The Union Ministry of Coal has proposed that the mine-bearing states will have the authority to choose which legal purview they will follow to award land to private coal miners under commercial coal auction.
This comes after some mine-bearing states protested that the Centre is breaching their rights to approve land acquisition for private coal miners.
The ministry has proposed that states can choose between the Coal Bearing Areas (Acquisition & Development) Act 1957 or the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (RFCTLAAR) Act 2013.
In order to ease the coal mining process for the upcoming commercial coal auction, the Centre was mulling to allow land acquisition under the Coal Bearing Areas Act 1957. This will entail the Centre acquiring land and then giving it on lease to private miners
Additionally, the Centre will also de-centralise the process of land acquisition for private coal miners. The land officers in the states will oversee the process of land acquisition for private coal miners. The Centre will have no role and states will have full authority.
The approval for land acquisition by the central public sector utilities, including national miner Coal India, would remain the purview of the Centre.
The Centre had started the coal mine auction for commercial mining and sale by private companies in June 2020. The online auction of coal blocks for commercial mining and sale for private companies will commence in October 2020 and final winners declared in November 2020.