No need for alternate block allocation policy: CoalMin

When coal secretary Alok Perti said this cannot be done as per the existing policy guidelines,the home ministry officials wanted to know the hurdles in amending the policy.

The coal ministry has shot down the suggestion of a Group of Ministers GoM to formulate a policy on allocating alternate blocks to captive consumers in lieu of their existing ones saying there is no provision in the extant guidelines to do so.

It has said that since fresh blocks would now be allocated on a competitive bidding basis,it is impossible to entertain demands for alternate blocks,as this would trigger similar demands from all those users who have been hit by the Union Environments Ministrys go,no-go system.

In a recent note to the GoM,which will meet on May 30,the coal ministry said that while there are no provisions in the extant guidelines to allocate alternate blocks,there is also no precedence in this connection either.

It is further reiterated that after the commencement of the Amended Mines and Minerals Development amp; Regulation Act 2010,it is not possible to consider any allotment under the previous system of allocation, the coal ministry said.

The ministrys response came post a March 1 directive from the inter-ministerial panel stating that a policy should be framed on allocation of alternate coal blocks for the existing allocatees.

At the meeting,environment ministry top brass said that they have recommended an alternate block in lieu of Morga -II allocated to Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation for which the user agency has agreed and identified the Bhalmunda block.

When coal secretary Alok Perti said this cannot be done as per the existing policy guidelines,the home ministry officials wanted to know the hurdles in amending the policy. The coal ministry said that it is not the prerogative of any company to identify a block and request for the same.

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The coal ministry has no knowledge of MoEF agreeing to accord clearances to Bhalmunda block. Further it would be unfair to allocate this block with huge reserves in comparison to Morga-II, it said and cited that PSUs like SAIL,NTPC and Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited have surrendered blocks allotted to them citing various reasons including difficult geo-mining conditions.

Although they too had urged for alternate blocks,but all along the coal ministry maintained a that there are no guidelines to this effect and accordingly it cannot make such a commitment.