Deocha Pachami Coal Block. This shall be done in phases and with full public support by adopting best mining practices in a time bound manner. Wheels of development in Bengal won't stop even in times of crises."
Mining at Deocha Pachami coal block in Birbhum is expected to begin after Durga Puja with the assurance given by the state government to local residents on Thursday of initiating work only after providing them with a proper rehabilitation package.
The meeting of Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha with around 40 people including representatives of local residents and authorities ended with a positive note.
Land Revenue Commissioner Manoj Pant and Managing Director of West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDCL) PB Salim also attended the meeting.
There are around 35 villages with a population of around 4,000 of which many are from tribal communities. Most importantly, local people have shown a "very positive" attitude towards the project as it likely would boost the economy, said a senior state government
official.
He further said that initially the work on 500 acres of land will be taken up in the first phase. But before mining, "the exploration work" will be carried out to prepare a proper roadmap to initiate the mining activities at the Deocha Pachami that has an inferred reserve of 2.1 billion tons.