CCL pays Rs 73 crore to govt for land needed to expand Rajrappa mine

RAMGARH: Central Coalfields Limited (CCL), a subsidiary of Coal India Limited (CIL), will start mining in block-2 of Rajrappa colliery soon. CCL has decided to begin mining in the area for expansion of block-2 on government and forest land for which the firm has paid 73 crore to the land and revenue department. The process of transfer of forest land is underway.
Terming it a big jump in terms of coal production as well as coal dispatch to steel and power plants in various states in the fiscal year ended on March 31, Rajrappa area management on Saturday announced to start much-awaited block-2 mine expansion project on state and forest land putting the displacement issues on hold.
PN Yadav, general manager, Rajrappa area of CCL in Ramgarh district on Saturday said in a press meet that they registered a 77% growth in coal sales and the turnover went up to 558 crore compared to the previous fiscal year as Rajrappa area produced a total of 1.33 million tonnes of coal which is above the target of 1.3 million tonnes and registered a positive growth of 51% as compared to the previous fiscal year when the area faced a loss of 129 crore.
“We got the consent-to-operate (CTO) approval for patch one mine for five years through which the area could achieve target for next three years. The tender process for patch one mine is likely to begin very shortly,” the official said. The 1000 crore block-2 mine expansion project in Dhawaiya and Simarabera is delayed by nearly one decade. In all, 1200 acres of land is being acquired to excavate 73 million tones of coal reserve, said an official.