Hasdeo Forests Mining Clearance Sparks Environmental Concern

The Environment Ministry has officially granted environmental clearance (EC) for mining in the Kente extension integrated coal block located in Chhattisgarh's Hasdeo-Arand forests. This project is projected to yield 9 million tonnes of coal annually, with the final clearance issued on June 24 following an earlier in-principle forest approval. The Adani Group will act as the developer and operator for the block, which is allotted to Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Ltd, intended to supply coal to thermal power plants in Rajasthan.

The Hasdeo-Arand region, known as the green lungs of Central India, remains a focal point of intense environmental conflict. Despite a 2021 biodiversity assessment by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) recommending that mining be restricted due to severe ecological risks, this is the third major coalfield approved in the area. The project involves the felling of approximately 4.48 lakh trees over time and will require the rehabilitation of 56 local families. The forest serves as a vital corridor for elephants and leopards, raising significant concerns about biodiversity loss in an unfragmented habitat.

Local tribal communities and the Congress party have voiced strong opposition to the project, citing the threat to traditional forest-dependent livelihoods and widespread environmental degradation. While the state government has been directed to follow strict phased felling and tree translocation protocols, critics argue that these measures are insufficient to offset the irreversible loss of high-density forest cover. As site development begins, the conflict between industrial energy requirements and biodiversity conservation remains a major point of contention in Chhattisgarh’s current developmental agenda.