Expansion of mines: Cabinet gives its nod for land to ECL

Kolkata: The state Cabinet on Monday gave its nod for allotment of land to Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL) for setting up new pits and expansion of its coal mines and also allotted land to the Eastern Railways for setting up its freight corridor.

“The ECL had applied for land to the state for expansion of its coal mines in six places in Asansol and its adjoining areas. The Cabinet led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee cleared their proposal and six vested lands of the state government were allotted. Once these coal mines become fully functional, it will not only ensure employment but will also contribute to the economic growth of the area,“ Moloy Ghatak, state Labour minister and MLA from Asansol Uttar said.

The largest land to ECL spanning 15.51 acres has been given at Dalurbandh in Pandabeshwar. The other land parcels allotted are 2.52 acres under Asansol Municipal Corporation (AMC) area, 2.81 acres at Kenda in Jamuria, 6.39 acres at Damalia mouja, 1.95 acres at Bhanora under AMC and .08 acres at Pandabeshwar.

All the ECL mines will be OCPs (Open Cast Projects) doing away with underground mines as the extraction of coal from the latter is a costly proposition.

Earlier there were over 1.30 lakh people associated with ECL’s coal mines. However, several coal mines had closed and coal was extracted by a section of miscreants illegally from many such abandoned mines.

For the proposed freight corridor of Eastern Railways, 2.565 acres of land were allotted at Jamgam and another 1.003 acres under AMC.