Shillong:
Over 91,000 metric tonnes of the two lakh metric tonnes of extracted coal have been auctioned so far.
The NGT committee had approved two lakh metric tonnes of coal for auction in March, 2020 on a pilot basis.
The Mining and Geology department has decided to auction the remaining coal, sources said.
The delay in auctioning and transporting the approved quantity has been attributed to the long time taken to ferry the coal from the mines to the designated depots set up by the Coal India Limited.
Another reason is that the miners feel the rate fixed for transporting the coal is not profitable to them. “After the 10 per cent, which should be given to the CIL, and royalty to the government, they (miners) will get only Rs 1,400,” a source said. According to the sources, the rate fixed is Rs 2,300 compared to the market price at Rs 3,000 – Rs 4,000.
In March 2020, the NGT panel had approved on a pilot basis auctioning of 2 lakh MT out of the 32 lakh MT of coal in the state. This was based on the Supreme Court’s ruling passed on July 3, last year.
Of this, 75,000 MT of coal is in East Jaintia Hills, 50,000 MT Â in West Khasi Hills, 25,000 MT in South West Khasi Hills and 50,000 MTin South Garo Hills. The state is expected to generate revenue amounting to Rs 20 crore from the 2 lakh MT of coal approved and roughly Rs 500 crore from the transportation of 32 lakh MT of coal.